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The old saying goes that every hotel room is the same once you’ve closed your eyes and you’re asleep. There are some logical exceptions to this of course if the conditions are keeping you from going to sleep, but it’s mostly in the waking hours when you’re making the most of where you’re staying. So how about if you could use a nice hotel for the day for a workation or romance, even if you’re not sleeping there?
That’s the idea behind a service called Dayuse, a portal where you can get a hotel room for the day to work in a nice environment, spend the day with someone special, or lounge by a pool and order drinks. You can find nearby accommodations in major cities such as New York, Chicago, Dallas, and San Francisco, at a place that might be near where you live.
Workation, Daycation, or Romance Away From Home
The way it works is, you pull up the options at one of the 11 cities they currently serve and pick a date to see what’s available. I ran a test with Miami for two different dates: tomorrow and a day several months from now.
Then I needed to pick an arrival time and the duration of when I’d be using it, so I picked a long one of six hours after arriving at 11:00, enough time to combine work and pleasure for the day.
I ended up with a surprisingly large range of choices, from some in the $75 to $100 range for the day up to two that topped $200. Some were Miami airport hotels where it would be nice to spend the day during a long layover—for only about double the walk-in price of an airport lounge, and far less crowded. Others were in the business district of Miami, ideal for meetings with clients if you only wanted to be around for the day.
Others made me want to click the reservation button right now so I could dream about my perfect day of lounging poolside in South Beach between beach strolls and people-watching lunches. Some of the hotels on offer during my search in Miami were the Kimpton Beachcomber ($119), Catalina Hotel ($100), and Grand Beach Hotel ($199).
When I chose another date a month from now, however, the choices changed quite a bit, so I’m guessing the occupancy level of the property has an impact on what’s available. The examples above were for a Saturday the next day. When I picked a mid-week day a month from now for six hours, I ended up with different options. Those included Z Ocean Hotel ($129), Hotel Breakwater South Beach ($159), and AC Hotel Miami Wynwood ($110).
A Lower Hotel Rate for Not Spending the Night
In all of these cases, the day use price was far below what you’d spend to book the hotel for the night. In my quick spot checks, the discount ranged from 30% to 60% and I’m sure the further you go up the scale in luxury, the higher the discount is probably likely to be.
When I plugged in a date and duration for New York City a month from now, for example, I got 31 choices in Manhattan. The Residence Inn by Marriott near Times Square was listed at $149, while when I looked up the nightly rate for the same date it was over $300. It was $120 compared to $320 with Yotel NYC.
Your view for the day in NYC
If I wanted a day of beauty and romance instead, The Muse New York would cost me $289 through Dayuse.com, but that highly-rated hotel was listed at $599 for the cheapest room if I booked it for the night. When I switched to “Tomorrow” for six hours, the Moxy NYC Downtown was $159, but for the night on Expedia it was $269, a last-minute discount from the usual $359.
Business Prestige for the Day
When I start scrolling through the offerings at this site, a lot of creative ideas start popping into my head. There have been times I’ve had business meetings in cities where this site has listings, back when I had a corporate job, but I was not staying at a prestigious hotel. One of the first things most clients would ask is, “Where are you staying?” At times that was because we were figuring out where to meet up. Telling them “The La Quinta by the interstate” does not exactly exude an air of success.
I can imagine times when it would be useful to be staying with relatives or getting a cheap hotel for the night, but meeting your client in the lobby of some hotel that’s more impressive, especially in a walking city like New York where the person you’re trying to impress will be arriving on foot. You could also use this strategy to book something near the client’s office, even if you’re really staying across town. Have lunch or a drink there and say, “Charge it to my room.”
Other Workation Options Booking a Hotel for the Day
I’m personally not a fan of co-working spaces and coffee shops. Some people like to have a social buzz around them when they work, but I get a lot less done when the work environment is noisy and lots of other people are milling around. As a writer, I get my best work done in a quiet place where I can concentrate. In other words, a hotel room.
Renting a hotel room for the day has a lot of appeal to someone like me who wants a good chair, a desk with outlets, and a muffled environment where there’s no espresso machine or buzzing conversations going on. Then when I’m done with the key tasks, at a hotel I can go get a workout in the gym, grab a lounge chair by the pool, or get a drink in the bar. Work then play.
You have to dive into the individual listings to see if there are any restrictions, but in most cases, you can use any of the facilities a guest would, including the pool and gym. Afterwards, you shower in your room. You just don’t sleep there (unless it’s a nap).
See more information and find nearby accommodations at the Dayuse company website and start thinking about the options when booking a hotel for the day,
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