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Staff attentiveness and cleanliness reign supreme among hotel guests
The survey is based on
word-of-mouth feedback from about 5,000 guests. According to Coyle Hospitality Group, the company who performed the study during 2009, found that guests really appreciate clean rooms and great customer service. Umm, I’m not surprised. It’s so simple, yet, so overlooked among many hotels these days, primarily due to budget cuts and the lack of staff.
Happy Friday everyone!
Travel Agent Central
In the current economy, with tight travel budgets, what makes guests rave about a hotel experience is becoming increasingly important to hoteliers and travelers alike. Throughout 2009, Coyle Hospitality Group gathered word-of-mouth feedback from 5,000 travelers to gain a better understanding of what makes a great hotel stay.
“We began this project recognizing that word of mouth referrals, are in themselves stories, complete with heroes, heroines, and a supporting cast,” said Jim Coyle, president and Founder of Coyle Hospitality Group. “The story is told in the first person and, in many cases, contains a defining moment that galvanizes the guest’s opinion, turning them from a customer into a promoter.”
Coyle researchers simply asked two questions:
1. What hotel provided you with the best experience in the last year?
2. Why? (READ MORE)
Fresh cookies equals sweet success when attracting family travelers
This is a small, yet effective marketing strategy that I share with all of my family travel clients.
Fresh-baked cookies…fill the air with them!
I remember when me and my family visited The Mirror Lake Inn in upstate New York. Everyday at 3 p.m., they would serve warm cookies and coffee or tea in the lobby. OMG! I can’t begin to tell you what an impact that made on our three-day experience. My husband and I were like little kids waiting by the oven for those cookies to come out.
I’ve been sold ever since. Now, I always tell my clients, ‘don’t even think about adding family programs until you’ve got the F*R*E*E warm cookie program down pat.’ For example–
hotels: fresh cookies at the front desk
resorts: three fresh cookies on a serving tray, wrapped in a beautiful cellaphane bag, tied with a beautiful ribbon and a welcome note, especially for the kids
restaurants: have an employee, with a great attitude, walk around and pass out warm chocolate chip cookies to all the kids in the place, and a sticker or two wouldn’t hurt, either
It absolutely amazes me how something so simple, can have a HUGE impact on the family travel experience.
Today’s article proves my point.
USA Today Travel | Hariett Baskas
It started with a smell.Larry Thompson arrived at Fort Wayne International Airport one day back in 1988, walked out the front door of the small terminal and took a deep breath. “Instead of smelling jet fuel,” he remembers, “I smelled the cookies from the bakery across the street.”
The aroma gave Thompson a reassuring, “welcome home” feel. So when the airport marketing committee needed a low-cost way to promote the facility, Thompson suggested a campaign involving those cookies. Phone calls were made. A bulk cookie order was placed. And soon volunteers armed with goody-filled wicker baskets were on duty inside the terminal offering arriving passengers an enthusiastic “Welcome to Fort Wayne” greeting – and a complimentary, individually-wrapped, locally-baked cookie.
More than ten years later; volunteers at Fort Wayne International Airport still give out free cookies; up to 100,000 a year. And this past December, TV crews and well-wishers were on hand when volunteers presented the airport’s millionth free cookie to an unsuspecting, but appreciative passenger. Arriving home on a snowy day after a trip to Florida with her husband, Fort Wayne resident Lorraine Leach not only got a free snack, but a prize package that included 25,000 airline frequent flier miles, locally-made gourmet chocolates and, of course, a big box of the airport’s signature sugar cookies.
Do cookies = customers? (READ MORE)
Family travelers urged to get to the airport extra early
Source: telegraph.co.uk
It’s really no surprise. Airlines have always overbooked their flights, just in case passengers don’t show up. It’s actually a great strategy, well, until now.
More airlines are bumping confirmed passengers today, due to low numbers in air travel. Airlines are under more pressure to fill the planes to the max. The minute it’s time to board and your family is nowhere to be found, you can expect to lose those seats. I’ve actually had this happen to me a few years ago. Luckily, I was flying solo, but it wasn’t pretty.
My advice to avoid being bumped, get to the airport extra early, two hours before the departure of a domestic flight and four hours before the departure of an international flight. I’ve found it just makes for a better prelude to a family trip when you arrive at the airport early enough to get your bags checked, get through security, let the kids play, grab a coffee, go to the restroom and be at peace, instead of stressed out about missing the flight or getting bumped.
