February 4, 2014
Four Seasons Resort Rancho Encantado Sante Fe, NM, teamed up with Adventure Partners to provide guests with opportunities for experiencing the culture and history of the region through its new Adventure Center.
The Adventure Center allows guests to meet with adventure guides, learn about New Mexican culture and arrange a customized trip. As luxury consumers continue to more insistently seek out original and authentic experiences, having such a center will likely become the norm.
"The idea for the Adventure Center came about as a centralized spot where our guests could be inspired for the many adventures available in northern New Mexico," said Kim Cole, director of public relations at Four Seasons Resort Rancho Encantado Santa Fe, Scottsdale, AZ.
"We have a formal partnership in place with Adventure Partners, who can customize a variety of excursions for our guests," she said.
Exploring culture
Guests visiting Four Seasons Sante Fe are encouraged to spend time at the Adventure Center prior to excursions, where they can customize adventures with the help of travel experts.
Four Seasons Sante Fe
The center will also be equipped with exercise equipment such as mountain bikes, trekking poles and showshoes, as well as a collection of books pertaining to exploring the area.
Four Seasons Sante Fe
An Experience Assistant will also be on hand to book adventures for guests and develop itineraries.
Experience Assistant with guests at Four Seasons Santa Fe
A complimentary, daily 1.2 mile hike, the Camino Encantado, allows guests to view the surrounding Sangre de Cristo and Jemez Mountains to learn more about the history, flora and fauna of Rancho Encantado.
Three-hour excursions include a downhill mountain bike tour, a hiking tour to a waterfall and an exploration of the Tsankawi archaeological site.
Half-day trips showcase tours that delve into the surrounding culture, history and geography.
Four Seasons Santa Fe
For instance, guests can tour Santa Fe through the lens of three cultures: Native American, Hispanic and Anglo.
Another half-day trip explores the history of the Pueblo.
The sole full-day trip currently available brings guests to landscapes that inspired the paintings of Georgia O'Keefe.
More information can be found here.
New models
Home-sharing companies led by Airbnb have raised pressing concerns for hotel brands that now have to contend with an ultra-specific, growing and disruptive trend.
Airbnb has clearly struck a crude oil-like vein in the consumer imagination, as more than 500,000 listings in 34,000 cities have erupted to meet the nascent demand. As more consumers consider the merits of the sharing ecosystem, luxury hotels may begin to devise some alternative strategies (see story).
Other Four Seasons properties have incorporated flexible ideas to meet the modern consumer.
For instance, Four Seasons Hotel Bangkok is testing the culinary preferences of local residents and travelers with a pop-up Charcuterie Room for three months that began Jan. 20.
The new pop-up venue aims to be a hot post-work destination for consumers looking to relax with international deli fare. The pop-up structure allows the hotel to quickly measure preferences, experiment with new concepts in short periods of time and develop an experience that is more enduring if visitor feedback is positive (see story).
In addition to having more hooks for reeling in traffic, the Santa Fe location is able to get to know guests on a better level through the project.
"So far, the hiking tours have proven to be the most popular, although we are seeing quite a bit of interest in the Abiquiu trip and the High Road Pilgrimage," Ms. Cole said. "The experts help guests discover which tour is the best fit for them and their group.
"For example, a couple very interested in the arts might opt to do the Georgia O'Keefe trip," she said. "A family looking for an active outing might enjoy a customized hiking trip. The excursions are a jumping-off point, as guests have the option to create something entirely custom.
"Many have take this route already, where they want a day trip that showcases the highlights of the destination. Having the team onsite at the Center allows guests to talk through options, and walk away with an experiential excursion that is in line with their time and interests."
Final take
Joe McCarthy, editorial assistant on Luxury Daily, New York
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