Six Important Tips On Hotel Etiquette

By: Antoinette Ayana

When we stay at an inn, we look for the best they have to offer. We want our rooms to be clean and comfortable, our food to be tasty and filling, and the staff to be professional. As the customer, we deserve first-class service. This is especially true when we visit a high-profile establishment.

While we come to expect a lot from the people who serve us at places of lodging, it is easy to forget that they put forth lots of effort and time into making our stay as enjoyable as possible. These people often go out of their way to accommodate us in any way they can. Showing them our appreciation can encourage them to keep up the good work, even making our stay even better. Here are six important tips on hotel etiquette that can benefit both parties.

1. Make reservations early. Everyone is familiar with experiences of trying to book a room at the last moment, and not getting one as a result. Holidays are notorious for these kinds of incidents, and the team at the inn can be struggling with unhappy customers during these times. Reserving your space in advance can help take some of the stress off the hosts, not to mention ensure that you are guaranteed a room.

2. Keep an eye on your party. If you're travelling with friends and family, make sure that everyone respects the rules of the hotel. Excessive noise and activity can disrupt other guests and hinder the staff on duty.

3. Respect your room. Damaging or mishandling furniture in your room can cause trouble for the establishment. It can result in restrictions being enforced and prices being raised down the line, which can affect your future visits. Treat everything in the room with utmost care.

4. Respect the housekeepers. These professionals usually have large sections of rooms to maintain on a tight schedule. Remember to dispose of any trash in your room using the designated receptacles. If you have any used bath towels, group them together on the bathroom floor or another designated area. Keeping a tidy area helps housekeeping aides work quickly, allowing them to see to other guests' rooms on time.

5. Be considerate of consumables. Items such as shampoo and soap may be complimentary, but it is poor form to take them when you leave. These resources cost the hotel money, and they may bill you for any items you simply take. Additionally, when you visit the complimentary breakfast area, don't take more than what you plan to eat there.

6. Use manners. A simple "please" and "thank you" can do wonders when interacting with the hotel team, making a pleasant experience for you and your hosts.

Courtesy is a two-way street when you stay at a hotel. Using these tips will not only demonstrate your appreciation for the establishment, but will also help make your stay and that of others all the more enjoyable.

Article Source: ezinearticles

Faster Reservations with Hotel Booking Engine

By: Gary Mill


The essence of hotel business changed a lot after the inclusion of online booking system and other technologies. It is beneficial for both the backpackers and the hoteliers. Saving time and money is possible with a smart hotel booking engine. The conveniences of mechanism really made the hotel business more productive. The traditional systems were not able to meet the challenges of speedy bookings. This new age solution is efficient enough to handle the reservation entries at a greater speed.

The Need for Speedy Hotel Booking System:

Both the hotel business owners and their customers always ask the managers to speed up. But in the traditional formats or manual entry process, the booking usually takes more time. The innovative and modern automated hotel reservation methods were made-up. In a small time, some creative people developed new technologies that really made the reservation system faster. The adoptability of this mechanism was tremendously increased and gone to a new height.

This system is now being available to all the hotel managers who want to serve their customers adequately. The outcomes of customer satisfactions really made the hoteliers into magnates. For the best possible results, the hotel managers utilized it as the centralised booking window. In this way, the room inventory controls got an ease.

Besides the business owners, the customers who were looking for hotels with easy booking module find a lot of options. The system timely integrated to web and the complete process made accessible online. So, the backpackers get the chance to book hotel rooms through websites on the go. The robust system architecture of hotel booking system made it more simple and timely.

Features of Online Hotel Booking Engine:

Affordable – In last few years, the cost of these systems declined noticeably. The increased number of these system developers made the product inexpensive and affordable for all types of bed and breakfast or hotel business owners.

Convenient – It is well-situated for all types of hotels whether they are targeting local or international customers. The problems of overbooking or double booking will be handled perfectly. The automated room inventory management ensures proper availability of the rooms for the customers.

