The Tricycle of Guest Service Excellence: A Perfect Model For Remarkable Experiences
Doug Kennedy | October 4th, 2024
Spokane Tribe Resort & Casino Partners With Travel Outlook to Elevate Guest Service Experience
Travel Outlook, The Premier Hotel Call Center™ | October 2nd, 2024
WTTC Launches Safe Travels Protocols for Aviation, Airports, MICE and Tour Operators
June 1, 2020
London, UK: The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) has unveiled the second phase of measures to rebuild global consumer confidence to encourage the return of travelling. The latest protocols are designed to drive the return of safe travel and enable industries, namely tour operators and convention centres, meetings and events to thrive once again. Detailed discussions took place with key stakeholders and organisations to ensure maximum buy-in, alignment and practical implementation, to set clear expectations of what travellers may experience in the ‘new normal’. Those relating to airports and airlines have been devised fol...
Optimism Versus Reality
H. Keith Thompson | June 1, 2020
By H. Keith Thompson I am, by my very nature, an optimist. I don’t think you can be a hotel broker and not be an optimist. Optimism is welcomed, wonderful, and useful, but there must be some reality woven in. Today there are 40+ million people unemployed in the US, and it is expected that the May 2020 unemployment rate will be 20+/-%. For the hospitality industry, COVID has caused performance to plummet to levels never seen before. While I am happy to see public companies rebounding in stock value, a close friend of mine asked me what I believe could be the best question. Why? With hotels especially, as well as office, multifamily,...
Austin Watkins Appointed Managing Director Marketing & Hospitality Sales at Timbers Resorts
Timbers Resorts | June 1, 2020
Winter Park, Fla. – Timbers Resorts, a leading developer and operator of boutique resorts, private residence clubs and fractional vacation homes in the world’s most sought after destinations, today announces the appointment of Austin Watkins as managing director – marketing and hospitality sales. In this role, Watkins will be responsible for developing, driving and overseeing the marketing direction for the company, as well as overseeing sales for the company’s resort and residential rental offerings. With over 27 years of experience in the luxury hospitality sector and an extensive background in global sales and marketing, Watkins ...
Scant Business at Europe’s Hotels Sends Profit to Historical Low
HotStats | June 1, 2020
April was a month of virtually no business volume for Europe's hotels, as the coronavirus spread across the continent, prompting countries such as Spain, Italy and Russia to impose lockdowns in order to flatten the infection curve. The result was pain across the operating statement, with GOPPAR recording its historical low at -€17.86, a 132.0% decline compared to April of 2019. With travel bans and mandatory stay-at-home orders in effect, occupancy fell by 69.7 percentage points YOY to single-digit levels, which, combined with a 44.1% drop in average rate, drove RevPAR down by 95.5%. The closure of F&B venues, as well as health clubs...
Hospitality Financial Leadership – The Death of Lord Mountbatten
David Lund | June 1, 2020
By David Lund In the hotel business we are always welcoming guests that have a variety of different needs and stories. In my first summer working at The Algonquin Resort I had the adventure of a lifetime living in the staff residence with my new friends and co-workers while my parents’ house was but a few blocks away. It wasn’t until three or four years later that I learned who was sleeping in my bed at my parents’ house that summer. Someone who needed a place to hide. Someone who had a secret to keep. The town of St. Andrews N.B. is a special place. I grew up there and I have many fond memories. Many local characters seemed bi...
Hospitality Ventures Management Group (HVMG) Assumes Management of Kentucky’s The Inn On Broadway Lexington
Hospitality Ventures Management Group | June 1, 2020
LEXINGTON, Ky., (June 1, 2020)—Hospitality Ventures Management Group (HVMG), an Atlanta-based, private hotel investment, ownership and management company, today announced it has signed a management agreement to operate the Inn On Broadway in Lexington, Kentucky. “Particularly during the current environment, hotel owners are turning to trusted and proven operators to help their hotels maximize performance and weather the on-going crisis,” said Robert Cole, president & CEO, HVMG. “HVMG has been through the highs and lows of multiple cycles, making us as prepared as possible to navigate through the pandemic. We have come up wi...
