Around the country, the calendar has signaled a return to school, but many students are staying home to learn remotely due to lingering concerns about the pandemic. The upside of that situation is a new marketing opportunity for hotels they call “schoolcations.”
As reported by ABC News, PR director at the Four Seasons Resort Punta Mita, Miguel Peregrina, told ABC News’ Good Morning America, “We were still in confinement, and many of these services were required by [the guests]. So, we capitalized all this, and presented the offer under this [schoolcation] concept.”
Amenities for such packages include Wi-Fi, of course, as well as rooms dedicated for the students to do school work in. Some even provide tutors and tech support.
The Poconos’ Shawnee Inn promotes its schoolcation with an assurance that kids “can continue their remote education in a safe, clean and monitored learning environment.” The upside for parents is that they can relax while their kids’ school needs are taken care of with no extra charge.
But kids deserve some fun, too, and it goes on to say they will have a good time:
“What makes Schoolcations at Shawnee special are our ‘extracurricular” activities. From stretching and art to guided hikes and lawn games, Shawnee offers a hands-on experience missing from most online curriculums.”
Other hotels are offering similar packages, all to try to attract parents and children who crave a change of scenery after their home has become the site of not just living but working and studying.
“Every crisis has an opportunity, if you’re able to see it when it happens,” the owner and innkeeper of Historic Smithton Inn told Market Watch. “Try to keep your eyes open… [asking] how am I going to pivot?”
While her inn is not featuring schoolcations, it is doing something similar in catering to people from not so far away who are looking to get away from home for a while. She made sure to get the equipment and the Wi-Fi up to speed to accommodate the demands of “‘work-cation’” guests.
The schoolcation trend is a variation on that new school approach to accommodating nontraditional guests as hotels adapt to survive.