Where Am I? (A light rant...)

Where am I, indeed?
It's a very good question...

I asked myself that very question, when I woke at 4 a.m. today, in a place that was unfamiliar and completely indistinct.

It's one of my pet peeves. Shouldn't you be able to wake up in a hotel room and immediately know where you are?
Wait, I'll answer... YES!

A Japanese hotel room should look vaguely Japanese. A Chinese hotel room should look vaguely Chinese. Right?

Well, look at the room above. See anything Singaporean? Or Malaysian? Or Indonesian?
Neither do I...

I've never understood why some people expect every hotel room to look like 'home'.
Or why hotel designers cater to that expectation.
And why is that 'home' a Euro-American mix?
My favorite hotels always reflect the culture that surrounds them.

Prime examples would include almost any Thai or Balinese hotel. They always include local art, local fruits, local woods, etc.
The Grand Hyatt Shanghai does this, as well.
Japan and Singapore, however, are not good at this.

We're staying at the Intercontinental in Singapore, but I don't mean to single them out.
Many hotels make the same mistake.
They strive for 'international', but end up with 'lowest common denominator'.

Shouldn't your product say who your are?

And shouldn't 'who you are' reflect where you are?

Do your products have a sense of place?

And is that 'place' appropriate?