No one is surprised that I went a bit out of my way to stay at a space themed hotel, right?! I thought not.
During my trip to Florida for the SpaceX CRS-22 launch, while most of my time is focused on the Space Coast, I also had a meeting in Lakeland so I decided to look for a hotel somewhat in between for a night. Full disclosure, I am a total IHG & Marriott Bonvoy gal so I perused those options.. to be honest, not entirely sure what I was looking for... just something interesting. And then I found it. A hotel that is a Bonvoy property, part of the Tribute Portfolio collection, that is called The Celeste. BOOKED IT!
(I am a big fan of Bonvoy’s Tribute Portfolio Collection as well as their Autograph collection because each hotel is unique and themed in some way.
In looking at the hotel online, it said and showed that it had a space theme. Ummm…. YES! Admittedly this hotel was nowhere near where I specifically needed to be but it was sort of in between and I couldn’t resist checking it out.
The hotel is situated right outside the gate of UCF so it’s colors a a nod to the University’s black and gold. While the outside doesn’t exactly strike one as spacey, the Celeste logo looks really cool on the building. And their signage letting everyone know they are open makes me smile, it says “Come experience the stars.”
Walking in the doors I appreciated their attention to the current situation the world is in with the pandemic. I love that their signage stays on brand!
Inside this hotel is on brand with space related nods in a celestial way absolutely everywhere. When you first walk in the main doors you encounter artwork that covers the wall of individuals such as Sir Isaac Newton. The front desk staff are wearing Celeste branded face masks and their name tags designate them as Mission Control staff and also includes their Astrological sign.
The front desk staff was incredibly kind and welcoming and patiently put up with this space geek’s million questions about the hotel and how it came to be and why did the investors choose space etc. True professionals with great hospitality.
As I approached the elevator I continued to love the on brand signage for the elevator and the signage for warning about the floors having just been cleaned.
I entered my launch code (my floor number) and I was off to my sleep station for the evening. The walls were subtle nods to galaxies with black and glitter. Edging décor looked futuristic and somewhat planet like. The room numbers had great signs with a galactic flair.
Even the “Do Not Disturb” sign was on point with the branding!
Inside the room it was sleek with slight futuristic elements of design. I of course got a kick out of the fact that there was even a rocket decoration!
And it’s not just in the lobby and individual guest rooms that the Hotel Celeste delivered on theme. They have a case of rocket models near the restaurant. (Though I will admit, I would have loved to have consulted with them on their choices because they could have used a bit of advice on which ones to include.) Their conference and boardrooms were named appropriately: Apollo Board Room, Gemini Meeting Room, and Mercury Meeting Room. And even the fitness center had a bit of space flair in the décor on the walls.
Overall I was over the moon for the theme of this hotel. It’s slightly understated but with enough nods to space to keep this space geek happy!
FYI, if you are a fan of the Bonvoy Alliance of hotels, this is one of the Portfolio Tribute Collection (used to be part of Starwood) where the hotels are unique to the location. The Autograph collection of hotels is the same way. I am a big fan of both!
Riddle me this though... why is this the first space hotel I’ve ever encountered? (Don’t get me wrong I know that Disney is creating a Star Wars hotel but that’s a bit different. Don’t get me wrong, I definitely want to stay there but it’s a different kind of thing to me than a general space themed hotel.)
I have so many ideas for other space themed hotels I just need to hit the lotto to create them I guess! Perhaps I should head out to buy a ticket….
