Talk about the ultimate cat nap.
A luxury hotel just for cats is expected to open in the first week of December in Irvine.
Club Cat founder Shana Martin, who has two cats herself, said she knows how tough it is to find a friend to look after a cat while on vacation and the anxiety of putting a pet in a kennel.
"It's important for people to realize that cats are really not exactly as self-sufficient as we think they are," Martin said, pointing to University of Oregon studies on how felines "overwhelmingly choose interactions with human beings over food."
Martin said while it's true that dogs generally aren't as self-sufficient as cats it doesn't mean the felines don't miss their human companions when they are separated.
"Cat owners worry about their cats when they're gone," she said.
"Many of us don't feel comfortable leaving a cat even in a pet clinic."
The hotel "at our base level" will function as a "boarding facility," but with extras to pamper cats, she said.
"You can think of us as the equivalence of Camp Bow Wow for cats," Martin said, referring to a daycare and boarding franchise.
"We are there to let the cat luxuriate and we'll have multiple levels to choose from," Martin said, adding some cats feel safer at higher climbs.
"We want them to feel as if they're at home," she said.
The hotel will also feature a 24-hour camera for cat owners to see their pets in their room, Martin said.
"You can be in Europe or the Middle East and you can log in and see your beautiful" cat, Martin said.
Rates for a "club suite' are $45 a night for one cat and $20 for an additional cat. Those rooms are 12.25 square feet and accommodate up to two cats from the same family.
Or cat lovers can dole out $55 a night for one cat and $25 for each additional cat for a room that is 17.5 square feet. Those rooms can accommodate up to three cats from the same family.
The room names feature puns on classic literature such as the Catterpurry Tails, Cat 22, the Great Catsby, the Sound and the Furry, Catlas Shrugged, a Tale of Two Kitties, and Romeow and Juliet.
The cat hotel will be about two miles from John Wayne Airport at 1360 Reynolds Ave., near MacArthur Boulevard and Red Hill Avenue.
Martin said she got the idea about eight years ago and was inspired by Camp Bow Wow.
"I want to do something amazing for cats and cat lovers," Martin said.
