10 concepts to take your lodge’s facilities to the subsequent degree

Your visitor expertise is a sum of many components, together with the whole lot out of your location to your workers’s perspective, however maybe the one which’s most simply quantifiable is your facilities. Whether or not you simply present a bar of cleaning soap and a single pillowslip, otherwise you pack the minibar along with your visitors’ favorite champagne to be loved in a complimentary gown and slippers, your facilities play a key function in setting the tone for the visitor’s keep.

Along with making a beneficial expertise, these choices also can considerably affect visitors’ selections to ebook a keep at your property and stands out as the motive for leaving a constructive evaluation afterwards. In reality, in response to an Expedia survey greater than “70% (of visitors) are keen to pay further for properties which have their favorite facilities and companies”.

Sure facilities, like tea and low services within the rooms, have change into commonplace and visitors have come to anticipate them. However savvy hoteliers can leverage distinctive facilities to spice up their model voice, spotlight their property’s distinctive promoting factors (USPs) or deliver some local people flare into the visitor’s keep.

The best way to take your facilities up a notch…

1. Cater particularly to your core clientele

A superb place to start out is along with your target market, who’re you hoping to draw along with your present advertising and what would that group of travellers be searching for? The purpose needs to be to please your area of interest market whereas nonetheless accommodating a broader vary of travellers. For instance, these motels have saved their core shopper area of interest in thoughts after they arrange their lodge facilities:

Discover 10 area of interest vacationer varieties your lodge may be capable of appeal to

The Epic Lodge in Miami presents handicap-accessible rooms, which gives along with the standard seize rails within the bogs, they provide visible alarm clocks, mattress shakers, door knock alerts, visible fireplace alarms, braille and tactile signage is supplied and lodge workers will learn menus and different printed/visible info to visitors who’re blind or have impaired imaginative and prescient.

Picture © Epic Lodge

The Dorsett Lodge in Hong Kong attracts many households and as such they’ve arrange a particular youngsters’s facilities choice. This consists of issues like a child-sized bathrobe and slippers, kiddies welcome presents together with a snack field and teddy bear and complimentary 2-hour babysitting service.

Picture © Dorsett Lodge

2. Emphasise what makes your property distinctive

Past understanding your target market, contemplate your lodge’s distinctive promoting factors (USPs). These USPs will information your amenity technique. For instance, an opulent seashore lodge naturally emphasises facilities like swimming towels for visitor comfort. Conversely, a metropolis lodge catering to enterprise travellers can confidently skip the swimming towels, as a substitute specializing in high-speed Wi-Fi, handy work centres, and on-demand printing companies.

Understanding the important thing wants your visitors have along with the distinctive options of your property lets you tailor facilities that align with these areas of focus. By strategically choosing facilities that resonate along with your lodge’s distinctive traits, you may improve the general visitor expertise.

Some distinctive examples:

The Brewdog craft beer motels stand out within the hospitality business by ingeniously incorporating their signature craft beers into each side of the visitor expertise. From in-room draft machines to beer fridges within the showers.

Picture © Brewdog

Arduous Rock lives as much as its identify with its “Sound of Your Keep” facilities assortment. Friends can select to have their rooms furnished with DJ gear or a Fender guitar to make use of throughout their stays. These include headphones (in order to not disturb different visitors) plus visitors may even apply together with in-room video guitar classes. If creating music isn’t on their listing of issues to do, Arduous Rock Lodge visitors also can merely request to have their selection of music despatched to their rooms.

Picture © Arduous Rock Accommodations

3. Concentrate on personalisation

With extra corporations providing high-level personalisation, visitors at the moment are used to having some degree of personalisation. In line with a research by McKinsey, “71% of customers anticipate corporations to ship personalised interactions”. However what’s much more regarding for motels not providing personalisation is that “76% get pissed off when this doesn’t occur.”

Pre-stay surveys are invaluable for personalising visitor expertise – one of the simplest ways to search out out what visitors need is to ask. You may ask about bedding, toiletry and minibar preferences, and whether or not visitors would like self-service check-in by way of a cellular app. Along with a pre-stay survey, it’s essential be certain that you collect as a lot info on visitors as potential and retailer it for future reference if the visitor stays once more.

