Le Meridien unlocks art with new keycards

Gone are the days when checking into a modern hotel meant taking a key from the lobby clerk. For most westerners, the concept of using a keycard to open their hotel room is nothing new. Now Starwood Hotels brand of properties, Le Meridien Hotels & Resorts have come up with a way to expand the use of their keycards with the ‘Unlock Art’ promotion.

By the end of the year in over 100 of the Le Meridien hotel properties, guests will be given a room card with a design created by a contemporary artist, with the key giving access to not only their room, but admission to a nearby contemporary art museum.

Senior vice president in charge of Le Meridien’s global branding says, “We’re no longer handing over a piece of plastic … it’s now a piece of art and a potential collectible.”

Hotels that are already participating in the program are: the Shanghai Meridien (with free entry to the Museum of Contemporary Art Shanghai); le Meridien San Francisco (with free entry to the Yerba Buena Centre for the Arts) and Le Meridien Sunny Isles Beach (with free entry to Miami’s Moore Space).