Davidson Hotels & Resorts Tapped to Manage Snowpine Lodge
Davidson Hotels & Resorts | June 1, 2020
ATLANTA (June 1, 2020) – Davidson Hotels & Resorts, one of the nation’s leading full-service hospitality management companies, announces the addition of the Snowpine Lodge to its expanding portfolio. Situated slopeside with unparalleled access to Alta mountain Ski Area in Alta, Utah, the resort features 54 luxurious guest rooms and suites; 14 deluxe dorm beds; Stillwell Spa; more than 10,000 square feet of flexible indoor/outdoor event space; two unique dining experiences; a fully stocked game room; a mountain-side pool and hot tubs, fitness center and yoga studio; outdoor firepits; ski lockers and Utah’s oldest ski shop, the Deep P...
Charlestowne Hotels Inks Deal With The Thrash Group to Manage Ten Hotels
Charlestowne Hotels | June 1, 2020
Charleston, SC – June 1, 2020 – Charlestowne Hotels, providing full-service hospitality management, today announces a formal agreement with The Thrash Group, a national hospitality development company, to oversee their entire portfolio of hotels. Under this new agreement, Charlestowne will add ten properties to its portfolio – the management company’s largest single deal in its 40-year history. Five of the newly added properties are part of Origin Hotel, an independent brand of lifestyle hotels. “To say this has been a tumultuous year for hospitality would be an understatement. As we approach Charlestowne’s 40thanniversary, we...
JN+A and HVS Design Release 2020 Hotel Cost Estimating Guide
JN+A | June 1, 2020
Rockville, Md. (June 1, 2020) Jonathan Nehmer + Associates, Inc. (JN+A) and HVS Design, leading Architecture, Interior Design, and Project Management firms specializing in the hospitality industry, are proud to announce the release of the 2020 Hotel Cost Estimating Guide. The Guide is a comprehensive listing of capital expenditure construction and FF&E costs for hotel renovations. Now in its twelfth year, the 2020 Hotel Cost Estimating Guide evaluates costs in a variety of hotel tiers including Economy, Extended Stay, Midscale, Upscale, Upper Upscale, and Luxury. Within each tier, costs are separated into the categories of Guestroo...
Global DMC Partners Releases Latest Meetings & Events Survey Results
Global DMC Partners | May 28, 2020
Findings reveal the dramatic impact of COVID-19, that incentive programs and face-to-face events are not fully replaceable, and that fear remains the greatest barrier to overcome Washington, D.C. – May 28, 2020 – Global DMC Partners (GDP), the leading global network of independently owned destination management companies (DMCs) and creative event experts, today announced the results of its most recent Meetings & Events Pulse Survey, focusing on the widespread impact of the COVID-19 global pandemic to the MICE industry. Conducted April 27 through May 4, 2020, the survey polled 374 respondents from the meetings and events industry. ...
The Incomplete Answer
Shep Hyken | May 28, 2020
By Shep Hyken I recently wrote about the expected experiences gap, where the customers’ expectations—based on the experiences they have with their favorite companies—are higher than what they receive from the company they are currently doing business with. We heard from one of our Shepard Letter subscribers, Jared Lender, who gave us another example of a gap, one that results from incomplete information. In other words, it’s the gap between the answer the customer received the first time they asked and the answer they should have received. This may have happened to you. You reach out to a salesperson or customer support age...
STR: Middle East and Africa hotel performance for April 2020
STR | May 28, 2020
LONDON—Showing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, hotels in the Middle East and Africa reported unprecedented performance lows during April 2020, according to data from STR. U.S. dollar constant currency, April 2020 vs. April 2019 Middle East Occupancy: -58.0% to 31.2% Average daily rate (ADR): -35.1% to US$95.54 Revenue per available room (RevPAR): -72.7% to US$29.82 Africa Occupancy: -79.8% to 12.5% ADR: -31.1% to US$77.85 RevPAR: -86.1% to US$9.75 Both the Middle East and Africa saw their lowest absolute occupancy and RevPAR levels for any month on record. Local currency, April 2020 vs. April 2019 ...
