Himmat Anand, Founder at Tree of Life Resorts says 'I also believe that if some heads have to roll, as an absolute necessity for the survival of the rest of the flock, so be it.'
/MORE COVERAGE ON COVID-19
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IHG Completes Sale of Holiday Inn Melbourne Airport Leasehold Interest to Pelligra Group
/IHG has successfully completed the sale of its leasehold interest in Holiday Inn Melbourne Airport to Pelligra Group, owners of upcoming Holiday Inn Melbourne Werribee and Holiday Inn Melbourne Richmond.
The decision supports IHG’s global asset-light strategy, which ensures its business model is focused around what it does best: franchising and managing hotels, with its business partners owning the bricks and mortar. Since 2003 IHG has completed the sale of almost 200 hotels globally as part of its move to an asset-light business model, and the sale of the Holiday Inn Melbourne Airport lease continues that global approach.
As part of the sale, Pelligra Group has agreed that they will invest in a major refurbishment of this hotel over the coming years, bringing it in line with the best of the Holiday Inn brand.
Abhijay Sandilya, Vice President Development, Australasia, Japan & Pacific said: “We are particularly thrilled to expand our partnership with Pelligra Group. We have a fantastic relationship and together we will open Holiday Inn Melbourne Werribee in 2021 and Holiday Inn Melbourne Richmond in 2023. We’re pleased that the deal means that we not only continue to support IHG’s global strategy, but that the iconic Holiday Inn Melbourne Airport will benefit from a refurbishment.”
57% of Branded Hotels in India Have Become Non-operational
/The Indian hospitality sector is undergoing one of its worst-ever crises in living memory and is putting every effort to deal with this unprecedented invasion. Even now, hotels are relentlessly providing quality services to their guests. So, who are the guests staying at these hotels?
The few hotels that are operating are running with occupancies ranging at circa 10% or even lower.
So, who are the guests staying in these hotels?
Hotels are being offered as quarantine facilities for new arrivals
Hotels are offering their facilities for quarantine purposes to people who have traveled into India recently and have been asked by the Government to adhere to a 14-day, self-isolation period. These hotels are providing guests with all possible comforts, albeit within the confinement of their rooms, following government regulations and safety standards.
Guests who were not able to return due to the lock down
Several foreign and domestic guests, some of whom were long staying guests at the hotel, who were not able to return home to their respective countries or cities due to the lock down are also continuing their stay. For these stranded guests, hotels are providing them a ‘home away from home’.
Hotels as ‘offices’ for business continuity teams
In some cases, hotel rooms are getting converted as ‘office spaces’ for organizations. As we all know that essential services need to run even in the current challenging environment. Several organizations have set-up small Business Continuity teams to continue their operations. These teams are staying and working from hotel rooms to ensure that they are able to maintain essential services for their clients. Meanwhile, hotels provide these teams all the facilities and infrastructure required for their operations, along with stay and meals, while maintaining ‘social distancing’ protocols required in the current situation.
Marriott in Strong Position to Tackle COVID-19
/As even the largest players are forced to contend with unprecedented levels of disruption thanks to COVID-19, Marriott has announced mitigation plans that outline a number of strong measures to minimize the impact of coronavirus. This swift, decisive action should stand the company in good stead, says GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.
“Marriott is in the fortunate position of having large cash reserves and has just under 50% of its $4.5bn revolving credit facility left to tap into. This is a huge advantage for Marriott as it attempts to overcome the inevitable financial hardship caused by COVID-19.”
Marriott’s strong brand image, across 30 brands in 130 countries, will work in its favor and enable loyal customers to return safely to travel while making the most of the company’s feted loyalty scheme. Marriott is the second largest hotel chain in the world. This brand and market power puts Marriott in prime position to cope with the impact of the coronavirus, compared to other competitors.
Hilton and American Express to Donate Up to 1 Million Rooms To Frontline Medical Professionals During COVID-19 Crisis
/Hilton (NYSE:HLT) and American Express (NYSE:AXP) announced that the companies, in partnership with Hilton’s ownership community, will donate up to 1 million hotel room nights across the United States to frontline medical professionals leading the fight against COVID-19.