Easy – The complete process of integration of the system into the website takes only few minutes. The operations of this hotel booking engine is very simple and not needs an extremely technical person. The customers can also book the hotels with ease.

Faster – It is the prime feature of this new hotel booking system. The reservations handled with the web based application instantly. It takes no time for processing or entering details as it fetches information directly from the booking form.

Safe – The customers also get the eases of online payment. The integrated secure payment gateways ensure adequate financial transaction security. In this way both the customers and hoteliers got satisfied. The complete system made in robust frameworks and advanced technologies ensuring added functionalities.

The business process simplified enough through automating the complete process and reducing the time for manual calculations. Further developments through this service extended its scope of work.


Source : Articlesbase.com 

Eleven Places You Must See in Bali

By : Shu Wei Wong

Bali is possibly one of the most enchanting island on earth. One of more than 13.000 islands in Indonesia, and Bali is revered as one of the world's most popular and interesting tourist destination.

Some quick facts: Bali covers an area of 5620 km2, about 140 km from West to East and 80 km from the South to North. The South part consists of lime stone with beautiful soft white sand along the beach, while the East, West and North are mostly volcanic layers with black soft sand beach.

Bali has a tropical climate with the average temperature of about 30 degrees C (80 degrees F) all year. It has only 2 seasons, dry season started from April to October and wet season from October to April. It is always nice and cool in the hillside while though hot around the coastal area but there are still nice breeze all the time. The dry season is always sunny with great view of sunset and sunrise, while the wet season is not too wet because there is still much sun to enjoy during the day time.

Here are eleven things one must see if you are in Bali:

Barong Dance
This is approx. 1 hour long religious dance representing the eternal fight between the good - Barong and the evil symbolized by a horrible looking witch called Rangda. The costumes and set are elaborate and nice. The trick is to get there early, so that you get front seats and be close enough to see the facial expressions of the dancers .

Celuk (Gold & silver smith), Mas (wood carving) and Stone carving villages 
You would drive past these 3 villages and see the array of shops selling the gold, wood and stone. As you get into Celuk, all the gold and silver smith shops flank the roads, you can also drop by their factory to take a look at the production process. The same goes for the wood carving and stone carving

 

Mount Batur (Kintamani) 
This is the second largest active volcano in Bali. It is 1,717 meters from sea level, and bears the remains of the black lava from it's eruption in 1917 and 1927. There is a nice scenic crater lake there. You can do buffet lunch at one of the restaurant and admire the breath-taking view as you eat. The buffet lunch cost about S$10 and has reasonable spread

Tirta Empul 
Tirta Empul means " bubbling water " and is a holy water temple built in 960 AD. The temple is beautiful temple and has holy water fountains for different purposes of purification and blessing. There were people in the fountains doing their purification when I was there. Further inside the temple area, you can see the source of the water – a spring where water is bubbling up through the black sand. A total make of nature. Legend has it that one of the gods shot an arrow from heaven to look for water, and the spot where the water is bubbling up now is the exact spot where the arrow hit

 

Goa Gajah 
Means "elephant cave". Found in 11th century, this cave was dug in the peaceful riverside valley in a hard sand stone. Entering the inside T-Shape cave, there are some niches used by Buddhist Monks for meditation. Among the many historical remains found around this cave is the holy Ganesh Statue (a human body with elephant head) which is believed as the God of Purification and Evil Controller. The cave can be quite claustrophobic for some people but is well worth a quick look inside  

Sebatu Holy Spring Temple 
Is named " Gunung Kawi " in Balinese. It is a very beautiful village temple located in a peaceful valley with its holy spring. Somewhat similar to Trita Empul, there are large fountains outside the temple area, where villagers use to take a bath. However, my driver told me that this place is not as ‘holy' as Tirta Empul  

