Escape the Distractions of Home by Self-Isolating in a Hotel

Some hotels have started to offer rooms to those who need to work from home but are too distracted, according to The Wall Street Journal. Perks include minifridge access, a good desk and reliable, high-speed internet. Special rates apply for day-room use. Rick Hudella, a 61-year-old IT management consultant, said he was too distracted by his roommate and inadequate internet, so he decided to work from a hotel instead. “I’ve kind of become a staple over there during the day,” said Hudella, who drives about 20 minutes to get to the hotel. “I saw a guy poking his head out of a curtain today that looked like he was on a conference call as well. I’m guessing it’s starting to catch on.”

Revenue per available room at U.S. hotels went down almost 84 percent in the week ending April 11–believed to be biggest downturn on record. Not everyone is sure that renting out rooms to home-workers will do much for lost business. “My heartfelt congratulations to the innovativeness, but I suspect it’s a long shot,” said one industry expert. “The reality is 2020 will be a lot of red ink.”