Hilton is initially working with 10 associations who collectively represent more than 1 million healthcare workers to provide access to the program, designed to support individuals who would otherwise have to spend their own money on accommodations.
American Express, Hilton’s long-standing strategic partner, is investing alongside Hilton in the donation of the hotel rooms, which will be provided at or below cost by Hilton’s network of independent owners and franchisees.
Rooms will be available across a variety of Hilton brands, including Hampton by Hilton, Hilton Garden Inn, DoubleTree by Hilton and others. Hotels will be staffed by Team Members who have received additional training on relevant health and safety measures to safeguard their own and their guests’ well-being. Hotel rooms and common areas will continue to be sanitized using industrial-grade cleaners and updated cleaning protocols. In some high-demand locations, room availability may be limited at times.
The following organizations will provide their networks with further details about booking rooms through this program, which is currently planned to cover stays from April 13 through May 31.
American Association of Critical Care Nurses
American College of Emergency Physicians
American Hospital Association
American Nurses Association
Emergency Medicine Residents’ Association
Emergency Nurses Association
National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians
Society of Critical Care Medicine
Society of Emergency Medicine Physician Assistants
Society of Hospital Medicine
Changes in the Housing Market Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic Are the Result of Forces Much Larger Than Airbnb’s Community of Hosts According to Airbnb
/COVID-19 has placed enormous pressure on just about every aspect of the economy. With thousands of planes grounded, scores of restaurants shuttered, and few people seeking overnight accommodations, the travel and tourism industry is at a standstill.
Third-party real estate economists have rebutted these claims, but we have received several questions about this matter, so we wanted to address it directly.
Our analysis indicates that these claims are inaccurate:
Today, there are more listings on the Airbnb platform than there were a year ago.
In large cities popular with tourists, such as Las Vegas, Montreal, Rome and Paris, the number of active Airbnb listings have increased over the last 30 days.
Among the top-20 U.S. and Canada cities, 80 percent saw a net change of fewer than 200 listings over the last 30 days.
There has not been any meaningful change to Airbnb’s supply in our top-20 U.S. and Canada cities or in our top-10 European cities.
We are at an unprecedented moment globally. Unemployment and lost income are rising quickly, leading to a decrease in demand for traditional, 12-month home and apartment leases. In recent weeks, web traffic to web portals has dropped as much as 40 percent, meanwhile U.S. searches for “rental” and “lease” are down 42 and 33 percentage points, respectively, in the last month, according to Google Trends.
How COVID-19 is Inspiring New Ideas in Food Retail
/With social distancing rules in place, and restrictions on eating out to stop the spread of COVID-19, food retailers have been forced to reinvent their business models to maintain cash flow.
From restaurant kitchens turning into bakeries, to bars home delivering drinks packages, and takeaways turning to food apps, many are stepping up in how they connect with their customers and tap into new demand, boosting their readiness for future trends.
In Australia there are about 60,000 venues affected by measures to prevent people gathering, which include closing food courts, and allowing only takeaway or delivery options for cafes, bars and restaurants. In many cities across the world, venues have shut altogether.
The speed of the outbreak has forced retailers and landlords to think quickly about how to adapt to these new norms, when the sector was already subject to evolutionary pressures including e-commerce, increased urban living and changing shopping and social behaviours.
Necessity leads to invention
Around the world, there are pockets of quick and inspired thinking. With licencing restrictions in Australia relaxed to allow bars to deliver alcohol, Sydney bar Dulcie’s have put together a ‘Quarantini-hour’ pack, including glasses for hire, and a link to the bar’s playlist.
In London, the healthy meal delivery company and deli chain Detox Kitchen is working alongside its produce supplier to create food boxes for consumers with goods usually sold to restaurants, such as vegetables, fruit, eggs and dry ingredients.
“We’re also making sure shopping centre websites and social media accounts are listing all these details and that their profile and reach is being leveraged to support their retailers. It’s not just about writing a ‘we are still open’ post and hoping for the best. There’s a lot of strategy and some really techy stuff that goes into good social media.”
