Toward a ‘Purer’ Hotel Room

Nonsmoking hotel rooms have become commonplace, but now two hotels are trying out allergy-free and eco-sensitive rooms.

This fall, the Ritz-Carlton Chicago, off Michigan Avenue, began devoting four of its 435 rooms to the allergy-prone. Among the features: non-feather duvets and pillows, air cleaners and vacuum cleaners that remove microscopic particles, unscented bath products and mold-inhibiting spray cleaners.

“It’s pretty labor-intensive, and some of the products have been costly,” a spokeswoman acknowledged. But there is no extra charge for the rooms. Reservations: tel. (312) 266-1000.

In Canada, the Radisson Hotel & Suites, near Vancouver’s airport, employs some of the same features in its three “environmentally friendly rooms.” It also provides recycling bins, low-energy lighting and filters that screen chlorine from shower water and purify tap water. Room rates are about $3 higher. Reservations: (604) 276-8181.