Taman Ayun 
Is the largest Royal Family Temple Complex built in 1934 in the village of Mengwi, Badung Regency. The area of this temple is surrounded by moat with some water lilies and lotuses. The place is still used during prayer sessions and important ceremonial events  

Tanah Lot 
One of the most famed temple in Bali. Tanah Lot means " the land of ocean" is a fascinating Hindu Temple built on a piece of cliff in Indian Ocean shore. This temple is dedicated to the God of Ocean "Baruna" built by a high Hindu Priest name Dang Hyang Dwijendra in the 16th century. During high tide, the cliff is surrounded by water and the temple looks like it is floating. In the bottom part of the cliff there is a fresh water holy spring while on the beach cave there are some holy snakes that guard the temple. In the South and North part of the temple is absolutely beautiful view and best for watching sunset 

  

Uluwatu Temple 
Also built by the same Hindu Priest who built Tanah Lot, Uluwatu temple is also another magnificent temple built perched on a cliff. The whole temple stretches across a large area and it is flanked by the fabulous India Ocean. Here, you also see large numbers of monkeys, mostly mischievous ones, who snatches food from visitors 

Lake Beratan & Pura Ulun Danu 
Beratan is a name of the Lake and Village. There is a spectacular floating temple called "Ulun Danu Temple" and is an absolutely interesting sight. The weather at the lake is cool, which is a nice break from the mostly hot sun during my trip. There were people who hired a traditional paddle boat or speed boat to go around the lake, although my driver said there really is nothing much to see around the lake 

Jatiluweh 
A place where you see lots of terraced rice paddy fields. The sights are breathtaking as you see the green terrace, meandering around you. This place is supposed to one of the few in the world that has such nice terraced paddies. Those terraces are probably cut decades ago, and now resulting in the fascinating view today 

Source: Articlesbase.com 

Hotel Franchise Pre-Opening Schedule

Source : franchisedirect.com

1. Initial Planning
    Time Frame : Weeks 19 to 9

• Contract signed to buy and receive hotel IT equipment
• Computer training system established with training provided
• Pre-opening meeting held, forms filled out by franchise
• Information on the hotel entered into computer database
• Begin to try and offer pre-sale on guest rooms

2. Entering the system
    Time Frame : Weeks 8 to 5

• Partner with franchisor quality control team regarding improving products
• Info on hotel lodged into franchisor computer system, in order to receive web listing
• Discussions on branding begin with the franchisor's team
• Prepare for receipt of hotel property code from franchisor
• Formalities for pre-opening - including kit and final checklist received 
• Solicit login and security details for franchisor's website and digital network
• Expect to receive a range of essential email address for business contact 
• Property-specific news and brand info will arrive
• Franchisor visits site of the hotel to explore computer system needs

3. Joining the franchise family
    Time Frame : Weeks 4 to 2

• FDD(franchise disclosure documents) will be dispatched
• Developer receives receipt
• Apply for product improvement scheme and arrange to meet a site inspector
• Presentation for franchise application lodged with franchise committee
• Application approved 
• Future plans and milestones named
• Franchise License Agreement (FLA) signed, authorized and put into action

4. Opening your franchise
    Time Frame : Week 1

• Exhaustive, multiday meeting with corporate team begins to finalize opening
• Strategies discussed with franchisor and final explanation of computer system start
• Presentation of franchisee's business vision to franchisor
• Management team receive last explanation on business operation
• Presentation from franchisor to franchisee on the business plan
• Your hotel is opened! 

 

System for Selecting Management Company

Entrusting your hotel to a management company requires very thorough due diligence during the selection process. Picking the right operator could mean the difference between owning a financially successful lodging facility or one that could take you into bankruptcy. To put this decision into perspective, I have reviewed the operations of more than 8,000 hotels during the past 30 years and found fewer than 2,000 that were run with a high level of competency. Most hotel management companies lack the ability to maximize long-term revenues and minimize long-term expenses.

I find most hotel owners will select a management company based almost entirely on a recognizable brand name. While a strong brand is important, there are many other issues that need to be considered during the selection process.

