Superior Suite Terrace in the Hotel Poseidon, Positano.

@RaffaeleCappiello

When I video call Edoardo Giuntoli, General Manager of the five-star hotel Sofitel Rome Villa Borghese, he is sitting on the roof terrace of the hotel with a backdrop of the Roman skyline that could easily be mistaken for a zoom background. During our interview, he casually points to the Quirinal Palace below and casually waves to the Vatican. “This location promotes the creativity of the workers, doesn’t it?” He laughs and points to the tempting rack of expensive sparkling wine behind him, which could serve as a thirst quencher after work. Sofitel Rome takes advantage of the rising trend of “workcation”, a new concept of vacation that benefits from the growth of remote working amid the pandemic. Rather than working from a guest room hastily converted into a home office, workplaces allow teleworkers to do business from some of the world’s most beautiful places while maximizing free time.

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The rooftop restaurant Settimo

Sofitel Rome Villa Borghese

Recent studies have shown that Americans work longer than ever. Working from home during COVID lockdowns made the phenomenon worse, with the expectation of 24/7 connectivity and an inevitable increase in worker burnout. Last year about 42% of the American workforce worked from home and susceptible to the harmful blurring of work and leisure that this entails. To try to turn this situation into something beneficial, the workcation (sometimes spelled “workation”) was born. “It’s the perfect scenario, considering how many companies work from home to combine a great vacation in a beautiful setting with work,” says Giuntoli.

The idea of ​​the workcation is not to book a vacation and then spoil it with paperwork – not instead of actual free time – but to work in a different environment. Working from home for long periods of time takes a psychological toll, often manifesting as a feeling of isolation from loss of social interaction with colleagues. In response to home fatigue, workcations offer a change of scenery without devouring valuable vacation days. Susie Ellis, CEO of the Global Wellness Institute, said CNBC that working at different locations can increase mental well-being. “Academics have researched the wellbeing effects of sabbaticals, be it the traditional one-year academic variant or a month-long or more work sabbatical,” she said. “Research shows [they] reduce people’s stress, increase general well-being and help people to work more creatively. “

Therefore, hotels offer tailor-made workcation packages to ensure a productive and enjoyable stay. The Sofitel Rome’s at least 14-day option offers basic needs such as a fast and reliable internet connection. In addition, the hotel offers a variety of work spaces, including hotel suites with outdoor areas, the rooftop restaurant, meeting rooms for a more formal setting, and the lobby (with a champagne bar).

A suite in Sofitel Rome for remote working

Sofitel Rome Villa Borghese

The real benefit, however, is how you spend your downtime after work. Instead of slumping down on the sofa watching TV, workers can either put on their tourist hats and explore the Italian capital, or take advantage of the stress-relieving services at Sofitel Rome. To see the highlights of Rome with limited time, the hotel offers a running tour of the Eternal City (luckily with a hiking option too) and a virtual concierge service. Alternatively, there are yoga classes in the neighboring Villa Borghese park, pasta cooking classes with hotel chef Giuseppe D’Alessio or Italian lessons.

The outdoor terrace of the Sofitel Rome

Sofitel Rome Villa Borghese

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For Liliana Mascolo Hotel Poseidon, a family-run four-star hotel in Positano on the Amalfi Coast, the idea of ​​offering workcations came almost by chance. Mascolo takes care of PR and communication and is also the daughter of Monica Aonzo, who owns the hotel together with her brother Marco Aonzo. During the forced closure under Italian coronavirus regulations, Mascolo and her sister worked from different locations in the hotel. “When someone like the lawyer or the accountant needed to use the office, which meant we couldn’t be there too, we would go around the hotel rooms to work,” explains Mascolo. Computers in tow, they quarreled, like siblings do, over the rooms that offered the best view of Positano’s dizzying cascade of pretty white houses.

The two sisters noticed that it was a pleasant way of working remotely, so they started offering official work packages after the hotel reopened. The hotel now has mobile work equipment – a monitor, keyboard, laptop stand, mouse, and ergonomic chair – that can be installed in most guest rooms. So the teleworker can tap and regularly enjoy the sun-drenched view of the flower-adorned townscape of Positano and the gentle breeze through the balcony doors.

The mobile work devices of the Hotel Poseidon

Hotel Poseidon Positano

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The hotel has a total of 50 rooms and suites, all with interesting features and benefits as a result of the gradual expansion of the structure from a family home to a hotel. Some of the room patios are huge, with sun loungers that require tight restraint from remote workers. In others, a floor-to-ceiling window in the bedroom means you can read early morning emails between drafts of the scenic panorama. Alternatively, the spacious bar terrace offers plenty of quiet corners to set up a laptop.

At a workplace in the Hotel Poseidon

Hotel Poseidon Positano

Mascolo says that the workcation idea really worked. “I remember walking past a photographer by the pool editing photos from a recent wedding,” she recalls while a real estate agent was posting ads for homes thousands of miles away.

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When guests end the day there is the panoramic pool or the beauty center to wash off any thoughts of work before enjoying a cocktail on the terrace and a dinner of refined Neopolitan-inspired dishes in the hotel’s Il Tridente restaurant. While the Sofitel Rome is geared more towards long-term guests, the Hotel Poseidon has also considered a day worker option. Your Dayscapes offer rooms without an overnight stay, but with access to the pool, the in-house restaurant and cocktail lounge as well as unrestricted access to a private workspace in the room.

The terrace of the Il Tridente restaurant in the Poseidon hotel

Hotel Poseidon Positano

The Italian start-up DayBreakHotels, which began as a pioneer of the “daycation” stay, has also started Day worker packages in the Hotels near Italy. Hotel rooms can be booked for half days, whole days and even whole working weeks. On the startup’s website, users can also select add-ons such as fitness or spa access. DayBreakHotels Co-Founder and CEO Simon Botto said Startup magazine“The idea behind the ‘workcation’ concept is that everyone can exchange a day in the home office for the quiet of a nearby hotel. By making luxury rooms and facilities available at affordable daily rates, we hope to give a nation of burned-out teleworkers a much-needed vacation without taking a day off. “

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As a relatively young phenomenon, it can still be difficult to organize a workplace. While workers may no longer be tied to work, it does not necessarily mean employers are ready for the idea of ​​a week off. CNBC suggests Reaching out to your boss armed with data on job performance and examples of other companies accepting the option. After a successful negotiation, however, it is also important to set fixed working and leisure time limits before leaving and to be clear when you will be available.

A change of scene can improve your mental wellbeing

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As Giuntoli astutely points out, time zone differences here could be to your advantage. Using the example of New York, which is six hours behind Rome, Giuntoli found that workers can spend a morning and lunch as vacationers while using the afternoon as “productive time”.

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The bottom line is that remote working isn’t going to go away anytime soon. According to a survey by the Pew Research Center, 54% of employees said they would choose to work from home after the pandemic ended. Companies like Google, Twitter, Dropbox, and Slack have announced plans permanently switch to remote or hybrid work after the pandemic. So if telework nomadism continues to be the norm, why not do business when you know after work in Rome to sip an aperitivo overlooking the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica or sample a local Amalfi Coast wine while watching the sunset in Positano.

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