Hotels Will Sell Far More Than Rooms
The business of running a hotel company can no longer be boxed into four walls. “These days, we think of ourselves as being more in the travel business than the hotel business,” says Marriott’s Edmundson, who is overseeing the launch of Ritz-Carlton’s cruise product in the next two years.
“In every single sector, including travel, it’s all about ecosystems,” says Deloitte’s Gasdia. “Think about Amazon buying Whole Foods. It’s all about leveraging the power of adjacent spaces.” So what does that mean for travelers? Most notably, hotels will now attempt to fill up their itineraries with experiences and activities.
“The tours-and-activities space is going through a huge coming of digital age,” explains Gasdia—and hotels want to cash in. (Airbnb caught on early.) Take Marriott’s strategic investment in PlacePass, which unlocks 100,000 walking tours, biking excursions, and culinary classes in 800 destinations around the world. Or the new “Live Unforgettable” campaign for Waldorf Astoria; Hilton’s Vanderslice says it will link hotel guests with such celebrities as Gabrielle Union at high-profile dinner events.
NYU’s Hanson argues that selling activities is crucial for luxury hotels. It helps them control the end-to-end shopping experience, offers data that can feed guest personalization, and distinguishes high-end properties from mid-tier ones.
“Luxury hotels need to do more. We get ironing boards and bathrobes everywhere, don’t need business centers, and even the concierge has become irrelevant,” he explains. Experiences, though, are a winnable space. “Local walking tours, comped theater tickets, exhibits in the hotels, manager receptions for frequent guests—these are the types of things that only luxury hotels can do.”
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.