Over the years, I have developed a numeric rating system to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of hotel management companies so owners can compare the attributes of several operators. Each question has a rating ranging from -4 to +10. Simply total up the numeric ratings for each the management companies you are considering and the result will provide a better idea of which one to select.

1. Comparing the size of the hotels managed by the operator to your property, most are:
- Larger                                   -1
- The Same size                       0
- Smaller                                  -1

2. Comparing the chain affiliations of the hotels managed by the operator, most are:
- Same affiliations                    +1
- Similar affiliations                    0
- Dissimilar or no affiliation       -1

3. If the operator manages other hotels in the same market area, are these considered to be:
- Directly competitive                 -4
- Somewhat competitive             -2
- Non-competitive                      +1

4. Experience of the management company:
- New company, limited experience      -1
- Moderate experience                         0
- Established-extensive experience        +2

5. Management company's financial resources(ability and willingness to invest funds in the property):
- Limited-no investment potential            -1
- Moderate-token investment                  0
- Strong-meaningful investment               +2

6. Operator shows willingness to invest funds in the property as a loan(double amounts if funds are contributedas equity)
- Initial Inventories                                          +1
- Working capital                                            +1
- Pre-opening expenses                                  +2
- FF&E                                                         +3
 - Debt service, other financial guarantees       +3 to +5

7. Management company has extensive experience in one of the following specialized areas that would directly benefit the operation of the hotel:
- Destination Resort operation                    +2
- Major convention operation                     +3
- Unique market                                        +1
- Major food and/or beverage operation    +2
- Development assistance                          +2
- Opening new hotel                                 +2
- Distressed property(turnaround)            +3
- Bankruptcy                                           +2
- Unions                                                  +3
- Operating in secondary cities                 +1
- Property ownership                               +2

8. Management company appears to be flexible in accommodating the following needs of the owner:
- Short-term contract                       +4
- Termination buy-out provition        +4

9. Management company's ability to generate profits(based on actual verified financial performance):
- Normal-competent management                   0
- Better than average                                     +5
- Exceptional operating ability(profits)            +10

10.Management company offers ability to obtain:
- Specialized identification                           +2
- Financing                                                 +4
- Feeder city representation                        +2
- Track record of success                           +2

11.Management company has exceptional expertise or offers specialized services in the following areas:
- Central reservation system                                +2
- Centralized sales and marketing                        +1
- Regional sales offices                                       +1
- Convention and group sales                             +1
- Frequent traveler program                              +2
- National advertising program                           +1
- Top-level personnel                                         +2
- Financial systems and controls                         +1
- Other specialized services                               +1
- Group purchasing                                           +2
- Interior design                                                +1
- Personnel recruiting(Web based)                    +2
- Development capability                                  +1

12.If management company is a first tier operator, does:
- Name have wide-spread identity                  +2
- Identity have positive value                          +1

13.Management company has the following deficiencies:
- Poor references                                                    -4
- Loss contracts(deduct for each loss)                     -1
- Limited home office structure                                -1
- High management turnover                                   -2
- No growth plans                                                  -1
- Excessive growth plans                                        -1
- Will not subordinate incentive fee                         -3
- Unwilling to provide restrictive covenant              -4
- Fee based entirely on % of total revenue             -3
- Can you get along with this company:                  -3 to +3


I wonder how many hotel owners can even answer all these questions about their management company? If you can, you have probably selected the right one.


By : Stephen Rushmore, MAI, CHA, CRE, president and founder of HVS International, a global hotel consulting firm with offices in New York, Miami, Denver, San Francisco, Vancouver, Mexico City, London, New Delhi, Singapore, Sao Paolo and Toronto.

Social Traveler vs. Normal Traveler

Source : ytravelblog.com

10 Things Your Customers Wish You Knew About Them

by Help Scout

How well do you know your customer?

