What if Airbnb actually made air mattresses?
Time to disrupt a 175 years old industry!
When you ask guests what they consider the absolute essentials in a hotel, the answer often boils down to the ‘holy trinity’:
Fast Wi-Fi, strong water pressure, and a comfortable bed.
Everything else? Optional. Breakfast can be skipped, workouts can be done outside, but compromising on these three things is a no-go. Hotels know this and make sure to excel in these areas, often going out of their way to emphasize how great their Wi-Fi, showers, and beds are. And truth be told, unless a hotel is in the middle of nowhere, delivering on these essentials isn’t particularly challenging.
But here’s where things get interesting. As travel becomes more accessible, more people are flocking to the same destinations. Iconic spots like the Eiffel Tower or Central Park are losing some of their uniqueness. To stand out, travelers now seek experiential journeys—the kind of adventures few others have had. Think of a night in a Bedouin camp in a remote desert or sleeping in a treehouse deep in an untamed jungle. For many, the ultimate luxury is staying in an ephemeral hotel, one offering an exclusive, hard-to-replicate night.
These ambitious setups push the boundaries of hospitality, yet delivering on all three essentials isn’t easy. While modern advancements like Starlink and solar-powered water systems have made Wi-Fi and water pressure accessible almost anywhere, the bed remains a stubborn challenge. Unlike the former, a good bed is hard to move, tricky to store, and must stay flawless throughout the stay. You might tolerate slow internet or a cold shower for a night, but a bad bed is non-negotiable.
And yet, when it comes to this domain, we seem stuck in the stone age. The most logical, practical, and eco-friendly solution is an air mattress… but hotels would never dare to offer you that option! It’s not just that they appear cheap; it’s also the lack of comfort, innovation, the noise, and the durability. There’s just nothing good about an air mattress.
In a recent LinkedIn post, Matthias Huettebraeuker highlighted that hospitality feels stuck, with the latest disruptor coming from another generation. Maybe he’s right, maybe not, but one thing is certain: if you want to become the new hero of this industry, reinvent the air mattress!