One of many easiest but simplest lodge amenity concepts is to supply personalised welcome presents tailor-made to every visitor. By leveraging the data gathered throughout the reserving course of, resembling the aim of their go to and any accompanying visitors, motels can create considerate and tailor-made welcome packages. By no means underestimate the ability of a easy, considerate gesture to make a visitor’s keep actually particular. Plus, visitors will in all probability love photographing one thing with their identify on it and posting it on social media, creating user-generated content material (UGC) in your lodge.

Some motels which are getting the small print proper:

The View in Lugano Switzerland presents visitors an array of tailored choices, from choosing their pillows from a selection of 9 differing kinds to choosing the perfume of their bathtub merchandise and even selecting the color of their bathroom paper, the whole lot is tailored for the visitor.

Picture © The View Social Media Web page

The Peninsula Beverly Hills goes the additional mile in personalised facilities, providing their visitors monogrammed pillow slips which visitors can take residence with them. The monogrammed pillows get plenty of mentions of their critiques and are one of many prime photographed pictures of their traveller pictures on Tripadvisor – it appears to actually delight their visitors.

Picture © The Peninsula

4. Create a ‘wow’ issue

For any lodge, delighted visitors are a useful advertising asset. Extra than simply speaking about their improbable journey with family and friends you wish to be certain that visitors are so happy that they really feel compelled to go away glowing critiques and even supply up some UGC within the type of social media posts and mentions.

To distinguish your lodge and go away an enduring impression, it’s important to supply distinctive and interesting facilities that stand out out of your competitors. The extra distinctive and excellent your facilities are, the extra probably they’re to be talked about, reviewed and photographed. Overlook superb views and world-class places, some motels have managed to make their facilities their USP.

Distinctive examples:

The Curtis Double Tree by Hilton in Colorado presents themed rooms which actually stand out. Every of the 336 visitor rooms is thoughtfully designed with a definite popular culture theme, providing a novel expertise that resonates with the individuality of their visitors. Guests can select from choices like an Arcade room stuffed with nostalgic arcade video games, the Star Trek sci-fi room, the Barbie room or the Comedian Guide room. Every is rigorously thought out with decor and facilities that transport the visitor to a novel area. Right here the rooms change into an immersive expertise, not only a place to sleep.

Picture: The Curtis

The Grand Lodge Tremezzo of Lake Como in Italy presents visitors a particular contact of historical past with its turndown service. Each night time, visitors obtain love letters penned by earlier guests from the 1900s, including a novel attraction to their keep. These heartfelt letters, found hidden behind wallpaper in a secret wardrobe, had been saved as a household treasure earlier than being shared with visitors to reinforce their expertise on the lodge.

Picture © Mr & Mrs Romance 

5. Improve your facilities with expertise

With a lot expertise at your fingertips, it’s necessary to take advantage of it, as a result of your opponents are. Friends have change into accustomed to sure technological facilities. For instance, a research finished by Oracle Hospitality and Skift discovered that 43% [of surveyed guests] need voice-activated controls for all facilities of their rooms (lights, curtains, door locks, and so forth.).

There are some commonplace applied sciences which have been adopted by many motels which embody; free wifi, cellular check-in and good TVs that may sync to the visitor’s cellular machine or check in to their streaming platform profiles. Then there are different nice-to-have applied sciences like in-room tablets, resembling SuitePad, which can be utilized to order room service, ebook further companies and even management features of the room from temperature to lighting. Expertise normally permits for enhanced personalisation and infrequently larger management for the visitors, that means that they’ll tailor their keep to their actual specs, with out having to attend for a reception assistant or concierge.

Learn extra about enhancing in-room expertise with these knowledgeable suggestions

Distinctive examples:

Lodge 1000 in Seattle along with putting in warmth sensors in visitor rooms to make sure that housekeeping is aware of when visitors are of their rooms and should not wish to be disturbed, the Lodge 1000 in Seattle has additionally teamed up with Full Swing and now presents a “Nineteenth Gap” Seattle’s solely Topgolf Swing Suite which permits for a full digital golf recreation expertise. Lastly, if hi-tech visitors have to get across the metropolis they’ll accomplish that in sustainable type because the lodge additionally presents Tesla electrical car rent.

