Nancy Trejos — Hotel and Travel Reporter

Reinventing the Hotel Lobby

aday — Tue, 29 Jun 2021 19:51:40 +0000

Reinventing the Hotel Lobby aday Tue, 06/29/2021 - 15:51 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/Hilton%20La%20Romana%2C%20an%20All-Inclusive%20Adult%20Only%20Resort%20header.jpg.webp?itok=i2jwphl5 The hospitality industry adapts after a year of social distancing. June 29, 2021

By Nancy Trejos — Hotel and Travel Reporter

Hotels are reopening after a decade of lobbies designed for social interaction with reimagined formats and design.

Before the pandemic hit, hotel lobbies resembled social clubs — places where hotel guests and locals could work and play.

Designers transformed lobbies into multi-functional spaces. The traditional front and concierge desks remained, for the most part, but lobbies also became places to have business meetings, happy hours, art exhibits, concerts, poetry readings and more. In addition to being livelier and more aesthetically pleasing, turning lobbies into places to socialize generated more revenue.

As hotels reopen and people begin to travel again, the social hub model is being re-evaluated to keep guests safe and healthy. Social lobbies have been the norm for more than a decade now, with W Hotels being one of the early pioneers. The hotel chain didn’t even use the word lobby, opting to call it the living room instead.

“Hospitality is all about social interactions and making people feel good,” said Michael Suomi, president of the Manhattan design firm Suomi Design Works.

He suggested that a few of the changes forced on by the pandemic have actually led to improvements in the customer experience. In a strange twist, the check-in process has become more personal. Rather than have people stand in line, employees have greeted guests with tablets or mobile devices.

“They were finding ways to connect with guests,” he said. “It was a more personalized check-in, where it was more of a one-on-one experience.”

Novotel Miami Brickell, photo courtesy of Accor

Accor Hotels tried that out at its ibis hotel brand. The company created a contactless check-in experience. The typical reception desk was removed, and the lobby was made to feel larger. A member of the Smile Team now greets guests with a tablet or smartphone and checks them in while they wait on a sofa or have a drink at the bar. The new model will be rolled out throughout the entire ibis brand network by next year.

Designers are also improving air exchange systems to increase the use of natural ventilation, said Sheldon Froc, manager of Interior Design LUXE for Accor North & Central America.

“One important lesson of the pandemic is the need for flexibility in the design of our hotels,” Froc said. “Applying social distancing guidelines and maintaining hygienic and easy to clean environments requires spaces that can be reconfigured and reorganized quickly and temporarily with less fixed furniture in the lobby areas.”

Hilton has been offering mobile check-in and keyless entry for years.

“Everyone traveling today has a heightened sense of awareness of their own personal space and the cleanliness of their environments, and they will require additional assurances of their safety while staying with us,” Larry Traxler, senior vice president of global design for Hilton wrote in a blog post. “How do we deliver on these expectations while ensuring the welcome experience remains welcoming? That’s the challenge.”

The Conrad New York Downtown

Hilton has introduced adaptable spaces in its lobby bars. Architectural screens with biophilia and art, dividers and creative seating designs have also been added, the company said. Hilton enlisted engineers and scientists to purify the air and find ways to efficiently and effectively clean surfaces.

Utilizing outdoor spaces has been one of the key tactics hotels have adopted. Designers can get creative by doing such things as taking fixed windows out of lobbies and installing rollup glass doors, Suomi said. Many cities have been relaxing rules to allow for such unique solutions.

He also predicts that hotels will add more restaurants, coffee shops or takeout options.

“You can break groups up into different food and beverage areas,” he said. “I think you’re going to see more robust offerings of food and beverage venues. We’ll see a renewed focus on what the public areas are used for. Hotels will encourage guests to get out of their rooms and come to the public areas. They’ll be a renewed focus on how hotels are connected to their communities.”

Adaptable spaces will also become even more common in order to be able to spread people out more. A large lobby can be broken up into different parts by using dividers and moving furniture around.

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“We’ve been on a journey to evolve lobbies. They are designed to be flexible,” said Alison Newton, director of brand design global at InterContinental Hotel Group’s Crowne Plaza brand. “We can go from a coffee to a cocktail. We can go from a meeting to an after meeting.”

Meetings are restarting but they have been much smaller, she said. The properties have studios that can accommodate eight to 10 people. Nooks are available for more private meetings. Communal tables, which became centerpieces of lobby spaces have not disappeared, she said.

“As the needs of the guest change, we’re poised to capture their needs,” Newton said.

Jan Freitag, national director of hospitality market analytics at CoStar Group, said he believes that social lobbies will not go away especially now that more people are getting vaccinated. Guests can expect to see more cleaning during daylight hours. In the past, that was reserved for early mornings when few people were around. But he expects social distancing to ease up.