Los Angeles Times | Hugo Martin
Based on the numbers, America’s major airlines are doing a better job of getting us to our destinations on time and with our luggage in tow — assuming we can get on the flights.
Not only is the rate of lost luggage lower than it has been in years, the on-time performance for the nation’s biggest airlines reached a record 88.6% in November, the best rate since the Bureau of Transportation Statistics began keeping track of the numbers in 1987.
But there is a growing trend that spells trouble for travelers: More passengers are getting bumped from flights.
In the first nine months of 2009, the rate of ticketed passengers who were denied boarding was 1.22 per 10,000 travelers, compared with 1.12 in the same period in 2008.
That equates to nearly 54,000 passengers involuntarily bumped in the first nine months of 2009, up from about 47,000 fliers in the same period in 2008.
The bumping increase is largely a result of the slumping economy, which has reduced airline demand and prompted carriers to eliminate flights and fill planes to the max — or beyond. Indeed, it is no secret that airlines routinely overbook planes because they expect that some passengers won’t show up for a flight.
“The carriers overbook to account for the no-show factor,” said David Castelveter, a spokesman for the Air Transport Assn., a trade organization of the nation’s largest airlines. “Airline seats are perishable, and once the seat has left the terminal the opportunity to sell it is gone.” (READ MORE)
Top 10 dirtiest hotels in America, revealed
Hmmm, that’s something we rarely discuss here at FTS. I’m always focused on customer service and perks for the family traveler, but this list is worth browsing.
The list often refers to these hotels as “cheap,” however, some of the priciest hotels can fall short, sometimes. When you book your next room, consider customer reviews instead of rates, and when all else fails, go with major chains like Marriott or Hilton. Usually, you can’t go wrong with these brands to get you and your little ones through the night.
Newser.com
(Newser) – Unless you like urine-scented rooms and hairs in the bathtub, you probably won’t want to stay at any of Trip Advisor’s top 10 dirtiest hotels in the US. Below, a sampling of the user reviews:
- Heritage Marina Hotel, San Francisco: “The second room ‘appeared’ clean until we realized the next morning that we slept with bed bugs.”
- Days Inn Eureka/Six Flags, Eureka, Mo: “The smell was horrible. The floors and walls were dirty. There was food and beverage spilled and dried up all over the place.”
- Tropicana Resort Hotel, Virginia Beach: “The ice machine produces dirty ice and is not fit to use.”
- Super 8 Virginia Beach/At the Ocean, Virginia Beach: “There were hairs in the bathtub, and bugs on the counter.”
- Quality Inn, Stroudsburg, Pa: “Mold in one of the rooms, a maxi pad stuck to another family member’s blow dryer, dirty towels left in our room.”
- New York Inn, New York City: “Vile—the room smelt continuously of Subway food—it got into your clothes and made you feel sick.”
- Parisian Hotel & Suites, Miami Beach: “People doing drugs everywhere! All you can hear is banging on the walls and people screaming at each other!”
- Capistrano Seaside Inn, Capistrano Beach, Calif: “After spending only four hours in this place, I was worried about catching Hepatitis.”
- Desert Lodge, Palm Springs: “Fortunately we travel with Tea Tree Oil, a natural disinfectant and, believe me, we used lots of it!”
- Continental Oceanfront Hotel South Beach, Miami Beach: “This hotel should be condemned.”
UPDATE: Infant recently released from Michigan hospital
As I posted this story, the update popped into my inbox…
UPDATE: MILWAUKEE (AP) — A medical examiner’s report says the infant boy who died after he stopped breathing on a United Airlines flight had been discharged from a Michigan hospital earlier in the day.
The report says 2-month-old Jensen Provencial was flying home to Mission, S.D., with his parents after he was discharged from University of Michigan Mott Children’s Hospital in Ann Arbor, Mich., Wednesday.
The investigator’s report says the infant was born with a congenital heart defect and had spent most of his short life in the hospital.
A passenger on the flight from Detroit to Denver tried to revive the child while the plane made an emergency landing in Milwaukee. The Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s Office says an autopsy could be done Thursday.
Source: The Associated Press
Infant dies on United Airlines flight, autopsy scheduled
The infant was flying with his parents on a flight from Detroit to Denver on Wednesday about 4 p.m. when he stopped breathing. A passenger on the plane began CPR, but their efforts were unsuccessful.
