How would you describe white tea fragrance?

Have you ever inhaled deeply on an early summer day and found that the scent of freshly cut grass transports you back to childhood? Do you imagine cozy winter holidays when a log sparks to life in a fireplace and its familiar, comforting smell fills the air? Does the scent of White Tea remind you of vacation and feelings of calm and wellness?

Anyone who has stayed at a Westin hotel is familiar with their White Tea fragrance. The clean and refreshing scent, featuring top notes of white tea, elegantly coupled with base notes of cedar and vanilla, welcomes you as soon as you step into the lobby and energizes you throughout your hotel stay. Westin rolled out its signature White Tea scent and line of amenities more than a decade ago, aiming to energize guests with the blend of white tea, wood cedar and vanilla. Now guests instantly remember their favorite vacations as soon as they catch the first hint of Westin’s signature scent.

But why?

Scientifically, the sense of smell triggers stronger emotions and memories than any of our other senses. It all has to do with the way our brain processes scent. Unlike sight and touch, smells are processed in an area of our brain that is directly connected to the centers for emotion and memory. So, naturally, smell triggers vivid emotional memories and can even transport us back in time. Which is exactly what Westin is hoping to do with White Tea. “It creates a memory trinket,” says Rachel Herz, psychology professor and author of The Scent of Desire. “The scent is a marker and a reminder to return to the hotel for their next visit.”

Westin considers the impact of scent throughout the stay. So, in addition to infusing the White Tea scent into the lobby so that each guest associates it with their first impression of the space, Westin also created a line of top-selling bath amenities so that the fragrance is an essential part of every stay.

Not only does this create the environment for memories, it also creates a sense of calm and wellness, feelings that are key to any Westin stay where each space is designed with the guest’s well-being in mind.

“When creating our signature scents, we have to think about the desired atmosphere or feeling we are trying to create for that brand experience,” says Global Brand Leader, Tina Edmundson. “We like to think of our signature scents in the same way you might think about choosing a perfume or a cologne—it must be organic and authentic.”

At Westin, White Tea is the perfect fragrance to enhance the overall experience each guest has at the hotel and create a sense of calm and an inviting environment for lasting memories to form. Of course, guests who can’t get enough of the fragrance can bring the scent home in the form of diffusers, candles and bath amenities.