To support retailers and landlord through this period it refers to as ‘business unusual’, Brain and Poulter has created a ‘triage package’ for retailers including best practice guidelines for takeaway and delivery services, as well as cost management advice.
Hotel Stocks Experienced one of Their Worst Months on Record in March
/The Baird/STR Hotel Stock Index dropped 36.0% in March to a level of 2,748. Year to date through the first three months of 2020, the stock index was down 47.9%.
“Hotel stocks experienced one of their worst months on record as investors contemplated worst-case liquidity scenarios for hotel companies driven by the COVID-19 demand shock and potential hotel closures,” said Michael Bellisario, senior hotel research analyst and director at Baird.
“In the U.S., occupancy levels have fallen to unprecedented lows, and we are forecasting a 50.6% drop in RevPAR for the year. The industry will be positioned for recovery once concerns are abated, but there is obviously great uncertainty on when that time will come.”
March performance of the Baird/STR Hotel Stock Index posted greater declines than both the S&P 500 (-12.5%) and the MSCI US REIT Index (-22.2%).
The Hotel Brand sub-index decreased 34.5% from February to 4,712, while the Hotel REIT sub-index declined 40.0% to 702.
Delay of 2020 Olympics Devastating for Tokyo Lodging Industry
/Major players based in the Japanese capital will be relieved that an Olympic cancellation has been avoided, but smaller operators will be unable to see a silver lining, says GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.
Ralph Hollister, Travel & Tourism Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “Many smaller establishments that do not have the high cash reserves that their large-scale competitors possess needed the Olympics to occur this summer
“The closure of major attractions in Japan that encouraged a constant flow of guests such as Tokyo Disneyland, combined with China banning overseas trips, has created a severe lack of tourism in recent months. This lack of guests meant that many lodging operators had to place more reliance on revenues being boosted through a successful 2020 Olympics.”
Japanese lodging companies – especially hoteliers – were banking on a strong tourist year to compensate for significant capital investments. These high-value investments amid already flagging economic growth were made in the confidence that revenue generated from the Olympics would kick start financial return for stakeholders.
“Cash flow problems were becoming of great concern to many Japanese hotels that were starting to feel the impact of the economic slump. Some will simply not have the financial power to stay open in order to reap the financial rewards of Tokyo 2021.”
Caesars Shuts Down Properties
/The ongoing COVID-19 public health emergency has prompted the temporary shutdown of Caesars Entertainment Corporation's properties consistent with government or tribe-mandated directives around the world.
The Company furloughed employees as its properties were ordered closed. The furloughs are expected to impact approximately 90% of employees at its domestic, owned properties as well as its corporate staff. Those individuals who are furloughed remain employees of the Company throughout the furlough period.
"Given the closure of our properties, we are taking difficult but necessary steps to protect the company's financial position and its ability to recover when circumstances allow us to reopen and begin welcoming our guests and employees back to our properties," said Tony Rodio, Chief Executive Officer of Caesars Entertainment.
The Company is paying furloughed employees for the first two weeks of the closure period and those employees can use their available paid time off after that. For furloughed employees enrolled in the Caesars health benefit plans, the Company is paying 100 percent of health insurance premiums through June 30, or their return to work, whichever comes sooner.
More Than Six Million Jobs at Risk in the EU and One Million in the UK if Governments Don’t Provide Exceptional Flexibility, Says WTTC
/Gloria Guevara, President & CEO of the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), has urged EU authorities and the UK Government to implement flexibility around consumer refunds to alleviate the unbearable pressure on the Travel & Tourism sector.
Research conducted by WTTC shows that 75 million Travel & Tourism jobs are at risk globally due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with at least 6.4 million losses across the EU, and one million in the UK.
WTTC, which represents the global Travel & Tourism private sector, says that this important measure will have a profound effect to reduce the damaging situation that the majority of tour operators and travel agents, online and offline, and are facing due to the previously unimaginable impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The current 14-day timeline for refunds is putting enormous burdens on businesses in the Travel & Tourism sector and will lead to major bankruptcies. These, in turn, will lead to more claims by consumers on credit card firms and ultimately government bonded schemes.
