Aloft Hotel finally launches for business

Aloft Hotel on Mill Street has finally officially ‘launched’ after being in business for six months. 

The delay was due to the renovation of its connecting gastro pub, Tenters, which was completed in late August. 

The pub has a long history, with its name coming from the old tradition from the linen industry in the area of draping cloths over frameworks, resembling tents. 

The pub had been closed for years but It remained a landmark, so the old name was kept. General manager of the hotel, Jonas Treffers said, “We said you can change [the name] to something new and call it ‘Loftys’ but I don’t think that’s really what people wanted.”

When renovating Tenters, the focus was to “make it a bit different” to any other gastro pub and hence they not only serve food and pints, but also a range of cocktails. “it has its own identity, look and feel but it’s still part of the umbrella of the Aloft,” Treffers said.

While there has been a number of hotels built in the Liberties recently, Aloft has many features that make it unique. For a start, guests check in on the seventh floor, taking in the views of Dublin City through the reception area’s full-length windows.

When settled in their rooms, they can avail of room service from the hotel’s resident robot Lofty. Lofty will report to reception when called to collect the requested item, will summon the lift himself and contact the guest when he arrives. 

Treffers said it was a “quirky touch” for the hotel. “Of course, everyone has good WiFi and we have that as well, but to have these kind of things is fun,” he said.

The hotel also has a gym, their “Refuel” restaurant and a meeting room along with the 202 rooms. The seventh floor also has a bar where guests can enjoy a drink after they check in. 

Aloft wants to provide “a new sense of belonging for younger people”  in general, but especially for the young community in the Liberties. Treffers described the hotel and pub as a “very playful place” and wants to invite the youth in. He said that Aloft is “a brand they can affiliate themselves with and associate themselves with more so than a pub on the corner or another hotel.”