“After people are vaccinated, all of this will be a faint memory,” he said.

Hyatt has already started holding events and expanding offerings at some of its properties as part of Hyatt Loves Local, a collaboration with local businesses, particularly minority and female-owned. The Hyatt Regency Villahermosa in Mexico has supported local food and beverage vendors since January through a monthly pop-up shop in the lobby for guests and locals.

Hyatt Place Madison Downtown in Wisconsin is offering free space in its lobby to two minority and female-owned businesses that were hit hard when retail stores closed last spring. This collaboration, which launched in February, will be available for guests and locals through 2021.

Accor’s Froc is just as optimistic. “Our guests are more hungry for social interaction than ever and we are finding ways to safely provide these spaces as we start to turn a major corner in the pandemic," he said. “Our aim is to give our guests the confidence that they are in a safe environment — comfortable, secure and sanitary — but not change how they are welcomed and served.”

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Hotel Dining Delivers

aday — Sat, 08 May 2021 19:32:25 +0000

Hotel Dining Delivers aday Sat, 05/08/2021 - 15:32 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/hotel%20dining%20header%20The%20Langham%20Chicago.jpg.webp?itok=fgJknVLH Travelle Bar at The Langham, Chicago Operators and marquee chefs alike continue evolving hospitality enhanced by gastronomy. May 8, 2021

By Nancy Trejos — Hotel and Travel Reporter

Before the pandemic, hotel restaurants were attracting celebrity chefs, restaurant groups were investing in properties and hotel groups relied on destination dining. A year into social distancing and contactless service, the food-driven accommodations trend continues.

Hotel restaurants have become a big part of culinary or gastronomic travel. Caesars Palace Las Vegas has a Gordon Ramsay Pub & Grill and Gordon Ramsay Hell’s Kitchen. The Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills has an upscale restaurant by Jean-Georges Vongerichten. Nobu Matsuhisa’s Japanese eatery at the Eden Roc Hotel Miami has been one of the hottest nightspots in South Beach for years.

“Whether for Instagram or the common foodie, food is a part of destination decisions,” said Director of Culinary Research and Development Barry Tonkinson, who launched his career at prominent hotels in the UK. “Twenty years ago travelers needed the sun, the sea and the sand, but now people need good restaurants and the hippest places to go out.”

Travelers love to share their culinary experiences, he continued. “It’s a conversation point and what everyone builds their travel on. Hotels drive decisions based on that consumer trend.”

The latest trend is changing practices to safely serve and deliver food amid smaller staffs and pared-down menus.

“Our biggest challenge is bringing people back into our hotels and getting our heads around moving into our new world,” said Brett Patterson, senior vice president of food and beverage for Accor North America, Central America and Caribbean. “We’ve limited items without compromising the integrity of the concepts or quality of the food. However, we remain seasonal, relevant and high-quality.”

Accor hotel restaurants have also gone more digital and touch-free with QR codes and guest room TVs featuring menus.

To continue serving people in creative ways while indoor dining has been on pause, Accor hotels have offered outdoor dining, picnicking, holiday packages, tents, and bubbles or igloos. The restaurants have stayed in contact with customers through social media and emails to keep them engaged and more willing to return when they reopen.

FireLake Grill House and Cocktail Bar at Radisson Blu Mall of America

Christopher DeRamo, director of Global Crowne Plaza Food and Beverage and Global Upscale Brands Food and Beverage at Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG), says many hotel restaurants have reopened with menus limited to a dozen items, especially because many are operating with a smaller staff.

“We don’t want the guest sitting in the restaurant waiting 30 minutes for salmon,” he said. “It’s a very balanced menu that can be executed very quickly.”

Prior to the pandemic, hotels were adding more vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free dishes, moving towards more plant-based menus that may include products like the Impossible Burger or Beyond Meat. Those efforts will continue, he said.

"In the hotel food world you tend to see food trends immersed in the environment far before restaurants do because the hotel is always trying to capture customers’ wants and needs," explained Chef Barry, who gained experience at the five-star Lanesborough hotel in London. "They look at the wider food trends to incorporate into the experience while restaurants are trying to execute their own concept and ideas first."

"Modern guests know what they want and what they like. They want to know where their products come from, the quality of the ingredients and about the ingredients used,” said ICE alum Maria Tampakis (Culinary, '09), executive chef at the Four Seasons Hotel New York Downtown. “When we are looking at in-room dining in these times, we wonder what our guests truly want. Are they looking for an exceptional, over-the-top experience or some level of comfort during their travels?"