Gloria Guevara, President and CEO, WTTC said, “This measure should be implemented immediately and help lift the already crushing financial pressure on Travel & Tourism organisations and save the millions of livelihoods that depend on them.”
Europe’s Hotel Construction Pipeline Continues an Upward Trend Despite Some Economic Challenges
/According to the recent Europe hotel construction pipeline trend report from Lodging Econometrics (LE), Europe’s total construction pipeline rose to 1,871 projects/297,490 rooms in the fourth quarter of 2019, a 19% increase by projects and 22% by rooms, year-over-year (YOY).
There are 879 projects/140,620 rooms currently under construction, 531 projects/81,235 rooms scheduled to start construction in the next 12 months, and 461 projects/75,635 rooms in early planning. All stages of the pipeline are at record highs and have counts more than double their cyclical lows set earlier in the decade.
Looking forward, the first quarter of 2020 could be rather sluggish too, due in part to the heavily export-dependent German economy, which is being negatively affected by the slowing of the Chinese economy as a result of the coronavirus, France’s weakening economic performance and widespread social turmoil caused by unpopular economic reforms, and the U.K.’s need to reestablish an economic relationship with the European Union by year’s end.
Europe’s leading countries in the construction pipeline are the United Kingdom with 346 projects/49,651 rooms, and Germany standing at 339 projects/61,836 rooms. France follows with 171 projects/21,173 rooms, and then Portugal and Poland with 118 projects/12,616 rooms and 90 projects/14,028 rooms, respectively. With the exception of France and Poland, these markets all have construction pipelines at record highs
The cities with the largest pipelines are London with 88 projects/15,575 rooms, Dusseldorf at an all-time high of 60 projects/11,443 rooms, Paris with 44 projects/6,896 rooms, Hamburg standing at 34 projects/7,302 rooms, and Lisbon with 34 projects/3,114 rooms. Moscow follows with 31 projects/6,536 rooms, Berlin with 27 projects/6,202 rooms, and then Frankfurt with 27 projects/5,642 rooms.
Radisson Blu Hotel Nanjing South New Town Announced for 2024
/Radisson Hotel Group continues to expand in China with the signing of its first property in Nanjing, the country's ancient capital city, the current capital of Jiangsu province and a thriving modern metropolis.
Scheduled to open its doors in 2024, Radisson Blu Hotel Nanjing South New Town will feature 300 contemporary rooms and suites, an indoor swimming pool, a fitness center, a lobby lounge and three restaurants.
With an array of amenities and facilities, this new hotel will become a hub of the community, creating meaningful guest experiences that are underpinned by Radisson Blu's unique "Yes I Can!" service philosophy. The property is being developed by Nanjing South New Town Exhibition Centre Development Co., Ltd
The new hotel will be located just 3.3km from Nanjing South Station and easy access to Nanjing Lukou International Airport, which offers connections to many major cities including Bangkok, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, Singapore and Tokyo.
How to Get More Bookings With a Full Funnel Marketing Strategy
/Whether you’re at a Hotel, Resort, Vacation Rental Management Company or a B&B, getting to full occupancy doesn’t happen overnight. There are thousands of businesses vying for travelers so your business needs to stand out from the rest. With changes to Google, OTA competition, Airbnb, and buyer behavior it can be a challenge to know how to market your property. In today’s travel landscape it’s essential to have a full funnel marketing strategy and be seen from traveler’s first Google search to creating a reservation at your property. This overview of how to get more bookings with a full funnel marketing Strategy will go over:
Top of Funnel: Awareness
Middle of Funnel: Engagement
Bottom of Funnel: Conversion
Top of Funnel
Top of funnel marketing involves getting your property found by travelers that are just starting their search. They may be going to Google and searching general keywords such as Wisconsin dells resorts or NY hotels. Others may start their search on an OTA or Metasearch site. These travelers are just starting their search, so how do you stand out from all of the travel businesses and be seen? Here are a few strategies on how to get more bookings by bringing in travelers at the top of the funnel:
Travel Blog
Paid Search: Top of funnel keywords
Marketplace Listings
Middle of Funnel
Congratulations! A traveler found your property online. Whether you’re marketing to a traveler who has merely seen your property online or who has booked through you previously they are now in the middle of your marketing funnel. With an average buying cycle of 80 days for travel, it is paramount to stay in front of them. Don’t let them forget about you! Here are some strategies on how to get more bookings by staying in front of travelers for the full buying cycle:
Email capture and email marketing
Social Media Retargeting Ads
Paid Search: Brand Protection
Bottom of Funnel
Now the traveler has found you AND is ready to buy! This is where you need to work to close the sale and get them to book direct. If they’re looking at your property on Metasearch you want them to pick your site so they can book direct. Once they’re on your site you want to keep them there to close the sale. Here are some strategies on how to get more bookings and close the sale.