According to officials, there were no signs of foul play. This is so sad.
USA Today | Today in the Sky
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Sheriff’s officials say a 2-month-old boy has died after he stopped breathing on a United Airlines flight that made an emergency landing in Milwaukee.Milwaukee County sheriff’s Sgt. Philip Wentzel said Thursday the infant was with his parents on a flight from Detroit to Denver Wednesday about 4 p.m. when he stopped breathing. A passenger on the plane began CPR, which paramedics resumed once the aircraft landed in Milwaukee, but their efforts were unsuccessful.
Wentzel says the family is from South Dakota. He says there are no signs of foul play. An autopsy is expected to be done Thursday in Milwaukee.
United Airlines spokesman Charles Hobart confirmed a flight operated by SkyWest was diverted to Milwaukee because of an ill traveler and later continued to its destination in Denver. Hobart says 64 passengers were on board. (READ MORE)
High winds and winter storms cause some travel delays
Before you head to the airport, check to see whether your flight has been delayed. Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport reported that their flights won’t take off until this evening, due to severe weather conditions.
Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor says airlines are opting to cancel flights because of expected very strong crosswinds.
At FTS, we’ve made checking your flight status more convienent. Check out the new tool, in the left column of this blog below my travel picks, to see if your flight is on schedule.
Have a safe trip!
Pilot’s emergency stop before take off, protected by runway safety zone
I tell you, there are some strange things happening among airlines these days.
A US Airways Express Bombardier CRJ-200 regional jet came to a sudden halt from take off, just at the end of the runway on Tuesday. Passengers described the incident as a sudden slam on brakes.
To the pilot’s credit, he did what he had been trained to do, but my goodness! How scary was this for children and adults, alike on this flight? Fortunately, none of the 31 passengers on the Charlotte-bound flight were injured.
USA Today in the Sky | Ben Mutzabaugh
A runway safety system is being credited with preventing “a catastrophic tragedy” yesterday at Yeager Airport in the West Virginia capital of Charleston. The incident occurred around 4:20 p.m. ET yesterday when a US Airways Express Bombardier CRJ-200 regional jet aborted takeoff at the last second, coming to a stop just before a steep drop at the end of the airport’s runway.
“We were taking off on the runway, (the pilot) was going at full speed,” 21-year-old college student Lindsey Robinson tells the Charleston Daily Mail. “All of a sudden he put on the brakes, and the plane was engulfed in smoke and debris.” The jet stopped about 100 feet short of the end of the runway, which sits above a valley overlooking the Kanawha River and the city of Charleston, according to The Charlotte Observer.
“If it hadn’t been for the EMAS, I’m convinced a catastrophic accident would have occurred,” Kanawha County Commission President Kent Carper tells The Charleston Gazette. (READ MORE)
Royal Caribbean resumes port of call close to Haiti
Royal Caribbean's Navigator of the Sea
Royal Caribbean’s decision to go on with its sail dates has caused quite a stir, given their private island, Labadee, is only 100 miles from
Port-au-Prince.
What do you think?
I’m OK with this. As a travel industry professional, it’s important to give the travelers what they want. If it’s fine with the customers to carry on, then, it’s fine, especially in this economy.
MSNBC | Kelly Ranson
As humanitarian aid arrives and rescue workers continue their efforts to rebuild Haiti following the devastating earthquake last week, there’s been much talk about Royal Caribbean’s decision to resume calls on Labadee — the cruise line’s private “island” destination about 100 miles from capital city Port-au-Prince (it was not damaged in the quake).
Royal Caribbean’s Independence of the Seas was the first to return, on Friday. And, despite rumors on Cruise Critic’s message boards that Royal Caribbean might reverse its decision, swapping Labadee for sea days, a cruise line spokeswoman tells us there are no plans to cancel calls. Both Navigator (which arrived today) and Liberty of the Seas (which calls on the port Friday) have been loaded with 80 pallets worth of supplies. On Friday, Celebrity Solstice will make its regularly scheduled stop — also bringing passengers and aid. (READ MORE)
Celebrate diversity
Today is a national holiday and the FTS team hope that you are enjoying a time of relaxtion and bonding with your family.
We’ll be back on Tuesday to share family travel news updates and details on Haiti, and how the travel industry plays an important part. Until then, Happy MLK Day!
