Marriott International has put the guest experience on centre stage with its latest venture – a pop up hotel innovation lab that crowd sources feedback in real time.

Last week, the hotel giant launched the first of these labs in Los Angeles, providing industry professionals, guests, associates and the general public the opportunity to see and experience elements being considered for their Aloft and Element hotel brands. The aim is to refine the guest experience through real time feedback to ensure their brands are continually evolving with the demands of the consumer.

With a focus on design and technology, visitors are invited to experience a number of ideas being considered for these hotels. This includes:

A bold new room layout for the Element brand that will feature a communal room in the centre of four guest rooms. The idea is to allow travellers to share a kitchen, dining room and lounge area while providing a more collaborative space for groups who would like to spend time together.

With an emphasis on fresh and healthy dining experiences for the Aloft brand, the lab will allow visitors to taste test customised 'pots' that can be ordered through new digital kiosks – a healthy meal to go with food that reflects regional flavours and tastes.

Once a visitor passes through the lab, they're invited to give their feedback through a Swurvey (a swipeable survey), with the aim of integrating this feedback into the rollout of a more intuitive guest experience across the Aloft and Element brands in the autumn of 2017.    

"We're excited to unveil Marriott's first-ever pop-up innovation lab for Aloft and Element – two phenomenal brands that are always evolving as guests, lifestyles and technologies change. We're also eager to collect and utilise feedback from the ownership community, which has expressed tremendous enthusiasm for both brands," said Eric Jacobs, Chief Development Officer – North America, Marriott Select Brands, Marriott International.

While this lab marks a first for the Aloft and Element brands, it is not the first time Marriott International has reached out to the consumer to help innovate their hotels. In October, the hotel giant launched its first M Beta hotel at Charlotte Marriott City Centre. It's a functioning hotel that doubles as the world's first hotel in "live beta". In other words, this hotel is continually in the development stage, allowing guests to try prototypes and new ideas, offer their feedback and participate in the continual evolution of Marriot's hotels.