Accommodations

1. Accommodations Hospitality and Tourism 110

2. History • When the priests, pilgrims and missionaries began travelling to religious sites throughout Eastern Europe, accommodations became necessary. • The early inns are described as private homes that citizens opened up as an act of charity.

3. History • As the road systems developed in the Roman Era, inns and taverns began to develop and increase alongside the roads. • These provided basic shelter for merchants and scholars and for those on government or military business. • Most of these accommodations were stables for the animals and sometimes mattresses on the floor for travellers with bread for food.

4. History • During the Middle Ages, monasteries opened their doors to travellers. • In 1282, a group of innkeepers in Italy formed an association. This changed the way lodging would operate. • The first hotel was built in 1788 in France for $17, 500. It had 60 rooms and was of higher quality than the inns.

5. History • The expansion of the railway in Canada had a great impact on the hotel industry. • In the early 1900's motels were developed followed by motor inns, bed and breakfasts and special resort hotels catering to the various needs and wants of the consumer.

6. Guests with Disabilities • Growing market especially with the aging of baby boomers • How must rooms be designed to facilitate these guests? • Size • Levers on doors • Bathrooms accessible to wheelchairs with roll-in showers/tubs, • Grab bars • Good lighting • Instructions very legible and also available in Braille

7. Organization • Administration • Sales and Marketing • Front Office and Guest Services • Accounting • Food and Beverage Department • Room Service • Banquets and Catering • Housekeeping • Engineering • Security

8. Front of House - Front office - Food & Beverage - Housekeeping - Customer services Back of House Administration Sales and Marketing Accounting Engineering Security Organization

9. Hotels • A hotel has a central lobby, its rooms are accessible from the hotel lobby and guest parking may or may not be available. • Can be classified by their location, room rates, purpose and duration on guest visits, and quality of service

10. Hotel Locations • Downtown • Suburban • Airport • Small town • Highway • Resort

11. Downtown Hotel • Travellers who stay in downtown hotels are willing to pay for the convenience. • Close to attractions or place of business • Visitors prefer to use public transportation.

12. Suburban Hotel • Visitors who want to be near family • Concerned with cost • Drive their own car • Inexpensive lodging with free parking

13. Airport Hotel • Target the air traveller • Stays are short, often overnight • Offer day rates for travellers waiting for a connection • Quick check-in and check-out

14. Small Town Hotel • Small towns near major tourist destinations provide lodging at a more reasonable cost • Some towns turn historic buildings into inns or hotels

15. Highway Motels • Familiar to truckers and travellers on the Trans-Canada Highway • Essential in the middle of highway wilderness

16. Resort Hotels • Promote a specific destination • Summer resorts • Golf, tennis, swimming, horseback riding, boating, fishing and canoeing • Winter resorts • Skiing, snowboarding, snowmobiling, skating, sleigh rides • Examples: Jasper Park Lodge, Chateau Whistler, St. Andrews-by-the-Sea

17. Motels • Appeared in the 1950s • Offers free parking to travellers, often a door to parking lot from each room • Little use for a large lobby • Simple, clean, inexpensive accommodations to tourists travelling by car • Travellers often choose a motel over a hotel based on: cost and location

18. Other Lodging Options • Inn • often in historic building • found in smaller towns • “homey” feel • excellent dining rooms that also attract locals

19. Other Lodging Options • Condos • allow an individual to have ownership over one unit in a complex • often owner uses it a few weeks per year and rents it out the rest of the year • management maintains the grounds, roads and recreational facilities

20. Other Lodging Options • Time-sharing • Involves buying a vacation segment for a specific period of time (usually 2 weeks) in a condominium unit • Purchaser only owns that time segment not the entire condominium

21. Other Lodging Options • Dude (or Guest) Ranches • Family owned and operated • Offers the guest a western experience • Popular choice for city dwellers with a desire to get back to basics • May be a working ranch where guests assist in day-to-day operations or luxury resort with swimming pools, horseback riding lessons • Located in western USA, BC and Alberta

