What Women Want

As International Women’s Day approaches, SHe Travel Club reveals 90 per cent of female travellers aren’t getting what they want from hotels

SHe Travel Club, a disruptive, new, travel label is seeking to bring safety and comfort to all female travellers, after a global study of 5,000 women* revealed that 90 per cent aren’t getting what they want from a hotel stay.

With women representing 64 per cent of global travellers**, SHe Travel Club has launched in the UK, ahead of International Women’s Day, with a promise to make female travellers “safe & happy everywhere” (SHe). It is the first and only label to grade hotels by their efforts to meet the needs of women guests; the four main criteria being safety, comfort, services & amenities, and dining & entertainment.

All the hotels in the SHe Travel Club collection provide a SHe Signature Kit on request, which includes make-up remover, nail polish remover, and sanitary products. They also offer services and facilities targeted to the needs of women and guests who share those needs or appreciate the same comforts when they travel, including lit corridors and spyholes in guestroom doors to hand-held shower heads.

SHe Travel Club founder and president, Valerie Hoffenberg, a former French diplomat, serial entrepreneur, and gender equality expert, said: “My job as an ambassador took me all over the world and I was always frustrated that the hotels I stayed in didn’t meet some of my basic needs. Simple things like supplying sanitary products and nail varnish and make-up remover, having separate shampoo and conditioner, equipping rooms with a full-length mirror and a magnifying mirror, or even just having a bathrobe and slippers to fit a smaller frame, make a huge difference to female guests. Our study also revealed that female guests want to maintain their healthy lifestyle when they travel and really appreciate hotels that offer healthy meal options in their restaurants and on their room service menus.

“But, more than that, many women, especially if they are travelling solo or with children, can feel vulnerable in a hotel. Training front desk staff to discreetly inform the guest of their room number when they hand the key over, so that it can’t be overheard by others in the lobby; providing rooms with a double lock door and a spyhole so that guests can check before answering the door to room service; having lit corridors and 24-hour front desk presence; make all guests, especially women, feel more secure. Guides to safe running routes in the neighbourhood; being close to public transport and even offering transfers to the hotel from the airport or train station are also really important.

“My own experiences, coupled with the results of a survey we conducted of 5,000 women, in which nine out of 10 said that hotels do not adapt their services and facilities sufficiently to meet their needs, inspired me to launch SHe Travel Club, the first and only label that promises to empower female travellers.”

Membership is free and provides women, and those who identify as women, with access to the collection of SHe certified hotels, including a promo code which entitles them to exclusive offers and welcome gifts from certified hotels. Members also receive top tips and travel guides, access to competitions, and personalised information about any upcoming trips booked through SHe Travel Club.

The collection currently features 200+ hotels in 36 countries, including the hotel chains Accor, Louvre Hotel Group, and Intercontinental Hotel Group. The hotels pay an annual fee to be audited and certified by SHe Travel Club and are awarded either a silver, gold or platinum label, based on their performance under four main criteria: safety, comfort, services & amenities, and dining & entertainment.

Members perusing the SHe Travel Club website can filter by destination, experience – for example, spa, city-break, seaside, budget-break, or business – and label.

When they click on a hotel they will see the full list of female-friendly criteria available, depending on whether the hotel is certified silver, gold, or platinum label. All hotels must meet a minimum set of criteria to obtain the label, including providing a SHe Signature Kit, on request, at check-in, which contains make-up remover, nail polish remover, and sanitary products.

SHe Travel club will also debut it “Best Hotels for Women” awards on 7 March as part of its call to the hospitality sector to make gender equality a priority for both female customers and employees.

“We want to empower women to travel “safe and happy everywhere” by challenging hotels to adapt their offering to meet the expectations of their female guests,” continued Hoffenberg. “Members of SHe Travel Club can book any of the hotels in our growing collection with the confidence that the hotel knows and respects their needs and will go the extra mile to make them feel secure and comfortable during their stay.”

For more information and to become a member, please go to www.shetravelclub.com.