Competitive pricing
Cart Abandonment
Recommendations for Hoteliers on Digital Communications and Advertising Updates - By Nick Hopkins
/We are immersed in a difficult and unprecedented time in the travel and hospitality industry. However, there are some steps you can take when it comes to your digital marketing to make the most of what you have available. Here are our recommendations:
Adjust your advertising:
Add negative keywords.
Add “coronavirus” and “COVID-19” related keywords to your negative keywords within the paid search channel to prevent your ads from showing up for related searches.Highlight key verbiage in ads and social.
Verbiage like “flexible cancellations” or “daily housekeeping” should be highlighted in your ad copy or social media posts to put customers at ease with completing a booking at your properties. We are working with Google to get a callout extension approved for the meta channel that says “Flexible Cancellations.” If you are a current customer and would like to add this to your meta campaign, please contact your Business Development Manager.Advertise ancillary.
Advertise ancillary outlets to the immediate local market in order to try to capture some revenue through these channels even if bookings for the industry are currently down.Maximize your low funnel channels.
Do this to capture as many direct bookings as possible. While prospecting is important for the long-term, protecting direct bookings is vital at this time. Your direct bookings are still more cost-effective than an OTA commission.
Communicate with customers:
Email your customers.
If you haven’t done so already, send an email out to your email distribution list addressing COVID-19 and the steps you’re taking on property to keep your guests and employees safe.Get more social.
Communicate to your customers on what is happening on property, future opportunities, thoughts from staff. It’s important to stay connected with your existing customer base.
Take a look at your data:
Ensure you have reporting dashboards.
You need dashboards that allow you to view daily visitor volumes and what content they are engaged with: conversion rates, booking window, campaign performance, cancellation rates, etc.Follow your booking window data closely.Leisure travelers are looking out to summer. Data shows an increase in flights purchased more than 90 days in advance so hotel reservations will follow.
What your short- and long-term strategy should look like:
Short-term strategy
Target drive markets with local packages. Ensure your campaigns are geo-fenced for efficient spend and engagement. It is imperative that all targeting and content are relevant and carefully messaged. Continually….refresh….content on your website and in your ads.Long-term strategy
Target advance offers, summer packages or even holiday type specials. After a significant disruption like this, people will be looking for reasons to celebrate throughout the remainder of 2020 after taking a deep breath.
Fuel Hotel Marketing Podcast: Episode 138 - Adjustments To Consider For Your Hotel Advertising Right Now
/These are unprecedented times and they call for us to rethink our advertising approach. In this episode, we discuss some simple considerations that you should be thinking about when updating your hotel advertising.
At Fuel, we think a little differently. We believe that we’re making the world just a little bit better by connecting people with the right products and services. “Travel Marketing…Simplified.” That’s our motto and our commitment. Headquartered in the heart of the travel and tourism industry in Myrtle Beach, S.C., Fuel provides all digital services in-house through a team of experts who understand the potential of well-executed, effective online marketing
For more information please visit below mention website:
http://www.fueltravel.com/?utm_source=Hotel+News+Resource
RLH Corporation Provides COVID-19 Update
/Red Lion Hotels Corporation (NYSE: RLH) yesterday announced a series of organizational changes and cost cutting measures including changes to senior management, a reduction in force and the closing of the Company’s Spokane office. These initiatives accelerate cost-cutting measures begun at the end of 2019 and broaden the scope of cost reductions in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Company announced the following organizational changes:
Nate Troup was promoted to Chief Financial Officer effective April 1, 2020; previously Mr. Troup was the Company’s Chief Accounting Officer.
