By Lane Florsheim
Designing a truly unique hotel experience is no easy feat, but the creators of Sleeping Around have risen to the challenge. Using imagination and ecologically responsible innovation, the company developed a pop-up hotel in Antwerp.
Skipping the conventional check-in process, guests are instead given a GPS device to find their roaming room. The Sleeping Around website informs potential guests that the hotel is currently located at a shipping pier called Scheldekaai, overlooking the river Scheldt.
The selected locations offer beautiful views and a connection to a part of the city guests would most likely not have found on their own. Guests are even encouraged to help the company find new locations for the roaming hotel.
When guests track down their lodgings, they find a village of four luxe hotel rooms, each constructed out of a recycled shipping container. These containers come from Antwerp’s ports, where empty shipping containers lie unused when returning them to their country of origin is not profitable.
Sleeping Around has transformed each container into what is likely its most inspired role yet: a small-scale, ultramodern hotel room, furnished with a floating box-spring bed, a Hansgrohe rain shower, iPod docking station, and contemporary minimalist light fixtures.
Located alongside the hotel rooms is the breakfast/lounge container, a cozy gathering space offering breakfast, afternoon coffee, and wine in the evening. A sauna container is said to be coming soon to further enhance guests’ relaxation and enjoyment during their stay.
Sleeping Around brings a sense of excitement and uncertainty into one of the most typically mundane aspects of a travel experience. Whether or not Antwerp is on your list of travel destinations this year, let this remarkable concept inspire you to find and create adventure in unlikely places.
Lane Florsheim is a senior at Tufts University where she is studying International Relations. She loves writing and reading about culture, politics, and women’s issues. Lane delights in jewelry making, captivating novels, and travel and exploration. Her personal website is available here. Follow Lane on Twitter @laneflorsheim.