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IHG’s DeRamo said those hotels that do offer room service have implemented new measures to minimize contact. They offer options for how room service is delivered. The employee can knock on the door and leave the food in biodegradable, eco-friendly, disposable containers.

Mike Tindal, director of Food and Beverage at the Radisson Blu Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, said the indoor dining shutdown forced the FireLake Grill House and Cocktail Bar to offer an even more “robust in-room dining service” saying, “it became more important than ever to bring the elevated experience our guests receive in the restaurant into the guest rooms."

The hotel cuts paper usage with in-room dining menus featured on the guest room TV. Room service is contactless, as the employee never enters the room, and the restaurant staff comes up with creative ways to keep serving food during the dining room shutdown. The team hosts cooking and mixology demos on Instagram. For the holidays, they offered a Carside To-Go program, allowing customers to pre-pay for their meals through the reservations system. Last Thanksgiving, the holiday meal sold out, feeding 400 people.

The restaurant has also seen an uptick in online ordering through its website for pick up. “This is a very safe way for us to provide a quality food and beverage experience for guests who are still hesitant to return to indoor restaurant and bar dining,” Tindal said.

Travelle Restaurant at The Langham, Chicago

Damion Henry, executive chef for The Langham, Chicago hotel, said in-room dining has been the main source of food revenue while its restaurant Travelle at The Langham and the afternoon tea lounge, Pavilion, were shut down, and then reopened with limited capacity.

“We incorporated the restaurant and in-room dining menus to offer guests a more elevated experience,” he said. “Social distancing restricted offering personalized service, and I had to look at the menus from a different angle. I had to simplify some dishes while maintaining their flavors and quality profile.”

Restaurant menus were adjusted as the hotel pivoted to takeout options. Cooks and other restaurant employees followed all recommended safety protocols, which sometimes posed challenges. Chefs are used to tasting their dishes to make sure they are seasoned correctly, for example.

“When we started to wear masks, we had to relearn that part of it and we did that through testing our dishes more and encouraging our cooks to make sure we taste all the time,” she said.

The newly renovated Sheraton Phoenix Downtown offers mobile dining, which allows guests to order from anywhere in the lobby and have the food delivered to them. They can also order on mobile from their rooms, then pick up the order.

Hilton’s hotels have been constantly reevaluating restaurant menus during the pandemic, said Adam Crocini, global head and vice president of food and beverage brands at Hilton.

“What has continued to be at the forefront of the food and beverage offerings, especially at our luxury and lifestyle brand hotels, is the focus on the hyper-local approach to our menus, all inspired by the seasons and celebrating what the particular region has to offer,” he said. “That has never changed. While we have had to alter the presentation of our offerings, we've taken these challenges and turned them into opportunities.”

Since cities shutdown in 2020, restaurants have offered high-end to-go cocktails, expanded grab-and-go markets and personalized plating.

Crocini predicts that pre-made cocktails could start appearing within grab-and-go markets, to-go drinks could be found within bars, and pre-made bottled Negronis served in fancy glasses with ice could be delivered to tables for guests to pour themselves. At the same time, menus are becoming healthier with fresh, organic, locally farmed and locally sourced products.

“COVID-19 has opened many people’s eyes to the fact that they should be living a healthier lifestyle,” he said. “Healthier foods are becoming even more interesting now, whereas in past years it was not as exciting, not as flavorful and not as enjoyable.”

Chef Barry said, "acting upon the healthy, fast-casual trend" is another way hotels are becoming more aligned with consumer trends. Properties are "making fermented food and beverages more popular, providing nutrition information on room service menus, and actively trying to be sustainable and reduce waste."

There are signs that marquee chefs are still giving hotel restaurants a chance. TV personality Bobby Flay has closed his Mesa Grill at Caesars Palace Las Vegas to make way for his Italian concept, Amalfi by Bobby Flay. Mario Carbone’s Major Food Group hasn’t let the pandemic slow it down, opening four restaurants this year. The New York-based group has more restaurants in the pipeline, including Contessa in new Boston hotel Newbury.

Michael Mina’s The Handle Bar has stayed busy at the Four Seasons Jackson Hole in Wyoming. ICE alum Charles Shure (Culinary, '21) launched his career in the destination kitchen and said the restaurant is still not at full capacity but has been doing 500-700 covers a day between lunch and dinner.

“I think people are really desperate to get out,” he said. “I think there’s a craving for resorts towns and outdoors and national parks where there’s all this open space.”

Accor’s Patterson said hotel restaurants have advantages over freestanding restaurants. For one thing, hotels have extra space to accommodate social distancing.

“Although we all want to support small businesses and our neighboring restaurants, bars and cafes, diners have strong confidence in the standards we keep in hotels,” he said. “It will continue to be the center gathering point.”

