Deidre Mathis is once again making history in Houston, Texas as the owner of Wanderstay Boutique Hotel, the city’s first adults-only themed hotel. It is another remarkable achievement for Mathis, who also made history in 2018 when she launched the first Black-owned hostel in the United States.
“You can literally stay with us ten different times and have ten different experiences,” Mathis told Travel Noire.
The hotel, located in Houston’s Midtown area, is a 7,000-square-foot property developed from a 30-year-old air condition warehouse. Mathis decided to build the new boutique hotel after the success of the hostel she opened in 2018 which has welcomed over 15,000 guests from 30 different countries.
Drawing from her travels to 46 countries across all 7 continents, she knows the importance of having a fun, safe, and unique place to stay while traveling. That’s why she wanted to offer visitors and staycation seekers a one-of-a-kind experience. Besides the exciting themes, each room comes with comfy robes, slippers, and a towel warmer for that extra touch of luxury.
Moreover, Mathis, at just 36 years old, is breaking barriers in the hotel industry, where there’s a severe lack of representation for people of color. A report by Hotel Management shows that less than 2% of U.S. hotel owners are Black, and the numbers are even lower for Black women, at less than 1%.
Mathis is determined to change this by offering courses to teach others how to open their own hotels, using the knowledge she’s gained over her seven-year journey. She has also received support from none other than Houston’s own superstar, Beyonce, through her BeyGood Foundation, which granted Mathis’s company a small business grant.
Learn more about Wanderstay Boutique Hotel via its official website at WanderstayBoutiqueHotel.com