Paul Moerner was promoted to Chief Accounting Officer; previously Mr. Moerner was Senior Director, Technical Accounting and Reporting.
Julie Shiflett, existing Chief Financial Officer is leaving the Company to pursue other interests.
The Board of Directors has also suspended the Company’s search for a permanent Chief Executive Officer at this time. John Russell, as interim CEO, will continue to lead the organization through this economic challenge.
The Company has implemented the following additional measures as part of an accelerated cost-cutting program:
A reduction in force. RLHC will be reducing its corporate workforce by roughly 40% to approximately 100 full-time equivalent employees. After this reduction, the Company has reduced 48% of the corporate workforce on a quarter-to-date basis. The workforce reduction was part of the cost cutting measures begun in late 2019; the Board elected to accelerate these measures in response to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Severance expense of approximately $0.6 million will be recorded related to this reduction in force.
Company-wide compensation reductions. Virtually all associates will be taking salary reductions. John Russell, interim CEO will be taking a 25% reduction in compensation. Most remaining staff from EVP to more junior staff levels will be subject to compensation cuts between 5% and 25%. The Board has also agreed to a 25% reduction in their base retainer for the second quarter.
A reduction in capital spend. The Company is reducing its 2020 capital expenditures to include only essential projects for an estimated savings of $2.9 million. Furthermore, additional key money commitments for franchisees will be reduced during this challenging economic time.
Operational Update Related to COVID-19
“The safety of our guests and team members around the country is a top priority,” said John Russell, Interim Chief Executive Officer. “We have provided our franchisees guidelines and safety recommendations by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) detailing how to identify COVID-19 symptoms and mitigate its transmission.
Measures taken to support our franchisees include:
Royalty and Marketing Fee deferral program for all brands
Temporary fee reductions for review responses, guest relations fees, and certain other fees
Delay capital intensive brand standards
Providing information on new legislative relief that may be available to them Suspending New Contract Signings Guidance
Prior to the escalation of the pandemic, the Company was seeing a resurgence in interest for its franchise agreements that has slowed in the last several weeks. Given the lack of visibility on how long travel restrictions and social distancing may remain in place, which is having a disproportionate unfavorable impact on the lodging sector, the Company has decided to suspend its guidance on new location contract signings.
Condor Hospitality Trust Provides Update on Its Response To COVID-19
/Condor Hospitality Trust, Inc. (NYSE American: CDOR), a hotel-focused real estate investment trust (REIT) headquartered and incorporated in the state of Maryland, provided an update today on its response to COVID-19.
J. William Blackham, Chief Executive Officer said, “There have been significant changes in business and economic conditions generally in the United States and in the lodging industry in particular as the COVID-19 crisis continues. As many others in the lodging industry have determined, the Company has determined that it is advisable and in the best business practice for the Company to cause temporary closures of 30 to 90 days of two of its hotels located in Solomons, MD and Leawood, KS, and the Company is evaluating on a daily basis similar temporary closures of hotels located in Lake Mary, FL, San Antonio, TX and Round Rock, TX. We will continue to assess reopenings of these hotels, and potential temporary closings of other Company hotels, based on specific market trends.”
The Company is taking these additional actions to address operating costs and to better position the Company in the current lodging environment.
What Makes Your Guest Unhappy?
/In a world spoiled for choice, reviews are a priority to decision making. Bad reviews have a lasting impact on reputation and can be disastrous for business. The use of the latest software makes the management and functionality of hotels more seamless and efficient.
Below are listed a few common, but important reasons, that affect guest satisfaction in hotels:
Unhygienic Rooms :Hygienic rooms are a necessity and not a luxury. Spotless rooms, fresh linen and well- maintained upholstery are very important to create a positive guest experience. Ensure that the guests check-in to a clean room with well-arranged beds, fresh toiletries, dust-free furnishings and a pest-free environment.
