As customer needs and technologies develop, aspects such as internet accessibility are being perceived as increasingly important. The European Hotelstars classification criteria catalogue takes this insight into account. For hoteliers who are out to catch another star for their hotels, this development means both a challenge and a chance.
Anticipating and delivering what a hotel guest desires can directly result in a higher hotel classification. Today more than ever, international standards are playing a strong role in defining the amenities or the luxury expected by guests staying in a hotel of a certain category. Being one of the founding partners from the now 15 countries which have taken on the challenge of creating a harmonized European hotel-ranking system, the German Hotel and Restaurant Association (DEHOGA) recently published its revised classification criteria. While the topics of the criteria catalogue are nothing new, they do set new priorities in the areas of sleep comfort, security, and especially connectivity.
Consequently, internet access in the hotel room has become a fundamental feature and a basic requirement for attaining at least 3 stars. Hoteliers can take advantage of this requirement by directly connecting with the guests by means of their own personal devices. In the age of smartphones and tablets, the most convenient way for the hotelier to get their guests online is to provide them with Wi-Fi. Once the guest is online, the hotelier can improve communication by integrating his hotel software with smart mobile solutions. Versatile guest apps such as protel Voyager can be used to offer specials, room service, multi-lingual service packets, contact forms, digital newspapers, thus fulfilling various criteria with a single solution.
By integrating a survey tool such as protel Survey in the protel Voyager guest app, hoteliers will benefit even more. Through surveys containing specified questions for the time before, during, and after a stay, hoteliers can find out more about how and when their guests’ wishes change. This provides the hotelier the chance to be one step ahead of the next issue of the criteria catalogue. Until its next publication, however, the hotel will be awarded points for systematically evaluating guest surveys. — When hoteliers make their guest’s eyes sparkle, that next star is within reach.
Anticipating and delivering what a hotel guest desires can directly result in a higher hotel classification. Today more than ever, international standards are playing a strong role in defining the amenities or the luxury expected by guests staying in a hotel of a certain category. Being one of the founding partners from the now 15 countries which have taken on the challenge of creating a harmonized European hotel-ranking system, the German Hotel and Restaurant Association (DEHOGA) recently published its revised classification criteria. While the topics of the criteria catalogue are nothing new, they do set new priorities in the areas of sleep comfort, security, and especially connectivity.
Consequently, internet access in the hotel room has become a fundamental feature and a basic requirement for attaining at least 3 stars. Hoteliers can take advantage of this requirement by directly connecting with the guests by means of their own personal devices. In the age of smartphones and tablets, the most convenient way for the hotelier to get their guests online is to provide them with Wi-Fi. Once the guest is online, the hotelier can improve communication by integrating his hotel software with smart mobile solutions. Versatile guest apps such as protel Voyager can be used to offer specials, room service, multi-lingual service packets, contact forms, digital newspapers, thus fulfilling various criteria with a single solution.
By integrating a survey tool such as protel Survey in the protel Voyager guest app, hoteliers will benefit even more. Through surveys containing specified questions for the time before, during, and after a stay, hoteliers can find out more about how and when their guests’ wishes change. This provides the hotelier the chance to be one step ahead of the next issue of the criteria catalogue. Until its next publication, however, the hotel will be awarded points for systematically evaluating guest surveys. — When hoteliers make their guest’s eyes sparkle, that next star is within reach.