Charles recommends hotel kitchens to aspiring chefs as properties are hiring for the busy summer season and can offer a truly international experience. He's learning from cooks who gained experience around the world through hotel dining.

"Hotel restaurants offer structure and resources," Chef Barry explained. "A hotel has a wider pool that it relies upon for the guest experience that the restaurant is just one part of whereas a restaurant bears the brunt of the ebbs and flows of business."

He offers additional advantages. "The experience as a cook working in hotels is really important because you have to collaborate with so many different departments. In a restaurant you have front of house and back of house, that’s it. In the hotel industry, the doorman or concierge may have a special request," Chef Barry explained. "Hotel dining offers a dynamic experience to work with a broad range of clientele and expectations. We had to send Nicole Kidman something to eat in the park, a totally off-menu experience. Michael Jackon told us the things that he liked and I had to come up with something myself. Based on the clientele, those requests can be crazy. The chance to be a little more creative with challenges outside of the menu are there."

Likewise, gastronomy can enhance hospitality, even for professionals pursuing those other departments. "The quality of coffee the guest has access to in the morning is important," Chef Barry continued. "The best water, amazing cookies and fruit all indicate that the hotel knows what it’s doing and has culinary credibility so the guest is more willing to spend on dining in the hotel."

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Hospitality Training in 2021

aday — Thu, 18 Mar 2021 18:05:59 +0000

Hospitality Training in 2021 aday Thu, 03/18/2021 - 14:05 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/Hilton%20Bogota%20header.jpg.webp?itok=SyrH1WUR An update on safety, service and industry outlook March 31, 2021

By Nancy Trejos — Hotel and Travel Reporter

Hoteliers and a Hospitality & Hotel Management instructor from the 51�Թ� weigh in on the evolving hospitality industry.

At the Hilton Cartagena in Colombia, a plexiglass divider keeps the masked guests and employees from getting too close. To compensate for that and add a personal touch, the hotel has displayed a photo of the employee without a mask so that the guest can see what she or he looks like when smiling. At the Hilton Mexico City Santa Fe, employees communicate “welcome home” in sign language. And at the Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek, a front desk manager wears a face mask displaying Princess Jasmine and asks kids checking in to name their favorite Disney character.

The pandemic has forced people to physically and socially distance from one another, making hotels rethink the way employees can still be hospitable and form a connection with their guests. Hospitality schools have also changed the way they prepare their students to go out into the pandemic world. In many cases, they are encouraging students to broaden their definition of what a hospitality job is from just hotels and restaurants to senior living facilities or sales and marketing roles.

“Over our long history, we have had to re-imagine how we deliver this hospitality to fit the needs of the time, and the COVID-19 pandemic was no exception,” said Danny Hughes, executive vice president and president of the Americas, Hilton. “Our creative team members have thoughtfully developed new ways to express a warm welcome that are unique to their culture and at a safe distance.”

The hospitality industry has been particularly hard hit due to travel coming to a virtual standstill in early 2020. According to research firm STR, nationwide occupancy was 49% for the week ending March 6. That was up 47.5% from the prior week, but down from 61.6% from the same time last year.

Hilton employees in Orlando

People are still traveling albeit it with some trepidation. Medallia Zingle, a travel messaging platform, reported that 40% of U.S. residents have stayed at a hotel in the last three months. The majority rated their stays as four stars or above, but 58% said they worried about contracting COVID-19 at some point during their stay, mostly during check-in and while using hotel amenities. The majority of the more than 1,000 people surveyed said they would feel more comfortable about using public amenities after the widespread adoption of a vaccine, and 55% said they would be more inclined to do so after hotels take precautions such as adjusting capacity for social distancing and clearly communicating protocols.

For now, hotels across the country are trying to figure out how best to cater to those travelers who are venturing out. The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) Foundation, the charitable arm of the association, is encouraging hotel employees to advance their education by offering professional development scholarships. The foundation granted full-ride scholarships to Valencia College in Orlando to four furloughed hotel employees who participated in its Empowering Youth Program. It also offers an apprenticeship program for lodging managers and hotel cooks.

“We know that with smaller staffs, employees are being asked to take on even more tasks, so we want to ensure they are properly trained,” said Abbey Kang, director of impact at the AHLA Foundation.

Hospitality employees should expect a more demanding clientele, said Hospitality & Hotel Management Instructor Robert Warman.

When travel resumed after 9/11, travelers returned to hotels and restaurants expecting them to operate the same way. This time, the old norms are no longer going to be enough.

