Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner celebrated the grand opening of Owner Deidre Mathis' Wanderstay Boutique Hotel on Aug. 28. (Asia Armour/Community Impact)
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner celebrated the grand opening of Owner Deidre Mathis' Wanderstay Boutique Hotel on Aug. 28. (Asia Armour/Community Impact)
Wanderstay Boutique Hotel is a themed-room hotel for adults in East Downtown Houston. (Courtesy Wanderstay Boutique Hotel)
The newly established Wanderstay Boutique Hotel in east downtown Houston is marketed as the only Black-owned hotel in the area, per a release from Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner's office. Mayor Turner was present at the hotel's grand opening Aug. 28.
The details
Wanderstay Boutique Hotel is a 10-room, themed hotel for business and leisure travelers as well as small groups who are 18 years old or older. Located at 520 Sampson St., Houston, the hotel held its soft opening at the end of April.
The boutique hotel promotes space for small group events, such as business retreats or wedding parties. (Courtesy Wanderstay Boutique Hotel)
Decor and design in each room follows a whimsical theme, including:
Black and white art
Green gardens
Houston sports
Hollywood movies
Music records
Safari escape
The hotel features 10 themed rooms, such as the "Black and White Art" room. (Courtesy Wanderstay Boutique Hotel)
The hotel's featured amenities include a towel warmer in each bathroom, a pillow bar for guests to select their own degree of comfort, free breakfast, complimentary luggage storage, a conference room and high-speed wireless connection.
Those traveling with small pets are welcome to stay in one of the hotel's standard-sized rooms, per Wanderstay's website.
Amenities include a full-size guest kitchen that comes with a stove, microwave, refrigerator, coffeemaker, toaster and all necessary utensils. (Courtesy Wanderstay Boutique Hotel)
The backstory
Deidre Mathis, owner and founder of the Wanderstay Hybrid Hospitality Group, started off by establishing a hostel in Houston's Third Ward that features private and shared accommodations. The hospitality group's website credits her as the first Black woman to own a hostel in the United States.
Mathis is also the director of Wander Abroad Foundation, a nonprofit that provides passports and short-term study abroad programs to college students.
Asia joined Community Impact in February 2022. As a features reporter, she covers the South Houston area, including the Heights-River Oaks-Montrose, Bellaire-Meyerland-West University, Katy-Fulshear, Sugar Land-Missouri City, the Bay Area, and Pearland-Friendswood editions. She studied journalism and creative writing at Missouri State University. Before relocating to Texas, Asia was a reporter for the Seattle Medium, one of the city's eldest African American publications. When she's not writing, she's likely trying a new restaurant, practicing self-care or traveling.
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