It's a tough question. One way your business can find answers is to examine research in social psychology. Below are 10 such studies that reveal things your customers WISH you knew about them.

CUSTOMERS VALUE "GOOD" SERVICE MORE THAN "FAST" SERVICE

Recent studies show that customers who receive competent, knowledgeable, and all encompasing services are more likely to remember their experience and tell their friends.

Additionally, customer cited "rude, incompetent and rushed" service as their #1 reason to abandon a brand, 18% more often than "slow" service.

CUSTOMER LOVE PERSONALIZATION, THEY WILL GLADLY PAY MORE FOR IT

In a study from the Journal of Applied Social Psychology, researchers were able to increase the average tips that waiters received by over 23%(without changing service quality).

They accomplished this by having waiters follow up with a second set of mints after they brought customers their check(waiter that brought mints but didn't follow up received an average of 7% less for their tips).

CUSTOMER WILL REMEMBER YOU IF YOU CAN REMEMBER THEIR NAME

Speaking of personalization, according to recent research examining brain activation, few sounds are as pleasant as hearing our own names.

Fact is, people are more attentive(and interested) when they hear their names; be sure your small business takes advantage of getting to know your customers by using their names when appropriate.

THERE ARE FEW THINGS CUSTOMERS TALK ABOUT MORE THAN A PLEASANT SURPRISE

One of the most lasting (and talked about) customer experiences is a pleasant surprise: reciprocity, especially when it's unexpected, is a very powerful force.

Zappos recognize this: without so much as a single mention on their sales page, Zappos regularly upgrades customers to overnight shipping free of charge, just to brighten their day.

CREATING GOODWILL WITH CUSTOMERS DOESN'T NEED TO BE EXPENSIVE

The concept of "Frugal WOWs" is important to small businesses: creating goodwill with customers has proven to be more about the act, rather than the cost.

Nate Ru, founder of Sweetgreen restaurants, regularly has his employees leave small gift cards next to cars with parking tickets to create a memorable brand based on random acts of kindness.

CUSTOMERS WILL STICK WITH YOUR LOYALTY PROGRAMS IF YOU GET THEM STARTED

Consumer psychologists Dreze & Nunes were able to reveal just what makes a loyalty program "stick" across all industries in their now infamous car-wash study.

The researchers were able to show that customers are TWICE as likely to stay with loyalty programs if the programs appear to already be started; tasks that seem to be under way are much more likely to be completed.

CUSTOMERS LOVE BRAND STORIES AND SELLING THROUGH STORIES IS EFFECTIVE

Research lead by Melanie Green & Timothy Brock reveals that a well told story is one of the most persuasive forms of writing(or speaking) available.

They concluded that this was because stories have the ability to "transport" us to another place, allowing brands to leave powerful(and lasting) messages to customers.

"When it comes to storytelling, transportation leads to persuasion."

IF YOU'RE STRUGGLING TO INNOVATE, YOUR CUSTOMERS ARE A GREAT RESOURCE

MIT's Eric Von Hippel conducted a study with the Institute of Management Sciences on the relationship of "lead users" (superstar customers) and company innovation.

Through a study of 1,193 commercially successful innovations across 9 industries, Hippel discovered that 60% came from customers.

SELLING "TIME" OVER MONEY HELPS CUSTOMERS SEE THE VALUE OF YOUR BRAND

There's a reason that inexpensive beer companies promote having a good time(ie, "It's Miller Time!") rather than their low prices.

New research from Stanford reveals that customers have more favorable feelings towards brands they associate "time well spent" with; memories of good times were more powerful than memories of great savings.

IF YOU BRING UP MONEY, IT MAKES CUSTOMERS MORE SELF-CENTERED

Research by psychologist Kathleen Vohs has shown that when people are "primed" with images of money, they become more self-interested and less willing to help others.

This reaction can be used by businesses that sell luxury items, but could backfire with promotions that are associated with doing thingsfor others(ex: Mother's Day Gifts).

Source : Pinterest