Brooklyn, New York. It’s as “downtown” as you can get, but it is the home of a new Holiday Inn Express, the mid-market brand that has long been known for its roadside and suburban locations.

But a trend that began a couple of years ago continues to accelerate as operators of mid-market brands find opportunities in downtown locations where full service hotels have become too expensive for many business travelers; or to offer an alternative for those who do not need or desire a full-service property.

Quick definition: A mid-market brand is one that offers a high quality product at a lower rate by cutting back on or eliminating multiple restaurants, meeting space, room service, bell staff, concierge, business centers, fitness facilities, etc. However, the rooms themselves are often the same as in more expensive lodgings.

These hotels had also been called limited service, but the industry now prefers the more positive-sounding select service.

Today, mid-market hotels are frequently the only option for downtown locations because it has become forbiddingly expensive to build a new hotel in many cities, and the smaller mid-market properties often have an easier time finding a building to convert.

As Adrian Kurre, senior vice president-brand management for Hilton Garden Inn says, “There are many places with such a high barrier to entry that it’s too difficult for a new build.”

Ironically, according to a spokesperson for Marriott, mid-market hotels are sometimes ideal for occupying historic buildings that, by law, cannot be extensively renovated. Consequently, they would be excluded from building out meeting space, larger rooms, etc. A mid-market hotel that requires less space would work in that kind of building.

For example, Courtyard by Marriott, which has taken over a number of historic buildings, opened last February in Denver on the site of the former Joslyn’s Department Store building, opened in 1927.

Holiday Inn Express has 50 locations in what it considers urban markets. And Hilton’s Hampton Inn brand now has more than 30 downtown hotels open, including Times Square in New York, Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, New Orleans, Salt Lake City, San Diego and St. Louis.

And at Marriott, according to a spokesperson, the company’s Fairfield Inn, its lowest price brand, is gearing up for “big expansion in urban markets” with Fairfields already in Chicago and other city centers.

Delineating The Downtown Difference

Some of the differences between a suburban and downtown mid-market hotel are obvious—limited or no parking in the latter, high-rise, adapted design, etc.

As Kurre notes, “It is not possible to have our separate welcome pavilion on the outside, but we do aim for the same feel inside the building; it must maintain the light, bright and airy feel of our traditional properties.”

Rooms, Kurre says, “are typical of a Hilton Garden Inn anywhere—with wireless and hard-wired Internet connection, customized bedding and new televisions.”

However, he adds, “We might go for a slightly more contemporary look as far as furniture than in a suburban setting. Travelers are frequently going there for different reasons and different thought processes so furnishings are skewed in another direction.”

Mid-market brand operators agree that design presents challenges. Verchele Wiggins, vice president-brand management for Holiday Inn Express, explains that with space at a premium, “In Manhattan we needed to build the hotel up and out. The result is that the 125-room property is only 33 feet wide but 22 stories high.”

At Hampton Inn, according to spokesperson Monica Gaston, downtown hotels have reduced square footage in public spaces and guestrooms; however, she adds, “To ensure that smaller feels big and reflective of the Hampton promise, we work extra hard to ensure a smart room design, including upgraded finishes and furniture, flat-screen TVs and drawers integrated into the wardrobe—eliminating the need for a piece of furniture.”

Guestrooms at a downtown Holiday Inn Express, Wiggins says, will have the same features as far as design and furniture, “but in the case of Manhattan there are only six rooms on each floor.”

On the service side, Kurre says, “We don’t have as many people as a full service hotel would have but we have learned that our guests might want a doorman and a bellman available in a downtown location, which we would not have outside a city.

“And,” Kurre continues, “we have found that a concierge might be very important downtown because guests want to know where to go, how to get to places, have reservations made. They simply have more questions. It might not be as elaborate a concierge setup, but they will be available.”

At Courtyard by Marriott, according to a spokesperson, “Lobby staffing may have a few more employees given the need to park/valet and help guests assimilate with the local area. Many hotels have an ‘ambassador’ role that does a combination of this role (parking, bellmen-type assistance, and/or concierge.)”

What You Don’t Get

“Limited service hotels in urban markets,” Wiggins says, ”are a smart choice for business travelers because they offer them everything they need and want and nothing they don’t and all at a reasonable price.”

You won’t find multiple restaurants, a bar, acres of meeting space or 24-hour room service at a mid-market hotel, although, Kurre says, Hilton Garden Inn does offer evening room service.

Wiggins points out that guests can “typically find a variety of restaurants and social spots within walking distance.”

However, like most limited service brands, Holiday Inn Express offers a free breakfast—which can be a significant saving in a city.

Of course, as Wiggins notes, “parking has to be tweaked in urban markets. In Brooklyn, we are able to provide parking, but fewer spots than usual. In Manhattan we do not have a private parking lot, but are able to direct guests to the closest available garage.”

Of course, as Wiggins says, most guests in urban locations use public transportation or taxis; in addition, guests are often within walking distance of business centers.

Priced At a Premium

It’s no surprise that guests will almost always pay more at a downtown outpost of a brand as compared to a suburban or roadside location.

“Mid-price is defined by market,” Kurre says; “in New York that is higher than elsewhere but still much lower than a full service hotel.”

At Hampton, according to Gaston, “Hampton urban hotel rates represent a significant premium over the prototypical roadside Hampton but offer great value compared to full service hotels in the same location.”

More To Come

Prospering in their downtown hubs, mid-market lodging brands will continue to expand in those locales. As Wiggins says, “Since opening our first property in New York in 2005, we have since opened a second in Brooklyn, with two more in development in Manhattan.”

In April, Holiday Inn Express opened a property in downtown Baltimore. In August, a hotel in downtown Indianapolis was slated to open, and a property near the Las Vegas Strip is scheduled to open in September.

Now that mid-market brands have moved downtown, the world of downtowns is their oyster. At Hilton Garden Inn, Kurre says, “We will soon open our first Europe location in Stuttgart, to be followed soon after in Florence and Rome Airport.”