Last week, Hyatt Hotels opened the inaugural hotel under its upper midscale extended stay brand Hyatt Studios in Mobile, Alabama.
The opening, following a soft launch in February, marked a milestone for Hyatt as it expands to meet growing traveler demand for long-term accommodations that feel like “an extension of home,” according to Dan Hansen, head of Americas development at Hyatt and global head of Hyatt Studios.
Following the hotel’s grand opening, Hansen sat down with Hotel Dive to share how the brand is vying to attract developer, owner and guest interest — and what hotel development trends he’s watching amid a changing economic landscape.
This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
HOTEL DIVE: The inaugural Hyatt Studios opened roughly 14 months after it broke ground in December 2023. Is this a typical timeline to open for the brand, and how important is speed to open for hotel owners and developers?
DAN HANSEN: I think that’s probably the right timeframe. There’s a lot of work being done around different building methods — for example, modular construction, which could shorten that time. The quicker it’s open, the quicker it can start earning revenue. So cutting days, weeks or even months off the time to open is very important to the overall return for our owners.
While modular construction was not used for this specific hotel, it is very much being looked at as a way to get to market faster.
How will Trump’s tariffs impact hotel development timelines and costs?
We’re a global company, so it is certainly something we’re looking at. It’s probably a little early to make a call on how it is going to affect things. But we do keep a close eye on tariffs for any changes.
What has developer interest looked like for Hyatt Studios, specifically, and can you provide a brand pipeline update?
We have a very strong pipeline that we maintain. We have a team of developers out there meeting with new owners and looking at new opportunities to grow our distribution. We have incredible white space in markets around the country that will be a perfect fit for Hyatt Studios, and its newest sister brand Hyatt Select.
“Despite the challenges that the hotel industry faces with financing, the economy, building costs and lengthy entitlement processes, I still see a great amount of excitement, which makes me feel the development process and pipeline will continue to remain healthy.”
Dan Hansen
Hyatt Head of Americas Development
For Hyatt Studios, as an extended stay brand, we like to find markets that have demand from people that are going to stay a week, two weeks or even a month at a time. That could be contractors, medical professionals or people relocating. It’s about taking a space where people are staying for several weeks at a time and making it feel as much of an extension of their home as possible.
Will Hyatt look to expand in the upscale extended stay space?
We already have an upscale extended stay offering in Hyatt House, which is an incredibly successful brand. And we recently hired a head of residential (Editor’s Note: Hyatt named Tina Necrason Global Head of Branded Residential in January) to complement many of our luxury and lifestyle brands with the residential components. As we look at shifting guest preference, we want to make sure that we are a leader in that space, and we can deliver some of the frictionless experiences that people enjoy at home.
For example, most people in their home have very fast internet speeds. With Hyatt Studios, we have fiber internet to each room, giving guests lightning-fast connectivity to make them feel like an extension of their normal everyday lifestyle.
Are hotel developers still bullish on extended stay?
That trend is very strong, and it will grow as we continue to see people mixing business and personal travel together, extending trips, having families join and otherwise just wanting more space and some of the amenities they’re used to having at home. I think that’s going to become more critically important for travel patterns.
What other hotel development trends will emerge this year?
On a broader scale, despite the challenges that the hotel industry faces with financing, the economy, building costs and lengthy entitlement processes, I still see a great amount of excitement, which makes me feel the development process and pipeline will continue to remain healthy.