Picture: Lodge 1000

The InterContinental Beijing Sanlitun and InterContinental Guangzhou Exhibition Centre motels in China have included some groundbreaking expertise of their rooms. In collaboration with Baidu they’ve launched a full synthetic intelligence service of their “good” rooms. By way of voice instructions, visitors can effortlessly management numerous in-room options resembling temperature, lighting, and even place room service orders. The InterContinental group states that they are going to be rolling out this good room expertise in over 100 different golf equipment all through China within the close to future.

Picture © IHG Accommodations & Resorts

6. Usher in your native tradition

Friends are more and more searching for culturally immersive experiences quite than conventional lodge stays remoted from the encircling location. Travellers need authenticity and wish to change into concerned within the day-to-day dwelling of the vacation spot they’re visiting. An American Specific Journey report discovered that “85% of respondents agree that they wish to go to a spot the place they’ll actually expertise the native tradition”.

Fulfill travellers’ wishes to immerse themselves totally in a vacation spot’s tradition in a novel manner by incorporating native tradition in your lodge’s facilities – suppose hand-poured soaps, native wines and artisanal candies on the pillows.

Distinctive examples:

Friends can expertise a contact of native tradition at The Pavilions Himalayas in Nepal, the place they’ll have a distinctive expertise of gathering and savouring in a glass of buffalo or goat milk of their villa. This eco-friendly lodge extends its sustainable practices to the in-house manufacturing of biodegradable cleaning soap and the day spa solely makes use of all-natural spa merchandise made on-site from regionally sourced natural substances, lots of that are grown proper on the eco-farm, showcasing the lodge’s dedication to sustainability whereas embracing the essence of Nepalese traditions.

Picture © The Pavilions Himalayas

Or there may be the distinctive ‘Welcome Smoke Ceremony’ at Fairly Seaside Home located in a culturally wealthy space of New South Wales, Australia, that’s residence to native aboriginal artwork and is taken into account sacred. Right here, visitors are launched to the Aboriginal tradition with the smoke ceremony led by the Aboriginal elders who inform historic Dreamtime tales whereas visitors hearken to the distinctive sounds of the didgeridoo. This cultural encounter fosters respect and understanding for the native traditions.

Picture © Fairly Seaside Home

7. Embrace the well being & wellness development

Wellness is among the fastest-growing sectors within the hospitality business and is predicted to be value nearly  $1.4 trillion by 2027. Globally, there was a big enhance within the emphasis on caring for each psychological and bodily well being. This was confirmed in 2023 by 44% of Reserving.com’s customers who mentioned they had been planning a meditation or mindfulness vacation within the coming 12 months, and 42% wished a break with a deal with bodily or psychological well being. Whereas not each lodge has the flexibility to incorporate a full Yoga retreat of their property choices, there is a chance to incorporate well being and wellness parts in your lodge.

Distinctive examples: 

The Hilton lodge group has rolled out an modern health initiative throughout a number of of its motels referred to as “5 Ft to Health.” This program presents visitors a novel “Health Zone” instantly of their room, full with quite a lot of health gear and equipment. With over 11 health gear choices out there, visitors can take pleasure in a personalised gymnasium expertise within the consolation and privateness of their very own area.

Picture © Hilton

Arlo Accommodations in New York Metropolis and Miami have teamed up with Alo Strikes, a famend on-line wellness platform, to offer visitors with entry to digital exercise periods, and luxurious mat rent. This partnership permits visitors to take pleasure in these no-equipment-needed exercises throughout their keep on the lodge and even after they return residence.

Picture © Arlo X Alo Strikes

8. Have one thing for the 4 legged visitors

The Hilton Journey Development report revealed some superb info, certainly one of which is that many travellers would like to journey with their furry good friend than a member of the family. Greater than half of survey respondents who’re pet homeowners (55%) are planning to journey with their pets within the coming months. To draw this more and more giant traveller market, motels have to sustain with the change and guarantee they’re providing pet-friendly lodging.

Simply doing the fundamentals isn’t going to chop it when catering to lots of your visitors’ “fur infants”, so, except for doggy bowls, beds and leashes what else can motels do to make their furry visitors completely satisfied?

These motels have embraced pet-friendliness: 

On the pet-friendly Delamar Greenwich Harbor in Connecticut, visitors can select from a spread of pet companies provided on a devoted menu. Alongside grooming and pet-walking choices, there’s even an opulent doggie therapeutic massage out there, making certain furry companions benefit from the final leisure throughout their keep.

