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Bloc Hotels to debut in Birmingham

17 Jan 2011 by BusinessTraveller

Japanese pod style hotel offering Bloc Hotels is set to open its first property in Birmingham this spring, with London and Manchester also on the group’s “target list”.

Located on Caroline Street in the city’s Jewellery Quarter, the 73-room hotel has been constructed using custom made rooms which can be “quickly stacked and wrapped to complement the surrounding environment” (and reduce building costs).

The group says it has combined the “perfect combination of luxury and price” in offering rooms featuring Italian tiled wet rooms with drench showers, wifi internet access, ambient lighting and 32-inch LED flatscreen TVs.

Bloc says that “all unnecessary space has been removed” from its rooms, with “space hungry wardrobes” replaced with integrated bar storage areas. Air conditioning units will also be preset to 18-20 degrees and 30-40 per cent humidity, following consultation with a Scandinavian sleep research centre which showed these conditions provide the “optimal environment for a good night’s sleep”.

The pod-style rooms have been produced in association with Boxbuild developments, and director Danny Jones says that “Ultimately, the plan is to roll out the Bloc concept to other prime urban locations that offer easy access to international airports”, with London and Manchester also on the group’s “target list”. Rooms at the Birmingham property will start at £60.

Bloc Hotels joins established pod hotel concept Yotel in the UK (see businesstraveller.com/tags/Yotel), with budget luxury brand Citizen M also due to debut in London this year (see online news September 6, 2010).

The Bloc Hotels website is currently under construction at blochotels.com.

Report by Mark Caswell

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