STR: Central/South America Hotel Performance for April 2020
STR | May 28, 2020
LONDON—Reflecting impact from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Central/South America hotel industry reported historic performance lows during April 2020, according to data from STR. U.S. dollar constant currency, April 2020 vs. April 2019 Occupancy: -79.7% to 11.6% Average daily rate (ADR): -28.7% to US$61.83 Revenue per available room (RevPAR): -85.5% to US$7.17 The absolute occupancy and RevPAR levels were the lowest for any month on record in the region. Local currency, April 2020 vs. April 2019 Panama Occupancy: -69.2% to 14.0% ADR: -49.1% to PAB47.71 RevPAR: -84.3% to PAB6.69 The absolute levels in each ...
How COVID-19 Can Stimulate Healthier Hospitality Leadership
Petra Deuter | May 28, 2020
By Petra Deuter Much has already been written about how travel and tourism will be irrevocably changed by the coronavirus pandemic. Optimists and realists alike are focusing on more environmentally friendly ways of reaching our chosen destinations, more sensitive ways of considering local culture and more sustainable, ethical methods of sharing and distributing the financial benefits of tourism. But what about the hospitality and in particular the hotel industry itself? If there was ever a time for us to engage in honest, unflinching self-reflection, this is it. As travelers and vacationers are ready and willing to change their habits, ...
STR: Asia Pacific Hotel Performance for April 2020
STR | May 28, 2020
SINGAPORE—Reflecting the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Asia Pacific hotel industry reported record lows in the three key performance metrics during April 2020, according to data from STR. U.S. dollar constant currency, April 2020 vs. April 2019 Occupancy: -60.3% to 28.0% Average daily rate (ADR): -44.8% to US$54.97 Revenue per available room (RevPAR): -78.1% to US$15.38 The absolute levels in each of the three KPIs were the lowest for any month on record in the region. Local currency, April 2020 vs. April 2019 South Korea Occupancy: -70.8% to 20.0% ADR: -21.0% to KRW112,897.83 RevPAR: -76.9% to KRW...
STR: Europe Hotel Performance for April 2020
STR | May 28, 2020
LONDON—Reflecting the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Europe’s hotel industry reported unprecedented performance lows during April 2020, according to data from STR. Euro constant currency, April 2020 vs. April 2019 Occupancy: -84.6% to 11.1% Average daily rate (ADR): -30.1% to EUR77.52 Revenue per available room (RevPAR): -89.2% to EUR8.58 The absolute occupancy and RevPAR levels were the lowest for any month on record in Europe. Local currency, April 2020 vs. April 2019 Russia Occupancy: -89.0% to 7.2% ADR: -25.3% to RUB3,712.65 RevPAR: -91.8% to RUB267.20 The absolute levels in each of the three me...
UNWTO Launches Global Guidelines to Reopen Tourism
the Global Tourism Crisis Committee | May 28, 2020
The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has released a set of guidelines to help tourism sector emerge stronger and more sustainably from COVID-19. The guidelines highlight the need to act decisively, to restore confidence and, as UNWTO strengthens its partnership with Google, to embrace innovation and the digital transformation of global tourism. The guidelines were produced in consultation with the Global Tourism Crisis Committee and aim to support governments and private sector to recover from an unparalleled crisis. Depending on when travel restrictions are lifted, the United Nations specialized agency warns that international tourist arr...
U.S. Hotel Performance—Unsurprisingly—Hits New Lows in April
HotStats | May 28, 2020
The adage “March winds and April showers bring forth May flowers” appropriately captures current U.S. hotel performance, which satisfied the features of the first two months and can only hope May turns up rosier. April’s showers were, indeed, forecasted. COVID-19 tightened its grip around U.S. states and cities where lockdowns were omnipresent, stay-at-home orders abounded and travel was at a near standstill. The result was a month’s worth of grim hotel data. With occupancy rates off 73 percentage points from a year prior, and a steep drop in average room rate, RevPAR fell 95.2% year-over-year to a single-digit number, on a p...
