by Joseph Zarrahy
Spring has sprung and summer is nearly here! What does that mean? It’s officially vacation season. This can be an abundant time for your hotel, as long as you know how to maximize on the tourist season.
What is one thing nearly all spring and summer travelers are looking forward to? Experiencing the local culture of wherever they’re visiting!
People travel to new places to experience something different from that of which they’re familiar. Whether it’s through visiting local attractions, tasting different cuisines, or gazing at a new landscape, the key concept is new and different.
How does this affect your hotel? To attract the most guests possible throughout spring and summer, determine every way your hotel can integrate the local culture and flavor throughout the hotel.
6 Ways to Increase Hotel Revenue
Many vacationers want to be immersed in the destination, while still enjoying the expected hotel amenities and luxuries. You can give them both, here’s how:
Decor
Step into nearly any hotel in Hawaii and what will you find? Incredibly vibrant floral displays, palm leaves, and that infectious tropical vibe. Perhaps the hotel is simply proud to be in Hawaii, or the hotel is smart enough to understand that Hawaiian vacationers want to be immersed in all that is Hawaii (or both). Apply this same concept to your hotel!
Which natural flora, native to your city or region, can you utilize as decor? Pine trees for a refreshing mountain destination or seashells for a quaint beach town, whatever it may be, use it your advantage! Guests notice the details and are likely to comment on them in reviews. Positive comments on your decor = more bookings.
Culinary Treats
Craft beer, fine wines, maple syrup, tortillas, seafood, the list of “local” fares found throughout the U.S. is abundant! It’s said the way to many a heart is through the stomach, and there’s no reason your hotel can’t take advantage of that!
Without a doubt, your region is famous for some sort of food or drink, maybe more than just a few. Narrow down your options and then get to work.
- Add in a local craft beer or two to the bars tap
- Feature the freshly baked tortillas from the local taqueria at the breakfast buffet
- Serve freshly squeezed orange juice made from locally grown oranges
- Offer cheese plates with special cheeses made from the local dairy
- Sell bottles of wine and/or serve glasses of wine from the nearby winery
Excursion Partnerships
If possible, make your hotel the guests one-stop-shop. Of course, guests will leave the hotel to go see and do things, but you can be the one taking them, sending them, or recommending them. The more you offer, the better value your hotel provides. The more your hotel does for the guest, the more detailed and emphatic the review will be. A few examples of what you can offer include:
- A full menu of tours that depart from the hotel
- Easily accessible reading material regarding recommended tour operators
- A quick and easy list of recommended sights and activities to go experience
- Partner with local tour operators or local attractions to provide special hotel-guest-only offerings and prices
- Make it known that your hotel front desk staff will happily book and arrange any activities and tours the guests wish to go do
On-Site Happenings
Naturally, you want to try and keep guests on site as much as possible, so they can spend that vacation money at the hotel. To encourage this, consider:
- On-site concerts with local musicians
- Comedy nights featuring local comedians
- Wine tasting and learning classes, on-site, with local vintners and local wines
- Craft beer tasting and eating events, on-site, featuring local brewers and food
- Snorkel or scuba lessons/certifications in the hotel pool (for beachside properties), or in the hotel’s private beach
- Cooking lessons, on-site, featuring how to make local fare
Gift Shop
If your hotel has a gift shop, be sure to stock it full of all things local. If your hotel doesn’t have a gift shop, consider adding one! You can also sell useful items for your area – i.e. hats, sunglasses, hiking boots, towels, daypacks, etc.
Spa Treatments
Never overlook the revenue opportunities of the spa! Vacationers are looking to relax, and the spa is the ideal place to relax and get cultured:
- If craft beer is big, design a spa treatment utilizing local hops
- Are you a wine destination? Wine and spa treatments go together like salt and pepper
- Located by the sea? Offer special sea salt scrubs and seaweed treatments
These ideas are truly just the tip of the iceberg. Go-culture crazy! Enable your hotel to embody the essence of the destination. Even if you’re a chain hotel, see how much you can interweave the local culture to make your specific property stand out. All of these additions and offerings will make a huge impression on the guest, which will reverberate all season long as more and more people choose your hotel over the competition. And best of all – this is something you can have fun with! Celebrate all that makes your destination unique, and form relationships with local artisans and tour companies all over town as you implement some of these ideas!
Ultimately putting in the time, effort, and resources towards integrating local culture and flavor will result in a revenue increase. More revenue, improved reputation, and congenial attitude will make this spring and summer season the best yet!
