In hospitality, outdoor spaces are no longer an afterthought. This means that tossing a couple of lawn chairs in a parking lot definitely won’t cut it anymore. The bar has been raised, and outdoor spaces are becoming deliberate, design-forward zones that extend the interior experience while serving as meaningful revenue drivers in their own right.
The latest evolution of the outdoor amenity takes it one step further: hoteliers are now looking beyond the confines of their own property, positioning outdoor spaces as key touchpoints for connecting guests to the surrounding community. This approach immerses guests more deeply in the destination, creating authentic, memorable experiences that drive repeat visits—because ultimately, memories are the best kind of marketing.
Blurring the Line Between The Hotel & The Street
A hotel’s exterior is its first impression, shaping how both arriving guests and local passersby engage with the property. A thoughtfully designed façade and outdoor public space can act as an open invitation, creating intrigue and drawing people in. At AC Hotel National Landing, the design team and client capitalized on this opportunity by embracing the surrounding community and its architectural heritage. The refreshed design leans into the building’s Brutalist concrete exterior while extending outward through a street-facing patio that opens the lobby and bar via glass Nanawalls.
This intentional permeability blurs the boundary between the inside and out, creating both a visual and physical bridge between the property and the neighborhood.
Outdoor Spaces as Revenue Drivers
How many times have you met friends at a hotel rooftop bar in your own city? Hotels no longer generate revenue solely from overnight guests, but also by positioning themselves as a destination for the community. Well-designed outdoor spaces expand a property’s usable footprint, increasing dwell time for both guests and locals while creating new opportunities for food, beverage, and programming.
Today, hotels are competing more directly with standalone restaurants and bars, and one of the most effective ways to come out on top is through strategic partnerships with local restaurants and chefs. By aligning with established, beloved brands, hotels can elevate their offerings, attract a broader audience, and reinforce their role as an integrated part of the neighborhood—not just a place to crash between the actual plans.
Storytelling Through Place: Designing with the Neighborhood
Storytelling has long been central to hotel design; it grounds a property in its location and creates a more engaging visitor experience. While that narrative once lived primarily indoors, designers have steadily expanded it outwards. Today, the relationship has become more dynamic, with outdoor environments influencing interior design just as much in return. Hotels are increasingly treating design, both inside and out, as an opportunity to express local identity and deepen their connection to the surrounding community.
At New Orleans’ Hotel Tonnelle, named after the French word for “arbor,” a fluid approach to indoor-outdoor design thoroughly immerses guests into a laid-back oasis steeped in the enchanting character of the Garden District. The neighborhood’s signature lush greenery shapes not only the exterior façade and patio, but also extends into interior lounge spaces, reinforcing a cohesive sense of place throughout.
Immersion by Design: Sensory Connections to the Environment
Sometimes a destination’s strongest appeal is its natural environment. Every year, thousands of travelers head to Norway to see the Northern Lights or to Japan to see the Cherry Blossoms. Hoteliers have a real opportunity to extend that connection, using outdoor spaces to immerse guests more fully in the landscapes that define a place.
At Hilton Garden Inn Ocean City Oceanfront, the design pays homage to the iconic Maryland shoreline while maximizing every opportunity for connection to the water. Not only do all 170 guest rooms overlook the Atlantic ocean, allowing each and every visitor to soak in the views from en suite balconies, but a 300-foot-long porch extends the entire length of the building. The porch serves as an outdoor living room for guests, extending an invitation to relax, connect, and experience the place they actually came for.
Wellness + Exploration: Pushing Guests Beyond the Property
A good hotelier knows that many of the best guest experiences happen off-property, and the smart ones lean into that, positioning the hotel as a launchpad and curating ways to encourage guests to explore the neighborhood, city, or natural world.
Fitness is one clear example of this shift. If you’re a traveler who prioritizes your workout, you've probably found a standard hotel gym lacking at some point. In response, some hotels are introducing curated running and walking routes—often integrated into apps with mapped distances and local highlights—designed to get guests outside and engaged with their surroundings. It costs relatively little to execute and delivers something genuinely useful: a reason to explore and create a memory tied to the property.
Connection, Not Containment
The through-line here is pretty simple: outdoor spaces have graduated from passive amenity to active asset. They're economic engines that expand a property's revenue beyond the guest room, storytelling tools that root a hotel in its neighborhood, and community bridges that turn a one-time visitor into a regular. At the end of the day, what guests remember isn't the thread count or the TV size; it’s how a place made them feel connected to a destination. That's what brings them back.
David Shove-Brown is the co-founder and partner of Washington D.C.-based, multidisciplinary architecture and design firm //3877.