COVID-19: Learning Lessons From Holiday Hideaways and Luxury Escapes
EHL Hospitality Insights | May 28, 2020
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to surge around the world, the tourism industry has been sent into a downward spiral. Airlines have cancelled flights, hotels have shut down their services and governments are closing borders and placing their citizens in lockdown. The tourism industry, which accounts for 10% of the world’s GDP, has fallen far and fast. And while countless hospitality & tourism businesses have been forced to close their doors for good, others have never been more sought after – either because they offer exclusive services or have adapted their offering to cater to a more germ-conscious audience. Luxury escapes and r...
COVID-19 Recovery in the UK – The Importance of Domestic Demand
Stephen Collins | May 28, 2020
By Stephen Collins Like much of the world, the UK has been hit hard by the coronavirus, with more than 37,000 deaths and 265,000 confirmed cases as of 27 May and the highest number of attributed deaths in Europe (although fewer deaths per capita than Spain, Italy and Belgium). The pandemic has hit all areas of the economy, but the hospitality industry has undoubtedly been and will continue to be one of the worst affected. Fortunately, there is light at the end of the tunnel for the lockdown phase, and the focus of hoteliers is shifting from how to manage the closure to developing a sound reopening strategy. On Sunday, 10 May, Prime Mi...
GBTA Study Finds More Than Half of Companies Considering Resuming Travel in Near Future
the Global Business Travel Association | May 28, 2020
Alexandria, VA—There continues to be small signs of optimism in the travel sector according to new research issued today by the Global Business Travel Association. Health and safety measures have always been a cornerstone of travel and are now of significant importance as the industry tries to gain momentum for recovery. “People aren’t going to travel until they feel safe. Our member companies want to see several health and safety steps taken at every stage of the travel process– from ground transportation to airlines, to hotels. As restrictions across the globe begin to lift, small green shoots of optimism are sprouting in the ind...
Main Street Hospitality Plans Summer 2020 Opening of Hammetts Hotel in Newport, Rhode Island
Main Street Hospitality Group | May 28, 2020
Newport, RI (May 28, 2020) – Centrally located on America’s Cup at Commercial Wharf, the newly built Hammetts Hotel welcomes travelers to the waterfront of Newport, RI, this summer. The 84-room boutique hotel has a distinctive presence in the heart of downtown Newport, providing guests with a sense of belonging immediately upon arrival and stunning views of the harbor and adjacent Newport Marina. “The spirit of the hotel is a nod to Newport’s historic mercantile wharves in a modern context,” said Sarah Eustis, CEO of Main Street Hospitality. “It is designed to welcome visitors and community with vibrant social spaces and stylis...
Florence’s Il Salviatino Appoints Juan Miquel as New General Manager
Il Salviatino | May 28, 2020
Fiesole, Italy - May 2020: Fiesole’s iconic Il Salviatino welcomes General Manager Juan Miquel to lead the 42-room villa hotel as it enters a bright new era in hospitality that celebrates wellness, sustainability, and classic Italian tradition. Juan joins Il Salviatino as the property embarks on a series of fascinating enhancements to its outdoor spaces, including a new spa and pool house within the property’s 12.5 acres of lush private park – a perfectly primed sanctuary nestled in nature. The new additions are due to be completed in time for the villa’s highly anticipated reopening in the spring of 2021, further expanding on I...
Key Questions on Employees’ Minds Right Now, Part I/II
James Houran | May 28, 2020
By James Houran, Matt Peterson Many hospitality students and professionals around the world recently participated in AETHOS’ series of development webinars. These sessions offered attendees the opportunity to complete the 20|20 Skills™ assessment to gain a personal SWOT analysis to help them navigate these challenging times of occupational crisis and change. Interestingly, the attendees consistently voiced certain concerns and follow-up questions. We wanted, therefore, to address these issues publicly for the benefit of business owners, leaders, and HR professionals who are eager to understand the issues presently on the minds of th...
