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“A scent is about capturing the style and personality of a hotel,” says perfumer Azzi Glasser, who has created bespoke fragrances – candles, diffusers and room sprays – for Chiltern Firehouse, Raffles London at The OWO (1906 shower gel, £30) and Hôtel du Couvent in Nice. “It’s a way for them to stand out and to create that perfect first impression.” Glasser’s services start at £18,000, sometimes beginning years before a hotel opens. Her process begins with meeting the hotel’s founder and learning about its story.
“Scent is the heart of the experience,” affirms Estelle Manor’s artistic director Eiesha Bharti Pasricha, who worked with Perfumer H’s Lyn Harris in 2021 to create the hotel’s candle (£105, also used at Maison Estelle), a “grounding” blend of amber, petitgrain thyme, cedar and oak moss. “It can make you travel places in your mind.” Hôtel Plaza Athénée (La Bougie Plaza, €65) and Claridge’s have also opted for purchasable candles, the latter a collaboration with historic candlemaker Trudon (Cire Beeswax Classic, £98).
For many hoteliers, bespoke scents are also a sales opportunity. “It’s an invisible part of the experience here, adding another layer to how guests remember their stay,” says Kate Bellm, who worked with a local aromatherapist in Mallorca on a bergamot and sandalwood-inflected scent for Hotel Corazón, which travels through the hotel via diffuser sticks, and is also infused into the soaps, shampoos and body creams in the rooms. “The toiletries [from €25] are available to purchase, so you can take the scent of Corazón home with you.”
A great hotel fragrance should immediately transport you. One of my favourites, the Dame of Soho candle (£85) and room spray (£100) was created by Glasser with the Broadwick Soho. Rich, warm and sensual, with notes of tuberose, leather and animalistic ambergris, it compliments designer Martin Brudnizki’s whimsical interiors. Similarly, Le Sirenuse in Positano has Eau d’Italie, its own line of citrus-scented products (from €30), while Thyme’s homewares brand Bertioli has a range of nature-inspired candles and diffusers (Water Meadow Diffuser set, £165).
Some hotels are investing further in the scent journey, commissioning multiple fragrances. At the newly opened Hôtel du Couvent, your nose will experience something different depending on whether you are in the reception (frankincense and myrrh), the spa (geranium and bergamot) or your bedroom (sandalwood and cedarwood). Meanwhile, the Abbaye des Vaux de Cernay, which opened outside Paris last year, has created two candles (€60) to reflect the distinct experiences of staying at the hotel in different seasons. In winter, that means wood fires and polished parquet flooring; in summer, it’s cut grass and white flowers.
Are there any common notes between hotel scents? No, says Glasser: if there were, they wouldn’t be authentic.
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