Did you know that your hotel room color and design can directly impact your mood? Chances are you probably feel it within, but don’t realize why it happens! It’s a fact that the colors that are around you immediately set the tone for your stay whenever you set foot into a hotel.
Whether you feel slightly hassled, out of place, refreshed/relaxed, or even energized, it can boil down to the color and design psychology of the hotel room you’re in. That’s where interior design has a vital role to play in terms of creating the ideal ambience for guests at hotels. Successful and well-loved hotels and serviced apartments are those that harness color psychology and innovative designs creatively to boost guest satisfaction considerably.
Let’s dive deeper into it below.
A Closer Look at Color Psychology & Its Association with Interiors
Color psychology is the study of how human behavior and emotions are affected by colors. Historically, it is a concept that goes back to ancient times, when communities believed in the healing attributes of colors. Even today, colors play a significant role in branding, interior design, marketing, and what not! Different colors may evoke unique feelings, i.e. red, for example, is equated with urgency, passion, and excitement, while blue evokes a sense of calmness in most people.
Colors go beyond just being mere visual elements in interior design. They not only enhance the overall aesthetics and ambience of the space, but also help create particular moods. Choosing the right color can completely transform any space, making it feel cozy, sophisticated, spacious, and so on. In every hotel, the core aim is to evoke pleasant and memorable experiences for their guests and this is where color can be absolutely critical.
How Colors Impact Guests
As you’ll testify to, first impressions are often everything, particularly in the hospitality sector. The colors that are used in a hotel may affect the perceptions of guests and their emotional responses or behavior from the outset. Inviting and warm shades may create a welcoming vibe for guests while tranquil and cooler hues may encourage rest and relaxation. The design and color of a hotel room can make or break the guest’s impression of the hotel, while influencing his/her mood and wellbeing considerably. Hotel room designs also play a part in reinforcing the brand image of the hospitality brand.
Here’s a closer look at these aspects below.
- Neutral Shades- These include tones like grey, white, and beige, which are versatile and evergreen choices. They offer an elegant and calming backdrop that you can also accent with bolder shades.
- Vibrant & Bold Colors- Some bold and vibrant hues include yellow, orange, red, and so on. They encourage a livelier feel in areas, while enabling more activity and social interactions.
- Pastel Shades- There are soft pastel hues like pink, mint green, and light blue, which create a sense of calmness and tranquility in any space, particularly in guest rooms and even spa areas.
What Each Color Usually Symbolizes
Here’s a look at the common symbols and associations of some major colors:
- Red- It is associated with passion, energy, and excitement, ideal for dining areas, lounges, and social spaces.
- Blue- This color evokes a sense of trustworthiness and calmness, making it suitable for spas, guest rooms, etc.
- Yellow- Cheerful and vibrant, it is ideal for lobbies and common areas along with other social spaces. It should be balanced with neutral tones for the right effect.
- Green- It is the color of Nature and brings out feelings of renewal and tranquility. You can use it in hotel rooms, dining zones, and more.
- Purple- This shade evokes a mysterious, luxurious, and creative vibe. You can add it innovatively to hotel lounges and rooms and it is often associated with royalty, thereby making guests feel more pampered and special. However, use it only as an accent color to add depth without overpowering any space with it.
- Neutral Hues- Grey, brown, white, and other neutral tones enable the establishment of your brand identity and build a more balanced color template. You can use them in guest rooms and spa areas with a burst of complementary/contrasting shades for a more versatile feel.
Color Psychology in Multiple Hotel Spaces and Serviced Apartments
Here’s how color psychology affects various hotel spaces:
- Lobby- It is the first contact point for guests and should feel welcoming as a result. Warmer hues like deep reds, gold, and earthy tones create a more comfortable ambience for them here.
- Guest Rooms/Serviced apartments- They should feel like sanctuaries for relaxation, unwinding, and blissful rest. Soft greens, blues, and neutral tones can help create this feeling.
- Dining Zones- Colors in these areas should encourage appetite and social interactions. Hotels may choose shades like orange, yellow, or red in this case.
- Conference Rooms- They should enable more focus and productivity and hence colors like green and blue are ideal.
Implementing Color Psychology & Effective Designs in Your Hotel
Here are some of the key aspects worth noting in this regard.
- Consider the cultural context of your hotel and the target audience before selecting colors. What works in one area may not be effective in another due to varying symbolisms and cultural associations.
- Balancing colors is important for a cohesive and effective design template. Excessive usage of a single color may overwhelm guests, while sparse usage may also be underwhelming at times. Use accessories and accents to introduce splashes of complementary or contrasting hues into spaces without overdoing it.
- Maintaining consistency across the hotel is also vital in order to enable some uniformity in the look and feel.
- Opt for a well-planned hotel layout with ample space and clear pathways for building that sense of ease and higher comfort.
- Use proper lighting in rooms, combining both artificial and natural light, while selecting your textures and patterns carefully to exude a more sophisticated/comforting vibe.
- Adopt a minimalistic approach towards the design with cleaner lines and uncluttered areas for enabling higher relaxation.
- For a few design templates, a color scheme using complementary shades may create a more vibrant feel, while analogous colors may lead to a more harmonious and tranquil impact.
- Triadic color schemes may also integrate more visual energy and appeal into any space.
Signing Off
As a hotel owner or hospitality brand, understanding the importance of color and design in hotel rooms and other areas of your property is vital. Dive deeper into color psychology and come up with designs and color mixes that help your guests feel welcome, special, pampered, and relaxed, depending on the vibe that you wish to manifest at your hotel. Since these are elem
