Hygge - A New Hospitality Trend or a Cheer for Dear Old UVA?

by: Elska Vuong

There’s a new word that capturing the attention of the hospitality industry. "Hygge” (pronounced HOO-guh) is not a new cheer for the ‘HOOS of the University of Virginia, the 2019 men’s basketball national champion. Rather, according to Country Living Magazine, “Hygge is a Danish concept which cannot be translated into a single word but encompasses a feeling of cozy contentment and well-being through enjoying the simple things in life.”

There has always been a market for hotel gyms and spas, offering guests a way to stay healthy on the road. However, with terms such as “hygge,” “mindfulness,” and “self-care” becoming buzzwords and movements of late, health and wellness seems to be having a moment.

The concept of health and wellness has evolved; it is no longer just about discrete wellness treatments or health-related activities and more about a holistic lifestyle focused on overall well-being. Guests are increasingly looking to maintain this lifestyle and/or find ways to incorporate “mindfulness opportunities” into their travel experiences, expecting more than just a hotel spa or gym with a treadmill and free weights.

Many properties and chains have taken notice, making concerted efforts to associate their brand or products with wellness. Starting in 2011, Marriott’s Westin Hotel and Resort brand began introducing amenities such as health-focused options on food and beverage menus, exercise clothing and shoe rentals, concierges to help with running routes, bike-share programs, saline swimming pools, and in-room high-tech Peloton fitness bikes in some cases. In 2017, Westin also launched its first global campaign in over five years – called “Let’s Rise” – with the aim of positioning itself as a leader in wellness tourism.

Other chains have also leaned in to the wellness wagon. Hilton launched its “Five Feet to Fitness” guestroom concept in 2017, installing more than 11 different fitness-focused items in hotel rooms. Priced at 20 percent above normal room rates, guests have the ability to access a range of fitness options and maintain their routines without leaving their rooms. Beyond high-end fitness equipment, the rooms also offer a meditation chair, blackout curtains, Biofreeze to ease muscle tension, and a range of protein and hydration drink options.

At its last global conference, Wyndham Hotel Group unveiled their new guestroom design looks, focused on color schemes and themes that focused on reducing guest stress level and inspiring guests to have “the feeling of being almost home.” In recent years, Wyndham has also launched a “Stay Well” guestroom program, using design features, amenities, and programming focused on keeping travelers healthy. Part of these features are circadian lighting technology to help reduce jetlag, wall-mounted air-purification filters to reduce allergens and microbes, and aromatherapy options.

Introducing new wellness offerings is not just a way for a hotel to differentiate itself. It’s also an opportunity to increase revenue and tap into the $639.4-billion wellness tourism industry. Health-conscious travelers reportedly spend as much as 130 percent more on hotel amenities than other guests. Within the coveted traveling millennial demographic, 60 percent of them say that health is the most important thing in their lives.

Today, health-conscious travelers are not just guests who are traveling specifically for a wellness experience, like a spa or yoga retreat. Rather, the majority are travelers who are looking to stay healthy or access health and/or wellness-focused amenities while on the road. As a result, there’s an incentive for hotels at every level and price point to find new ways provide their guests with health and wellness opportunities.

Au Revoir Marriott Rewards, Bienvenue Bonvoy

by Elska Vuong

If you watched the Academy Awards last month, you might have noticed something… aside from Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga, that is. Marriott has finally unified all of its rewards programs into a new loyalty program called Bonvoy. During the show, Marriott featured a splashy 60-second commercial directed by Oscar-nominated director Jean-Pierre Jeunet as a part of its effort to introduce Bonvoy. The campaign will include activities across 22 countries throughout the year and leverage major cultural events to further highlight the new travel program, according to Marriott.

The new program, which merges together Marriott Rewards, Ritz-Carlton Rewards, and Starwood Preferred Guest, comes after years of keeping the Marriott and Starwood loyalty programs separate, following Marriott’s acquisition of the smaller company in 2016. The acquisition made Marriott the largest hotel company in the world. Bonvoy has an estimated 120 million members, in turn making it the largest loyalty program for a single hotel company globally.  

