This Content Is Only For Subscribers
Holiday Inn Express by IHG has unveiled a hotel experience designed to transform mornings, one mouth-watering scent at a time. The new Breakfast Alarm Clock wakes guests with the irresistible smell of breakfast instead of a blaring alarm.
The in-room device is available at all Holiday Inn Express hotels in New Zealand and Australia, as well as participating hotels in Singapore, Thailand and Japan. The initiative highlights the brand’s hallmark offering of free hot breakfast, turning it into an immersive wake-up experience.
Guests can select their preferred wake-up aroma and will be gently roused by a diffuser-style scent alarm – no jarring beeps, just the smell of their favourite breakfast.
The concept was inspired by research commissioned by Holiday Inn Express, which found 57 per cent of New Zealanders say a pleasant smell helps them feel better when they wake up, especially while travelling. Popular choices included coffee or tea (56 per cent), bacon and eggs (44 per cent), and baked goods (40 per cent). These have been captured in three scents available with the Breakfast Alarm Clock: coffee, bacon and blueberry muffin.
IHG Hotels & Resorts vice president of commercial, East Asia & Pacific, Dean Jones says the device helps guests reclaim their mornings.
“Holiday Inn Express is about offering guests more of what matters, so we wanted to take this to new heights with something they’ll never forget. Waking up and maintaining a routine while travelling can be harder than it sounds, which the research underscored for us. But we also know the power of scent: that first whiff of coffee or sizzling bacon can work wonders – especially when it’s free,” says Dean.
The Breakfast Alarm Clock is also being rolled out at selected hotels in Singapore, Thailand and Osaka, Japan. Regional scents include mango in Singapore and Thailand, and nashi pear in Japan, alongside coffee and blueberry muffin.
The experience adds to the brand’s broader sleep offerings, from a choice of soft and firm pillows to blackout blinds, power showers and bedside charging ports.
The Breakfast Alarm Clock is available for a limited time from October. Guests can book their stay and select their scent at: hiexpress.com/freebreakfast
.