22. Other Lodging Options • Bed & Breakfasts (B & Bs) • Provide foreign travellers with a cultural experience and opportunity to live with a family in a new city or town • Often restored older homes in rural settings • Many do not have private washrooms for each guest (communal bathroom) • Usually family owned and operated

23. Other Lodging Options • Spas • Offer: mud baths, massage, exercise programs, healthy food • Focus on the body and mind • Staff includes certified professionals and chefs with knowledge of nutrition

24. Other Lodging Options • Hostels • Lodge with communal washroom and bedrooms designed for four to twenty people • In most cases guests prepare their own meals or assist in meal preparation and cleanup • Low cost makes travel feasible for students and those on limited budgets • Popular in Europe

25. Other Lodging Options • Campgrounds • Popular with cost-conscious travellers, outdoor enthusiasts and RV owners • In the past: offered a piece of grass to set up a tent • Present: first-class RV hookups, hot showers, laundry, swimming pools, rec rooms

26. Canada Select Accomodations Rating Program • "Canada Select" is an industry led, consumer sensitive rating program, developed for the purpose of providing the travelling public with a national consistent standard of quality within categories of accommodation.

27. Canada Select Accomodations Rating Program • Once a property has been categorized it is evaluated for: • physical quality of the property • content of facilities • services and amenities provided. • A star rating from 1 to 5 (in ½ star increments) is awarded based on the results of the evaluation. Each star level reflects specific consumer expectations.

28. Canada Select Accomodations Rating Program • A one star rating reflects that a property is clean and comfortable and has met or exceeded nationally accepted criteria in the areas of facilities, services, amenities and quality of the accommodation. • Additional stars are awarded depending on the extent of facilities, services, amenities and quality of accommodations.

29. Ratings

30. Meal Plan Terminology

31. Accommodation Terminology • Single – one person staying in the room no matter how many beds • Twin – room with two twin beds • Double – two people staying in one room • Double Double – room with two double beds • Suite – accommodation with two or more rooms combined – one set up as living room

32. Accommodation Terminology • Hospitality suite – room that has a bar and sitting area, often provided to the executive of a conference to be used for informal meetings • Rack rate – standard daily rate • Weekend rate – discount rate charged for weekend stays • Run-of-the-house-rate – discount for block bookings

33. Accommodation Terminology • Corporate rate – discount rate given to members of an organization, usually negotiated ahead of time, based on anticipated volume of business • Family plan – special family rate that allows children to stay with parents at no additional charge • Day rate – rate charged for short stays during the day, often at airport hotel locations, usually 9:00am to 9:00pm

34. Other Terminology • Confirmed reservation – hotel has a room waiting for a client but the hotel can sell the room to a waiting guest if the client does not show up by a specified time • Guaranteed reservation – client has supplied a credit card and must pay for the room with or without using it (unless reservation is cancelled by a certain time

35. Other Terminology • Occupancy rate – ratio comparing the total number of rooms occupied for a given time period to the total number of rooms available for rent • Overbooking – confirming more reservations for rooms than can be provided during a specified time period

36. Other Terminology • Connecting rooms – rooms that are side by side and have a door connecting the two rooms • Adjoining rooms – rooms that are side by side but do not have a connecting door between them

37. Marketing • Product • Tangible elements of the property need to be conveyed: décor, ambience, facilities and services • Important to keep in mind the wants and needs of the target market and focus on the aspects of the property that make it unique and set it apart from competitors

38. Marketing • Price depends on: • Location (room and hotel) • Room size and amenities • Pricing expectations of target market • Competitors’ pricing strategies • Seasonality • Group purchase discounts • Discounts given to special market segments (travel agents or seniors) • Available meal plans

39. Marketing • Place (What are the channels of distribution?) • websites • www.expedia.ca, www.hotels.ca • travel agencies • reservation systems • 1-800 numbers

40. Marketing • Promotion • Advertising important but not critical during the high season • Example: hotel with large business clientele may have rooms available weekends so they create “romantic getaway” or “stress relief weekend” packages • Public relations: raising money for charity, supporting festivals and/or events