The hospitality industry is capitalising on the seemingly insatiable demand for travel, with innovations designed to delight guests and fuel word-of-mouth recommendations and storytelling.
At IHIF EMEA 2024, Gabriele Burgio, president & CEO, Alpitour World said: “At top end hotels, almost everyday there is a gift for guests, so you find a toy or something new in your bedroom. I was at a very nice beach resort in Italy and a guy comes around with a spray to clean your sunglasses. Operators are trying desperately to differentiate and offer something to surprise. And especially, it all comes down to experience: a fun story you can tell others about when you return home.”
Enrique ‘Kike’ Sarasola, president, Room Mate Hotels, said his business had been a disruptor by serving breakfast until noon and catering for the needs of guests who were out partying and wanted to sleep late.
Alpitour World is taking steps to understand the personal preferences of its guests. “Are they travelling with children or not? Do they drink alcohol? Well, if they don’t, it’s best not to leave Champagne in the room. With all the privacy laws in Europe, it’s more complicated, but we have to follow this route,” said Burgio.
In some instances, hospitality businesses are not reacting to change fast enough, he added: “When you go for a weekend break to a fantastic place, where they charge at least €1,000 per night and at 12 on Sunday you have to check out and people say that’s half of my weekend.”
Greater attention to detail and employee product knowledge is sometimes required, said Sarasola: “With all this talk of robotics, last night I couldn’t turn off a light in my room. Doesn’t anyone in the hotel sleep in the rooms? When I do mystery shopping of our competitors, I like to ask the boy in the lobby: ‘Have you slept in the room you are recommending to me?’ 90% of the time they haven’t. We have to go a step further and look at these things.”
The speakers expressed some surprise at the continued growth in demand but agreed that the popularity of travel was here to stay. Sarasola said: “Rather than changing their cars or their homes, people want to keep on travelling. We look at the numbers and we think: ‘Oh, another six months and it’s going to go down with everything happening in the world.’ But no. It keeps growing so we must be doing something right.”
However, the picture is not the same in all parts of the world. The return of Chinese outbound tourism has been particularly sluggish. A cost-of-living crisis, complications in obtaining visas, and policies that still limit ‘unnecessary’ outbound travel are the main reasons holding back Chinese outbound tourism.
In contrast, outbound tourism from India is growing rapidly. Alpitour World has several divisions, including hotels and resorts, tour operators, travel agencies, and a fleet of 15 Neos aircraft. Starting a weekly direct flight from Malpensa to India last year, there are now three routes between Italy and India in operation.
In some respects, however, there is not enough of a shift in consumer behaviour, with the same sites attracting ever-increasing crowds of visitors.
Because demand shows no sign of slowing, especially in hotspots like Barcelona and Rome, over tourism is an issue that deserves greater attention from hospitality leaders, said Sarasola.
“Why isn’t anyone talking about this huge problem that is going to explode in our faces? I was in Rome last Saturday with my children and we went to the Colisseum. I have never seen a bigger queue - thousands of people - and this is in April. What’s it going to be like in May, June and July?”
Public opposition to tourist businesses, and the consequential threat of punitive regulations, were dangers largely being ignored, he reckoned.
“Is this what we want? Our industry to be boycotted by politicians and the people living in the cities to go against us? I don’t have the answers, but together hopefully we can find them. We should be able to not get four cruise ships arriving on the same day in Barcelona. Guys, we must address this issue.”