“The customer behavior didn’t change in ’08,” Robert said. “When they came back, they came back to the same old thing. What’s unique now is there’s so much talk of ‘Is the customer going to change what their expectations are?’ People are going to be much more conscious of what they get and how they’re treated.”

Safety is now one of their top concerns, but hotel guests still want to feel pampered in a warm, friendly environment.

Joe Dembek, general manager of Sheraton New York Times Square, said he always assures guests that cleanliness protocols are in place through Marriott’s Commitment to Clean. The hotel is sending more pre-arrival emails to guests to engage with them even before they travel. Hotel employees will even do personalized shopping for guests such as picking up essentials at local stores.

Gestures such as that and just being kind are much more welcome these days, he said. “How to smile when wearing a mask? Be welcoming in body language,” he said. “Place your hand over your heart to indicate a smile.”

Another challenge hotels are facing is figuring out how to balance their use of technology with providing a human touch.

Before the pandemic, hotels were already experimenting with and implementing new technologies such as keyless room entry and contactless payment. Marriott International, for instance, offers Mobile Requests on its Marriott Bonvoy app, enabling guests to communicate directly with front desk employees to make requests.

Robert warns that hotels should not go too far with technology.

“Can a QR code replace room service? Sure,” he said. “But it can’t replace a server giving warmth and communication along with your food.”

A masked hospitality professional at Canopy by Hilton Cancun

Hotels will continue to evolve as they figure out what travelers’ new expectations will be.

“Understanding the customers’ needs is going to become even more critical than it was before for a new employee,” Robert said. “For many years, we knew what customers expected. We just perfected delivering it. We didn’t change it much, and today we may have to change it.”

His advice to students: Consider going to all areas in hospitality, not just what they may consider to be the glamorous front-of-the-house positions. He said he is focusing some of his lessons on human resources and marketing.

“HR is still going to exist, the principles are going to exist,” Robert said. “It’s about 'what do I do to adapt to the new environment?'”

Employers will be pickier in their hiring choices, Robert said. “The ones who are going to be hired are the ones who have made a big commitment to the industry.”

Hospitality & Hotel Management student Petrena Andrews, who is on track to graduate from ICE in January, wants to work at either a restaurant or hotel, and she's not anxious about entering the job market.

“By the time I graduate, I’m going to be able to add value to the workforce," she said. "I’m getting to know what makes the hotel business a success, like the front office, the people who are the heart of the operation, how to sanitize a hotel and make sure everyone is safe. I’m looking forward to giving it a try. People always want to travel. Once things calm down, I think there will be a huge boom in people who want to go to places.”

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Las Vegas Evolves Hospitality in 2020

aday — Tue, 17 Nov 2020 15:38:18 +0000

Las Vegas Evolves Hospitality in 2020 aday Tue, 11/17/2020 - 10:38 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/vegas%20strip.jpg.webp?itok=WmXatctf David Becker, Las Vegas News Bureau One of America’s hotel capitals sets the standard in reimagining the industry after the pandemic's impact on travel and tourism. November 17, 2020

By Nancy Trejos — Hotel and Travel Reporter

With more than 275 properties and 150,000 hotel rooms, Las Vegas is a major indicator of hospitality industry news and trends. The city's properties and trade shows often preview the technology and advancement ahead for the rest of the country, including its early road to recovery in 2020.

Las Vegas was one of the first U.S. cities to reopen hotels and casinos after the pandemic shutdown. After closing down in mid-March, casino resorts began welcoming back guests in early June with limited services and more hygienic precautions.

The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority paints a promising picture. Lori Kraft, senior vice president of communications for the organization, said that occupancy has increased from 1.06 million visitors in June to 1.5 million in August, the latest figures available.

The latest Las Vegas Strip property to reopen, Caesars Entertainment’s adults-only The Cromwell, resumed its hospitality and gaming operations on Oct. 29.

Photo by Denise Truscello

"Las Vegas is resilient and will remain one of the world’s best destinations, but it’s going to take a while to fully recover," Kraft said. "Right now, leisure travelers are enjoying Las Vegas with most of the visitation on weekends. Weekday visitation will remain lower until business travel returns. Our resorts know how best to operate their venues to meet customer demand and are adjusting in their own respective ways."

"Spurring industry recovery takes collaboration, partnership, and a unified approach with all stakeholders across the ecosystem," Expedia Group VP Rachel Bird wrote in an opinion piece on Hospitality Net. "This has been especially true for Las Vegas, which has leaned into partnerships, technology and data to help support recovery strategies."

New Technology and Safety Precautions

Hotels and resorts throughout Vegas and the United States have created new health and safety standards, including requiring employees and guests to wear face masks in public areas, placing hand sanitation stations in strategic spots, conducting temperature checks, getting rid of buffets and requiring social distancing.

