Products You Wish You Thought Of First: Airline Apartments Hit The Hot List
Saturday, July 26th, 2008
Posted by Nadia Nascimento
* This blog post is part of Invoke’s participation in the 2008 Vancouver Blogathon for Charity
Remember trying to turn that carry on luggage into a perfect head rest and a couple of plastic airport waiting room chairs into a king sized dream? A sweater turns into a 2000 thread count Egyptian cotton duvet pretty quickly when you are stuck at the airport with a delayed flight and some heavy eyes.
Sitting at the Airport and watching this drama, each time I fly, I kick myself for not coming up with the idea. Pup Tents for Layovers. Or what has actualized and branded: the Mini Motel.
An unscheduled overnight stay at a German airport inspired one business traveler, Frank Giotto, the president of Fiber Instrument Sales in Oriskany, New York, to create the Mini Motel, a one-person tent complete with, air mattress, pillow, reading light, alarm clock and pillow, which he sells for $39.95.
Asked what airports would think of a tent city of his Mini Motels, Giotto expressed confidence.
“People sleeping in chairs don’t seem to bother them,” he said. “We could be forcing the airports to come up with a solution to respond to the tremendous need.”
Realistically, with the current costs of flights these ‘Motels’ are looking much more viable as a vacation and it may be interesting to see it marketed as such. “Can’t afford that flight to Dubai but love the air of adventure that airports hold? Then grab yourself a Mini-Motel and pop your tent infront of any of the gates that you yearn to travel to. Let your imagination do the rest!” I can’t wait to get my passport book full of stamps from all of the gates that I visit in YVR.
(for the full story, go to http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/07/15/business/airsleep.php?WT.mc_id=glob_mrktg_lead&WT.mc_ev=click)