A robust property management software, like the Hotelogix PMS, will help you manage the status of your room from both the frontdesk and from the housekeeping modules. And the best part? Room status can be configured to update automatically every night. You can also assign employees to rooms that need attention. With Hotelogix, you can make sure that a guest will never check into a messy room ever again.
Untrained Staff
The hotel staff are the representatives of the hotel’s values and brand image. They are the main connection between your customer and your hotel.
Hotelogix Automated Coaching Engine — A.C.E. is another innovative AI-powered module that would change the way your hotel staff is trained. Loaded with intuitively created tasks, A.C.E. trains your staff effortlessly on all the aspects of the Hotelogix PMS. Whether you are learning the system from scratch, or stuck during a task, A.C.E. is always there by your side, making guest handling in hotel easy.
Absence of Basic Amenities
Offer some basic amenities to make your guests feel more at home. It doesn’t have to be an expensive gift bag a few everyday necessities will do. Personalised soaps, shampoos, or shaving kit, for example, leave your guests feeling like you care about their comforts. Make sure that the amenities offered with the room are all present and in a good working condition. A faulty air conditioner or a badly maintained minifridge all contribute to bad customer experience. The in-room perks which you provide should always be clean and ready for use for guest handling in hotels.
Poor Quality Food
A very important part of positive customer experience is the food. Guests look for healthy, hygienic and wholesome food. Guests want to experience the comforts of your hotel- and ordering room service is one of them. Providing food that is fresh and warm, in clean plates with clean cutlery is just the basic of what you can do for your guests.
Craft a well -rounded menu to make sure there’s something for everyone. Ensure that your kitchen and your buffet is well stocked and that the guests are aware of the timings of kitchen operations or the buffet. As they say, “the way to a person’s heart is through their stomach”.
Conclusion
A positive way to handle guest reviews is collecting and managing guest feedback while they stay in your hotel. Train staff to handle requests and guest complaints in the front office promptly so that the guest’s discomfort soon changes into a positive experience by showing them that you care. Offer apologies and be sincere with your approach to their problems, this is the best approach to dealing with guest complaints in hotels.
Hotelogix helps you manage all guest reviews within one system. With our review manager, you can now view, respond to and manage all guest reviews- not only on your booking engine but also on all your registered OTAs.
Hilton Garden Inn Monterrey Obispado Opens in Mexico
/Hilton announced the opening of its new Hilton Garden Inn in Mexico — Hilton Garden Inn Monterrey Obispado. Owned by Real State Agency ALORA and developed by Promotora DEVI SA de CV, the 176-room hotel is located within Torre TOP, a new mixed-use project with LEED Gold Certification for sustainable buildings. Upon completion, Torre TOP will be recognized as Mexico’s tallest skyscraper.
Located two miles away from San Pedro Garza Garcia, Hilton Garden Inn Monterrey Obispado boasts 176 guestrooms that offer panoramic views of the Monterrey mountain range. The rooms also feature the brand’s signature bedding, which includes fresh, white duvets and crisp linens; a spacious and clutter-free work desk with an ergonomic desk chair; and an in-room “hospitality center” with a mini fridge as well as a coffee maker.
Situated in front of the San Pedro corporate and financial area and surrounded by important medical establishments such as Christus Muguerza Hospital and Sierra Madre Hospital, the hotel boasts convenient access to downtown tourist attractions, such as Macroplaza, Santa Lucia walkway, Metropolitan Cathedral, Mirador del Obispado, Fundidora Park and Museo del Acero Horno 3. Guests can take advantage of a complimentary shuttle service to reach destinations within five miles of the property.
Hilton currently has a portfolio of nearly 160 hotels and resorts across 25 countries in the Caribbean and Latin America, including just about 70 properties in Mexico. The company is actively pursuing additional Caribbean and Latin American growth opportunities and currently has a robust pipeline of more than 100 hotels throughout the region, including 30 hotels in the pipeline in Mexico.