With the ad campaign and its associated tagline, “Rewards Reimagined,” Marriott hopes to raise Bonvoy’s brand recognition, along with the profile of its 30 hotel brands. “It’s about the emotional part of what good travel means,” said Karin Timpone, global marketing officer for Marriott International. “That’s what the campaign is all about — people experiencing the joy of good travel and they have one word to describe it, and that one word is ‘Bonvoy.’ The more people hear that, the more they connect that idea of good travel to our portfolio and that program.” The company reportedly spent extensive time researching, before deciding on Bonvoy, shorthand for ‘bon voyage,’ including investigating how the name would be pronounced by foreign language speakers.

Part of the new tagline also reflects a shift in focus from a loyalty program that is exclusively points and in-hotel-perks-driven. The new program and campaign emphasizes customized, special experiences you can have as a Marriott Bonvoy member, including musical performances, sporting events and culinary collaborations. “We think [Bonvoy is] good because it relates to travel, and relates to Marriott, and also points to something new — that the loyalty program is now the richest set of benefits, and much more than what it was in pieces,” said Timpone.

Home is Where Alexa is...

by: Elska Vuong

“Alexa, turn off the lights.”

“Hey Google, what’s the weather?”

If those sentences trigger a sense of déjà vu, you’re likely one of the many people (approximately 43 million, if we’re counting) who own a smart speaker – an Amazon Echo or Google Home, for example.

While the use of smart speakers in homes is well known, the devices’ commercial applications are still being tapped. In particular, hotels and airlines are exploring how the devices can be adapted to enhance the guest experience.

“...guests can use the devices to change the temperature in the room, request fresh towels from housekeeping, or ask what time the hotel’s restaurant closes...”

This past year, Marriott International teamed up with Amazon to test out Echo devices with a new “Alexa for Hospitality” mode in select rooms. Tailored to each property, guests can use the devices to change the temperature in the room, request fresh towels from housekeeping, or ask what time the hotel’s restaurant closes, among other applications.

In the future, guests will also be able to link their own Amazon account to the in-room Echo during their stay so they can listen to their own music, much like how guests at some hotels can connect to Netflix or Hulu on a smart TV.

The hospitality mode also has specific security settings which delete interactions daily, recognizing the concerns that may arise regarding guest privacy.

Meanwhile, other hotels have begun testing out smart speakers beyond the guest room. Caesars Palace, for example, started using a newly-launched “interpreter mode” on Google Home as real-time translators at their check-in counters and concierge desks. When a person uses a trigger phrase like, “Hey Google, be my Slovak (or Mandarin or German) interpreter,” the Google Assistant begins to start translating the conversation. Other hotels and even retail outlets around the world could adopt similar approaches.

The big smart speaker players are also starting to incorporate features that enable these digital assistants to become digital travel agents. Amazon has teamed up with Expedia and Kayak so that customers can use Alexa to book hotels and rental cars. Google Assistant can not only book hotels and rental cars, but also track and book flights. And through a partnership with United Airlines, consumers will soon be able to ask Google Assistant to check into their flights and fetch their digital boarding pass.

Worldwide, smart speaker ownership is on track to reach 225 million units by 2020. As the technology continues to proliferate, it’s likely that we’ve only just begun to scratch the surface on all the possible uses of smart speakers across the travel and hospitality industry.

Hop to it! A Day in the Life...

by: Elska Vuong

Opened in 2015, the Westin Jekyll Island was the first full-service branded hotel in the Golden Isles.  With 187 guest rooms and 13 suites, at any given time the property is bustling with activity as guests explore the island, its wildlife, and attractions.

As you might imagine, it takes a finely-tuned team to meet guests’ needs and ensure they have a memorable stay; though the picturesque Atlantic Ocean views don’t hurt, either.

So what is it like to work at this coastal property in the middle of a Georgia summer? Fortunately, David Eisen, writing for Hotel Management On-Line, spent the weekend walking in the well-worn shoes of the Westin’s bellhops so that the rest of us don’t have to.

On paper the tasks of a bellhop are numerous, though relatively straightforward – collect and deliver bags, valet guest cars, and hold the door, among other responsibilities. However, David quickly learned during his shifts that the soft skills needed to quickly read guests proved to be just as important as the ability to smoothly maneuver tricky luggage carts.

“A bellman is like a quarterback: you have to read the defense. In this case, the guests. When they arrive to the hotel, you have to instantly surmise if they want to be chatted up or need assistance with their bags and this is usually identified by non-verbal cues, such as body language or countenance. This, like anything else, takes practice, and once you have it down, makes the job that much easier.”

Read about his great experience here, and learn more about the great team at the the Westin Jekyll Island here.