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Hospitality industry is associated with warmth, openness and hospitability. Customer is God is the mantra which the hospitality industry follows very religiously. Hotels capture the essence of this statement very aptly. Hotels combine the traditional and the modern and give the best of both to the customer.
Most of the 4 star and 5 star hotels try to showcase the rich traditions by serving authentic food and creating an ethnic ambience.
Hotels combined with world class facilities using modern technology they give the customer every worth his penny. Generally people are becoming very food conscious so good food along with low calorie food for the diet conscious is the norm of the day.
Tourism and Hospitality
Hotels are associated with the hospitality industry. People traveling for various purposes like business trip, pleasure trip need a place to stay depending on their budget. Hotels cater to all sections of the society; there are inns, motels or lodges for people who have a shoe-strung budget. People who can afford a little more can avail the use of 2 star or 3 star mid-sized hotels. And those belonging to the nouveau rich or those on business trip can afford the luxury of a 4 star or 5 star hotels. With tourism playing a major factor in the inflow of foreign visitors and also influx of many foreign companies in oversees markets the hospitality industry has grown by leaps and bounds. So apart from setting up exotic hotels in the country, hospitality industry is also looking at investing oversees and are setting up in hotels in other countries as well providing cut of the edge technologies to the foreign customers.
Hotels are rated based on a number of factors depending on the services they offer:
luxury Hotels(*****)
5 star hotels come in the category of luxury hotels which are highly priced because of the amenities they offer like suites, well-known chefs. The ambience is very sophisticated and elegant; they are located in the prime areas of the city and have a host of other benefits like valet parking, a state-of –art gym with sauna and Jacuzzi, a world class business centre, concierge service, complimentary newspaper and coffee-maker in the rooms. High speed internet access is also available.
Deluxe Rooms(****)
4 star hotels give quality and comfort to the clients, they are located in areas which are easily accessible for other services like shopping, they have a valet parking, gym , business centre and concierge service.
Mid-scale Hotels(***)
3 star hotels have neatly furnished rooms and lobbies. They are located in suburbs or highways and office complexes. They offer services of attached restaurants, swimming pools, fitness centre, room service, and parking.
Value Property(**)
2 star hotel rooms are not elegant but comfortable and are usually located near public places like bus stands, airports, shopping areas. Room services are not usually offered. Transportation is sometimes offered.
Economy Hotels and Motels(*)
Ideal for people with a low budget as rooms are very economical as only the basic facilities like cable TV, local calls and free parking are available. They are typically located near highways where the working class people frequent.
Customer Satisfaction
Prime duty of hospitality industry is customer satisfaction. Hotels nowadays compete in providing maximum services to the client and each try to outdo the other by introducing innovative time-saving concepts. Time is what a customer values the most especially people on business trips. The Le Royal Meridien has started a check-in facility on each floor so that customers don’t have to wait in long queues at the reception counter. Hotels in order to provide personalized services to customers keep a list of customer profile of regular customers so that when a regular customer check in they automatically know what his preferences are like the choice of room, or any other service to be offered.
Technology
Taj group of Hotels is spread throughout the country and even abroad. Hence to maintain uniformity everywhere and to reach to everyone at the same time they have adopted the video conferencing and VOIP system. This cuts their costs dramatically and also offers efficiency in service. The digitally enhanced mobile phones help the staff in tracking customers and attending to their needs immediately. In spite of all this the online reservation system has not caught on in a big way in India due to security reasons of providing the credit card number though secrecy and safety is ensured.
Unusual Hotels
Concept of Boutique Hotel is different from regular hotels as they give personalized services, facilities and accommodation to customers. They are generally done up in a particular style or a theme is adopted. Customers are looked after 24x7 by serviced staff. Though they are not as large as regular hotels they do provide wi-fi internet connectivity and a host of other facilities. Hence nowadays all the big hotels are getting into this concept or they prefer to use a trendier term of lifestyle hotels.
The concept of a service apartment is fast catching up where the warmth of a home is provided like a personalized chef, warm and friendly rooms, and internet connection.
Amidst all this are the Historic hotels which have gained significance because they organize events related to historical episodes and are generally seeped in historical heritage.
Then there are some unusual hotels like Tree house hotels, cave hotels, ice hotel, snow hotels, underwater hotels, garden hotels.
There are also some hotels which have the distinction of being the largest like the MGM Grand in Las Vegas and Getting High lands in Malaysia. Then there are the world’s tallest and oldest hotels whose names are mentioned in the Guinness book of world records.
Best Western International is the largest in terms of hotel chain in the world as they have the largest number of properties.
Resorts are also catching up in a big way. Located far away from the maddening crowd and hustle-bustle of city life in the calm and tranquil ness of interiors usually atop hill stations or in the wilderness, resorts are fast becoming the mantra of the IT crowd who usually get away for the weekend or for people wanting a quick getaway for a vacation . Resorts are becoming extremely popular for the exotic services like spas, massages that they offer in the midst of nature.
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