At Caesars Entertainment properties — which include Caesars Palace Las Vegas, Paris Las Vegas, Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, and Flamingo Las Vegas — guests and employees have received more than 2.7 million masks since reopening.

MGM Resorts International has a new Convene with Confidence program to help bring meetings and conventions back to its properties. Convene with Confidence includes the option of getting on-site rapid COVID-19 testing that can deliver results within 20 minutes.

Photo courtesy of MGM Resorts International

In an op-ed published in The Nevada Independent in early October, Wynn Resorts CEO Matt Maddox said the company is building an on-site lab at Wynn Las Vegas in conjunction with University Medical Center to develop thousands of accurate rapid tests daily. He predicted that the lab would be open before Thanksgiving.

The Venetian Resort Las Vegas, owned by Las Vegas Sands Corporation, has introduced new technology to create a Venetian Clean environment.

Thermal scanners are located at every entry point to allow security to conduct temperature checks of employees and guests. Those with a temperature above 100.4 F have to undergo further medical assessment.

Venetian employees are testing new digital smart rings that may be able to determine potential cases of COVID-19 before symptoms appear. The resort says that research has shown that when paired with a cell phone app, the rings may be able to predict symptoms up to three days early even when the user is not feeling sick.

The resort is also testing a new digital device for employees that will help with contact tracing in case an employee reports having COVID-19 symptoms. The device is equipped with a small disc that is attached to an ID badge holder. It has Bluetooth-enabled access points throughout the resort to detect when employees are less than six feet apart for more than five minutes.

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Venetian is exploring the use of UV technology to disinfect and sanitize areas. A custom system is being installed that will send guest luggage though a tunnel with UV lights to disinfect surfaces.

Mobile check-in, mobile check-out and new digital key technology is being used to limit contact. In July, about one-third of guests used mobile check-in, the resort said.

But the technology is becoming the new norm. Waldorf Astoria Las Vegas is offering Hilton Honors members Digital Key, a contactless way to check-in and access the room.

Employees also use an electrostatic sprayer on a daily basis that customizes the pH level of the sanitizing liquid used to disinfect surfaces.

The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas has a chat bot and 24/7 digital concierge, called Rose, that provides contactless service to guests and resort information through personal cell phones. With a text to Rose, guests can order room service, request housekeeping services, make restaurant reservations and contact the human concierge. Plus, various bars and restaurants on property are providing QR codes as a touchless option to look at menus.

Meeting Status

Las Vegas, with so many large properties, has been particularly successful at booking conferences. Experts said that is the one part of the industry that will lag in its recovery most.

"It definitely is a very challenged time especially with the business traveler mostly being non-existent. That really removes a core part of what Las Vegas had evolved to be," said David Schwartz, a gaming historian and professor at the University of Las Vegas, Nevada. "You’re going to need to have the underlying health issue resolved, whether that’s a vaccine. That’s going to be a big part of it. The second is the economy, and people having more disposable income and confidence."

Some of the larger trade shows that were on the calendar for the first and second quarters of 2021 have rescheduled to the third or fourth quarter, Kraft said. Governor Steve Sisolak has worked with health experts to lift some restrictions and allow for smaller meetings and events of up to 1,000 attendees if broken into rooms of no more than 250 attendees.

"We are just starting to see some movement on shows of those sizes," Kraft said. In the meantime, Vegas hotels are getting creative to attract meetings.

The Venetian says it is reimagining the meetings and trade show experience in Nevada. A mock trade show was recently staged in the Sands Expo exhibit hall, incorporating expertise from the government, public health sector, the most prominent local resort companies, and industry vendors to simulate a socially distanced environment.

The 296,000-square-foot exhibit followed the journey of a trade show, including attendee arrival, registration, entrance into the exhibit hall, and staged exhibitor booths, educational sessions, food concepts and general sessions to demonstrate distancing and sanitization procedures.

This summer, the resort played host to the ABC television show "Shark Tank." The Venetian’s meeting services team and Sands Expo created a "bubble" to have the television production on-site with frequent COVID-19 testing and new food and beverage guidelines. Wynn Resorts CEO Maddox said he is confident Vegas will eventually make a full comeback.

"Extensive research clearly indicates that what is keeping people away from Las Vegas is not so much the physical environment, which we work diligently to keep sterilized, but rather a fear of other people," he wrote in his Op-Ed. "We must alleviate that fear."

Photo courtesy of LVCVA

Hospitality Careers

Las Vegas is one of America’s leading destinations for tourism and hospitality professionals with more than 220,000 metro area employees in leisure and hospitality, and 164,100 employees at Southern Nevada hotels and casinos.

