Let's face it. Solo business travel can sometimes be downright boring and lonesome, especially when kicking back in your hotel room. One hotel chain has a novel concept to add a little extra color, comfort and companionship.
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Goldfish in bowl
San Francisco-based Kimpton Hotels, a collection of boutique hotels in the U.S. and Canada, offers guests a little "Guppy Love" at many of their nearly 50 hotels. The Guppy Love program gives guest the option to request a live goldfish for an overnight stay in their guest room.
And you never have to worry about feeding or caring for the fish. Hotel staff are on-hand daily to take care of the stress-reducing and calming in-room live "amenity."
I consider myself a well-traveled road warrior, but I just learned of this cool program yesterday. It began in 2001 and continues to make a splash with guests to this day.
In addition to having a fish in your room, Kimpton Hotels will also place the fish in on-site meeting rooms and banquet halls. According to the press release, one Fortune 500 CEO was so mesmerized by his goldfish that he requested its presence as a table centerpiece at a meeting the following day to help participants relax and focus.
Participating Guppy Love hotels include:
- FireSky Resort and Spa — Scottsdale, Arizona
- Pacific Palisades Hotel — Vancouver, B.C.
- Cypress Hotel — Cupertino, California
- Argonaut Hotel — San Francisco, California
- Harbor Court Hotel — San Francisco, California
- Hotel Monaco — San Francisco, California
- Hotel Palomar — San Francisco, California
- Hotel Monaco — Denver, Colorado
- Hotel Monaco — Washington, D.C.
- Hotel Palomar — Washington, D.C.
- EPIC Hotel — Miami, Florida
- Burnham Hotel — Chicago, Illinois
- Hotel Monaco — Chicago, Illinois
- Hotel Marlowe — Cambridge, Massachusetts
- Hotel Monaco — Baltimore, Maryland
- Hotel Monaco — Portland, Oregon
- Hotel Vintage Plaza — Portland, Oregon
- Hotel Palomar — Dallas, Texas
- Hotel Monaco — Salt Lake City, Utah
- Hotel Monaco — Alexandria, Virginia
- Hotel Palomar — Arlington, Virginia
- Hotel Monaco — Seattle, Washington
- Hotel Vintage Park — Seattle, Washington
And just a helpful reminder. Kimpton Hotels also allows pets at all properties, so you might want to leave fluffy the cat at home if you want to take advantage of some "Guppy Love."
Another hotel is getting in on this soothing in-room amenity, too. The University Plaza Hotel in Springfield, Missouri also offers guests a goldfish companion.