Picture © Delamar Greenwich Harbor

One other lodge to embrace the pooches is the Hilton lodge chain. Hilton UK and Eire launched their bespoke canine room service menu providing delectable doggie meal choices. As an illustration, canine diners can indulge within the savoury “Tail Wagger beef filet,” or the “Chompin California Hen”. There are even specifically designed doggie desserts such because the “Paw Strawberry Mousse” out there for visitors; favorite pooches. Along with their distinctive menu, furry buddies visiting sure Hilton motels such because the Rome Cavalieri, Waldorf Astoria Lodge can take pleasure in a “doggy spa for a fast shampoo, therapeutic massage, pores and skin remedy or trendy comb-out”.

Picture © Hilton Accommodations

9. Make your facilities ‘Instagrammable’

Having your visitors do your lodge advertising for you within the type of UGC has a number of advantages. Firstly, potential visitors typically contemplate one other visitor’s point out or evaluation of a lodge as extra dependable and reliable than a lodge commercial. Secondly, it will increase your model recognition and consciousness with out having to extend your advertising price range. Lastly, greater than 40% of potential visitors wish to Instagram specifically for inspiration for his or her subsequent vacation in response to a Skyscanner survey.

So how do you get your visitors to take photos and submit them on social media? You give them one thing new, distinctive, thrilling or ultra-luxury to brag about. This may be within the type of your lodge structure or your lovely views, however you too can encourage pictures by providing novel facilities which are ‘Instagrammable’.

These motels are encouraging these all-important pictures:

Lennox Lodge Miami Seaside has put in a novel poolside amenity – the Laurent-Perrier La Cuvée Champagne merchandising machine. It’s the right method to toast a memorable keep at this property and a surefire method to encourage a photograph or two.

Guests to Sir Richard Branson’s unique personal island retreat, Necker Island, within the British Virgin Islands, are in for a one-of-a-kind culinary expertise: the famend sushi kayak. A tasty number of freshly ready sushi served proper from a picket kayak. For an added contact of caprice, it’s delivered by a mermaid. One thing this distinctive is actually an Instagram treasure trove.

Picture © Necker Island Social Web page

10. Hold your backside line in thoughts

Deciding on lodge facilities is an important resolution for lodge homeowners. Whereas too few or insufficient facilities can hurt the lodge’s model picture and visitor expertise, providing an extra of facilities or unused facilities can result in escalated working prices, wastage, and repair supply challenges, all of which have an effect on the underside line. Due to this fact, it’s essential to strike the appropriate stability and choose facilities that not solely meet the wants and preferences of visitors but additionally contribute to the general enterprise objectives of the property.

With ever-increasing prices of dwelling and strained budgets, visitors are additionally searching for methods to chop their prices, notably when travelling. This has given rise to the idea of ‘unbundling’ which permits visitors to choose and select the facilities they actually need and solely pay for what they obtain. In line with a survey performed by Oracle and Skift, almost 90 per cent of customers are both captivated with or open to the idea of unbundling, with 43.3 per cent of customers saying they might be very prone to ebook a lodge that allowed them to pay for less than the facilities they use.

This basic sentiment underscores the necessity to go even deeper to grasp what visitors may need on a person degree. A one-size-fits-all method is simple for the lodge and the visitor, but it surely’s not optimized for both.

– Oracle and Skift Survey

When deciding on facilities, hoteliers ought to rigorously contemplate the demographics and preferences of their goal visitors, in addition to the distinctive promoting factors (USPs) of their property. Hoteliers can use pre-stay surveys to search out out what facilities will probably be most precious to particular person visitors previous to their arrival and may tailor their choices to fulfill these wants successfully.

On a broader scale, hoteliers could make use of historic visitor suggestions information to grasp what their visitors are searching for extra of, what they really feel could also be missing or what they would like. Consolidated visitor suggestions can save hoteliers time and extra importantly the monetary implications of providing pricey facilities which go unused or usually are not valued by their visitors. Lastly, hoteliers also can utilise the constructive suggestions acquired from their distinctive facilities of their advertising communication, serving to to distinguish the lodge from opponents and appeal to extra guests or encourage repeat bookings.