While the industry was devastated nationally, the Associated Press reports “leisure and hospitality companies, which include hard-hit restaurants and hotels, added 271,000 jobs last month on top of 406,000 in September.”

Circa Resort & Casino debuted downtown in October, employing 1,500 workers, with a 777-room hotel tower opening in December. And Virgin Hotels still plans to open its first Vegas property on Jan. 15 with 1,500 rooms and 12 dining concepts, featuring Todd English, Nobu Matsuhisa and the Hakkasan Group.

Fox5 Las Vegas shares the local ray of hope that “leading up to its summer 2021 debut, Resorts World is looking to fill jobs ranging from entry to management levels in departments including hotel operations, casino, and food and beverage,” with 6,000 positions available.

The destination's major properties are highly regarded employers. In 2019, MGM Resorts was among Forbes’ World’s Best Employers, Diversity Inc’s Top 50 Companies for Diversity, and a Military Times’ Best for Vets Employer. In 2020, Caesars Entertainment has been named a Most Responsible Company by Newsweek, No. 17 on 3BL Media's 100 Best Corporate Citizens list, and among The Civic 50’s Most Community-Minded Companies. And in April, Westgate Resorts and Wyndham Destinations were named among the Las Vegas Review Journal’s 40 Top Workplaces Nevada.

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The Hospitality Industry's Road to Recovery

aday — Thu, 01 Oct 2020 17:12:25 +0000

The Hospitality Industry's Road to Recovery aday Thu, 10/01/2020 - 13:12 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/Choice%20Hotels%20header.jpg.webp?itok=cawKoaMm We check in on hotels' occupancy, business strategies and reopenings six months after America shutdown. October 2, 2020

By Nancy Trejos — Hotel and Travel Reporter

Occupancy rates indicate signs of recovery following the impact of the pandemic on the hotel industry, and major hotel groups share their updated safety protocols and outlook for hospitality professionals.

It’s been six months since the travel industry came to a near standstill as the COVID-19 virus spread across the world. In that time, hotels shut their doors as people could no longer cross borders and travel was limited. Thousands of hotel workers lost their jobs. And the hotel industry had to learn how to reinvent itself.

The numbers tell the story of an industry still in crisis mode. For the week ending Sept. 19, the occupancy rate for U.S. hotels was 48.5%, according to the research firm STR. For the same time in 2019, 71.3% of hotel rooms were filled.

But there are signs of recovery.

Many of Marriott International’s hotels that had closed temporarily have reopened. At the end of the second quarter of this year, more than 91% of hotels worldwide were open compared to 75% in April. Marriott has more than 7,300 hotels worldwide and reported that in August, RevPar (Revenue Per Available Room), a key indicator of fiscal health, was down 63% year over year. That’s a significant drop but better than its low in April, when RevPar had dropped 90% year over year.

As of late September, 98 of Accor’s properties in North and Central America were open, representing more than 80% of the hotels in that region. Heather McCrory, CEO of North and Central America for Accor, said the company aims to have more than 90% open by the end of October.

“Our occupancy levels are on par with market levels,” she said. “Fortunately, we have not had to significantly adjust our room rates. We have had success with creative packaging.”

Heather said the meetings sector, which is usually where hotels make a significant chunk of their revenue, is still lagging. Her hopes have been buoyed by a few requests for small meetings and a growth in inquiries for larger meetings for the second half of 2021.

Sofitel Washington, D.C., Lafayette Square photo courtesy of Accor

Choice Hotels kept 90% of its properties running during the worst weeks of the pandemic. By the last week of September, nearly 100% of the group's hotels were open. Occupancy levels at Choice’s domestic hotels dropped to the lowest rate in early April — 28%. But by the last week of June, the rate rose to more than 50%, with extended stay hotels performing the best.

“Our hotels attract a higher proportion of leisure travelers, representing over 80% of all room nights and are not as reliant on group business from meetings and conventions,” said Pearl Amaechi, public relations coordinator at Choice.

Hilton reported in its second quarter earnings report that 96% of its more than 6,200 hotels worldwide had been open as of July 31. The system-wide occupancy rate for the quarter ending June 30 was at 22.3%.

Smaller hotel chains and independent properties are also making a comeback. The Rocco Forte Hotels Collection of 15 luxury hotels and resorts officially reopened four hotels in September: Brown’s Hotel in London, Hotel Amigo in Brussels, Hotel Savoy in Florence, and Hotel de la Ville in Rome.

Hotels in the Caribbean are also slowly reopening. The Belmond Cap Juluca, Anguilla, will reopen on Nov. 1; the Belmond La Samanna, St. Martin, will resume operations on Nov. 2; The Christopher, St. Barth, will return Nov. 24.

