Radisson RED is a new hotel brand targeted at millenials. Their first hotel in Central Europe is slated to open in Krakow in 2019 next to the “Szkieletor”.
Mock-Up of the Radisson RED Hotel in Krakow
Founded in 2015, Radisson RED is a hotel/lifestyle brand that according to them is inspired by art, music and fashion. The target market is millenials, and the brand is expanding rapidly. Their website is presented in a Pinterest style with cute animals and fashion photos, obviously targeted to the younger set. There are only two hotels opened as of December 2016 and fourteen in development. Brussels and Minneapolis host the two open hotels right now, and Campinas is slated to host its third. The Krakow hotel is planned to have 230 rooms, a restaurant/bar, meeting space and a 24/7 fitness center.
It will be located in the new Unity Center business park, where the eye-sore Szkieletor stood incomplete for some 40 years.
A sample Radisson RED Reservation for Reference
A quick search shows a price of €149 per night, and on Orbitz we see $149 for the room. As a four-star hotel, the price is a bit above the mid-range with chain options like Scandic, Novotel and Best Western coming in at 25% or so cheaper. The higher-end 4-star brands like Marriott and Sheraton come in at a higher rate, so it looks like the niche they are targeting is an upscale and hip clientele.
From the provided photo on the reservation page we can see a bright, minimalist and modern room. While it’s called a studio, there is no mention of a kitchenette. Pet owners can rejoice, as the hotel encourages pets and has a stated rate of only €15 per night for your furry friends.
Krakow is an excellent location to launch a lifestyle hotel like this. We are a college town after all, and a very popular tourist destination with youth throughout Europe and excellent air connections with budget airlines. Now we just need to find out Whether there are enough young people willing to pay a premium for a hotel room targeted to them. “We are proud to bring our ageless millennial-mindset, lifestyle brand Radisson Red to Poland. We couldn’t have picked a better destination for RED than Krakow, Poland’s premier hotel market and a city that comes steeped in legend and myth. Radisson Red will be an exciting fusion and complement to the city’s vibe and will undoubtedly become a distinct social anchor in Krakow” says Elie Younes, Executive Vice President & Chief Development Officer of The Rezidor Hotel Group. We’ll keep our fingers crossed for a successful launch!
