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Horst Schulze, the CEO and founder of [Capella Hotels & Resorts](http://www.capellahotels.com/), is gearing up to open five new resorts through 2009, the biggest opening blitz for the company since it was founded in 2005. Schulze, who started Capella after heading up [Ritz-Carlton](http://www.ritzcarlton.com/en/Default.htm) talks to Halogen Guides about how he crafts the luxury travel experience in a tight economy and why a former Yugoslavian republic makes his list of favorite destinations.
Will travelers see more deals at luxury resorts?
I expect the deals in the off-season will be a little better, but I’m speaking more from past experience since we don’t have many hotel properties open now. We’ll be opening three new resorts in Ixtapa, the Rivera Maya and Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, as well as hotels in Singapore and Telluride, Colo., in 2009. Going forward, I think travelers will certainly demand more value for their dollar. Travel is not necessarily getting cheaper, but travelers are saying, “If I’m going to spend money, I want value for it. I want something special.”
What do you think luxury travelers want today?
Capella is centered around service. It is totally driven by the customer. We don’t have a check-in or check-out time. We don’t have hours of operation. If you want to eat in the restaurant at 3 a.m., we will open it up. After making a reservation, a personal assistant will call you and ask what you’d like to do during your visit. If you want your pillow stuffed with mint leaves, we’ll do it.
How has the luxury hotel business been affected by the economy?
We are impacted, there is no question about that. Construction was delayed at one of our sites in Mexico, and we are now taking a wait-and-see approach with two projects—one in Spain, one in Russia. In luxury travel, the meeting business is down, as groups are canceling trips. I believe we’ll see people taking shorter trips and traveling shorter distances. That’s what we saw in the downturn in 1991.
What cities are you eager to go back to?
I’ve traveled everywhere, but Baden-Baden in Germany is one of the most sophisticated towns. There are afternoon concerts outside. You can walk through the parks and then get tea in afternoon at one of the great patisseries. And of course you have spas that are second to none. That is where the word spa comes from. Baden-Baden literally means “spa-spa.” This spring I was also in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, a place that I’d never been before. I walked down to the flower market, and it was unlike any market I’d ever seen. It went on and on. I travel 150 to 200 days a year, but Ljubljana showed me that there are still plenty of places to explore.