Safety Precautions

In order to reopen, hotels have had to drastically change the way they operate in order to ensure the safety of their employees and guests. Major hotel chains are requiring face masks in all public areas.

Marriott instituted the Marriott Global Cleanliness Council consisting of in-house and outside experts in food and water safety, hygiene, infection prevention and hotel operations. New cleaning technologies include electrostatic sprayers and disinfectants recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization.

Hilton CEO Chris Nassetta said during the second quarter earnings call that large group meetings have been pushed into next year. Still, the company has launched Hilton EventReady with CleanStay which sets new standards for cleanliness and customer service for meetings and events. CleanStay is a new cleaning program in partnership with RB, the maker of Lysol, and Mayo Clinic. Through the Hilton Honors app, guests can choose their rooms from hotel floor plans, check in digitally and use their phones as keys.

“While we originally developed it as a convenience for guests, it’s now enabling us to provide a contactless check-in process,” said Nigel Glennie, a spokesman for Hilton.

courtesy of Choice Hotels

Choice has a Commitment to Clean initiative with enhanced cleaning procedures in high-traffic areas such as the front desk, fitness centers and pools using hospital-grade disinfectant approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. A new check-in process promotes social distancing. Furniture is arranged to encourage social distancing, and there are hand sanitizing stations in public spaces. Every Choice-branded hotel will have a designated “Commitment to Clean Captain” to communicate new protocols to staff.

Globally, Accor in May launched the ALLSAFE label of cleaning standards and operational procedures that were vetted by Bureau Veritas, a company that provides testing, inspections and certifications. The company also partnered with insurance company AXA to provide free access to medical consultations.

Accor North and Central America also launched AllMeetWell.com, an interactive platform for meeting planners and attendees to inform them about the new health and safety measures.

Hotels are also developing activities that guests can enjoy while staying safe. Rocco Forte Hotels, for instance, is offering new services to provide guests more privacy. It has a new partnership with VistaJet for more private VIP offerings. Brown’s Hotel has teamed up with Pashley Cycles, a bicycle manufacturer based in England, to provide vintage bicycles, a bike safari itinerary and picnics so guests can get outdoors.

Opportunities in the Hospitality Field

The industry is learning how to implement all these changes with fewer employees. In its latest research, the American Hotel and Lodging Association found that 68% of hotels have less than half of their pre-crisis full-time staff. And 74% said they would have to lay off more employees unless they get government stimulus aid. The results were based on a survey of more than 1,000 hotel owners, operators and employees that was conducted from Sept. 14 to 16.

But there are glimmers of hope.

Some Accor properties, particularly resorts, have started recruiting talent to serve as frontline team members, housekeepers, servers, groundskeepers and more. There are also new positions related to enforcing new safety protocols and security. The company is focusing recruiting efforts on local employees.

Heather said the employees’ roles and responsibilities have expanded to involve more community support efforts related to the pandemic, increased training and the creation of safer hotel offerings such as drive-through events at hotels.

“Hospitality professionals have typically been sought after as top talent due to their passion for taking care of people, creating and facilitating unique experiences, and the transferable skills they have amassed while on the job,” she said, adding that hospitality employees could also find work in other fields.

“Opportunities that require customer service, empathy and relationship building, problem solving, teamwork, innovation, time management, multitasking and detail-oriented skills will benefit from hiring hospitality professionals in various industries, including but not limited to project management, customer success and retail.”

Nigel said that the hotels and franchise owners are assessing their staffing needs “based on a forward view of bookings and their local business environment, as well as guidelines from local and international governments and health authorities.”

Helping Frontline Workers

Meanwhile, hotels are still trying to give back to their communities. At the height of the pandemic, the Accor hotels that had to shut down to the general public partnered with local organizations to offer frontline workerss accommodations, food and supplies such as gloves. Fairmont Royal York in Toronto, part of Accor, donated up to 500 rooms per night, opening up more than 10,000 room nights between April and June. Sofitel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills stayed open to about 150 Cedar-Sinai medical personnel a night. Several Accor hotels in North America are still offering discounted rates to frontline workers through the end of the year.

Hilton and American Express donated up to 1 million hotel room nights across the U.S. for frontline workers. While that program has ended, Hilton has launched a Frontline Thanks program offering discounted rates for them.

Since April 1, more than 313,000 room nights were booked at the Choice Cares rate, a discount for essential workers and volunteers helping communities during the crisis. The rate is not active anymore, but many hotels are still housing first responders.

Marriott has established a Thank You Community Caregiver program at participating hotels across the U.S., Canada, the Caribbean and Latin America. The special rate applies to first responders and healthcare workers though Dec. 31.

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