Photo courtesy of Virgin Hotels Twitter page
Virgin Hotels and Virgin America collaborated this week for the "Virgin Hotels Social Hour."
Virgin America passengers traveling to Chicago received free in-flight Wi-Fi and a complimentary cocktail on Tuesday as part of the promotion, which highlighted the fact that Virgin Hotel Chicago will offer free Wi-Fi to all guests when it officially opens on Jan. 15, 2015.
It was also announced that all Virgin America Elevate loyalty members will receive 1,000 points per stay at Virgin Hotels (and double bonus points for stays from Jan. 15 to March 31, 2015). Elevate Gold members will receive free breakfast and a room upgrade at Virgin Hotels, based on availability. Elevate Silver members will also receive an upgrade for their stay, based on availability.
One passenger on each Virgin America flight to Chicago on Tuesday also won a two-night stay at Virgin Hotel Chicago, as well as roundtrip tickets for the stay.
Virgin Hotels, Sir Richard Branson's four-star lifestyle brand, is designed with today's traveler in mind. In addition to free Wi-Fi with no bandwidth restrictions, the brand also offers cheap mini-bar pricing, no hidden fees upon checkout, a pied-a-terre style room that can be split into two "chambers," room amenities that cater to the female business traveler (such as Virgin America's flight attendants) and an app that controls the room environment, entertainment, service and check-in/checkout.
The latest promotion from Virgin Hotels comes on the heels of a recent stunt in Chicago by Branson that attracted quite a bit of attention. In November, a Virgin Hotels van parked next to competing properties J.W. Marriott Hotel and W City Centre with the words "Free Wi-Fi" plastered on the side of the van. The van was also equipped with free Wi-Fi service for those nearby to use. Not only did the stunt promote free Wi-Fi at Virgin Hotels properties, but it also took a little (not-so-subtle) dig at other nearby properties that didn't offer free Wi-Fi.
Also, new guests at Virgin Hotel Chicago can present a Wi-Fi bill from a recent stay at a nearby hotel and receive a credit at Virgin Hotel Chicago (one credit per bill). The offer stands for stays from Jan. 15 to Feb. 15, 2015.
Chicago is a natural spot to debut the Virgin Hotels brand. Virgin America secured routes out of Chicago O'Hare International Airport to LAX and SFO in May 2011, a big triumph for Branson that had him dress up in Virgin America red as prizefighter "Bruiser Branson."
Properties in Nashville and New York City are under works. Locations in Boston, Dallas, LA, Miami and London are being explored.
Virgin released details on its New York location on Wednesday. The 38-story hotel, which will be located on 30th and Broadway in the middle of the rising NoMad neighborhood, will feature 475 rooms, concept suites, a rooftop bar, an outdoor pool and spa and a complex of high-end retailers on the lower levels of the building.
To book a stay at Virgin Hotel Chicago or for more information, visit www.virginhotels.com.
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