New Service Tracks Shady Hotel Guests

Are you one of those hotel guests that purposely complains about everything in hopes to get a refund or discount? You know who you are. When a customer service representative asks you "how was your stay", you complain that the drapes didn't block enough sun from coming into your room, you complain that you could hear interstate traffic while trying to sleep although you knew before hand that the hotel was located just yards from said interstate, you complain that the room rate is too high although you agreed to the rate at check in, you complain that the thread count of the sheets isn't high enough, you complain that the free orange juice was too cold because it hurt your teeth, you complain that your room wasn't cleaned although you had the "do not disturb" sign on your door all day long, you complain that you didn't get your wake-up call although you are unsure if you ever asked for one, you complain that the pattern of the hall carpeting is too "intense" because it makes you dizzy, you complain about "jet noise" but in the same breath say that you chose the hotel because it was so close to the airport....

If you are one of these people...BEWARE, the hospitality industry is onto you! HotelSafeGuard.com launched last month. The service aims to help the hospitality industry combat fraud and check guests with suspicious patterns. David Barber, of HotelSafeGuard.com, estimates scams cab cost a hotel 5%-7% of revenue a year.

HotelSafeGuard.com charges $472.80 per year and bills itself as an across the board, world wide service that detects patterns of financial fraud and guest abuse.

Holiday Inn: A New Look

The Holiday Inn brand is an icon in the lodging industry. If you are a frequent business traveler and routinely take weekly or weekend vacations you have most likely stayed at a Holiday Inn product.

As a child one of my fondest travel memories was staying at a HoliDome, a Holiday Inn that featured a "dome" over the pool area, for the weekend in Cedar Rapids, Iowa with my parents and younger brother. The dome area not only had a pool and hot-tube, it also featured a small mini-golf area, a huge game room, pool table, and a ping pong table. As a kid, this was the best hotel ever! My brother and I were impressed as only kids could be when mom and dad ordered us hot fudge sundaes by the pool. As I re-call, we didn't wait the customary 45 minutes to jump into the pool after we filled our bellies with ice-cream.

I thought of this experience as I read a recent article that mentioned the Holiday Inn brand was changing their iconic signage with new streamlined signage. Below is an example of the new signage with Andrew Cosslett, Chief Executive of InterContinental Hotels Group. Also included below is a rendering of the classic Holiday sign.

A few interesting and fascinating facts:

• The brand was established in 1952, and currently has 3125 hotels worldwide.
• The brand was first to offer free ice and telephones in every room.
• Around the world, Holiday Inn is opening a hotel a day and signing two.
• Holiday Inn has a development pipeline of more than 110,000 rooms (942 hotels).
• Around the world, three people check into a Holiday Inn every second.
• Every night more than 300,000 people stay at a Holiday Inn or Holiday Inn Express.
• Holiday Inn has been mentioned in song lyrics by Elton John and rappers Snoop Dog and Chingy.
• Personally, I've stayed at a Holiday Inn product 5 times over the past 5 years. I've eaten an average of 3 cinnamon rolls at the free breakfast on each of my 1 night stays. :-) yum!

Is your hotel room clean?

Back in December I posted an article about the key card urban legend.

Click here for a web article from msn.com. It mentions the key card urban legend as well as "rule 240", an airline urban legend I've never heard of.

The same article mentions "dirty hotel rooms". Although I don't agree with the article's statement that housekeepers are under-paid and over-worked, the article's statement on cleanliness has merit. As a frequent traveler I don't use a "white glove" to determine if a room is unclean. However, I do use some common sense.

Consider the following:

There is usually a robe-hook on the inside bathroom door. What did the person who rented the room before you hang on that hook? A used towel? Are you confident the house-keeping staff cleaned it properly? The same can be asked about towel racks. At home we hang bath towels, hand towels, and wash cloths over some type of towel rack...Do you do the same when staying at a hotel? Again, are you confident the towel racks were cleaned properly after the guest before you rented the room? It may not be the "greenest" practice, but I don't re-use soiled towels after I use them. I simply toss them on the bathroom floor. Because I usually travel alone, the supply of bath linens in the room will satisfy my needs until I check-out the next day or when the room is cleaned the next day.

For whatever reason I sleep better in hotel beds than at home. However, every once in awhile I get a case of the "gross-outs" when I think of past guests who have slept in the same bed. Laundry costs are a huge expense for the lodging industry. Although sheets and pillowcases are changed after a room is checked out...Do you think the blankets and comforter are laundered? If you'd like to know some facts on this issue, leave a comment and I can inform you more.

Another area to be aware of is room carpeting. Typically, room carpeting is shampooed 1-2 times a year or when needed. Always assume that's its been awhile since the carpet has been shampooed. A good rule of thumb: Always wear socks, sleepers, or shoes in your room to protect your bare feet from unknown liquids and substances that were spilled or dropped by previous guests.

A few friends and family members of mine carry a "wet-ones" type of product with them when they travel. Any alcohol based wipe can sanitize some commonly used items in a hotel room such as the telephone receiver and TV remote control.

Although no one has ever died from an unclean hotel room, it's important to use common sense to put your mind at ease when checking into a hotel.

A Different 'Xperience'

A new trend in some full service hotels is offering "The X Room". The X Room not only features the most current technology expected by the average traveler, but it also has technology that the hotel guest can expect 3-5 years from now. The following is a list of in-room amenities that a X Room has at the Courtyard by Marriott Newark-University of Delaware for its future technology minded guests.

• GDA-700 - bartech's duel-door minibar system uses 23 FFID and infrared sensors and can hold items for sale and guests' personal items.




• Digital Door Viewer - First (View) Security's electronic video system acts as a high-tech peephole that allows guests to see the entire area outside the door.




• AnyFill - TeleAdapt's universal fast charger automatically charges 95% pf mobile battery powered devices.




• Clocky - Nanda's alarm clock on wheels runs away and hides if guests aren't ready to wake up and start their day.




• Digital Frame - Edge tech corp's high-resolution digital picture frame allows guests to decorate the walls with their personal pictures. It also has an MP3player.




• Flameless Candles - Flame free candles Inc.'s LED luminaries produce a soft, flickering flame that illuminate just like a real candle




• DD 46/2 - Inncom's Guestroom Digital assistant let guests use a touchscreen display to control climate, lighting, drapes and other aspects of the guestroom.




• Wii - Nintendo's video game console lets guests play games wirelessly and to do light workouts in the room.




• RealTimeREX Suite - RealTime Date Solutions' software suite provides the hotel with monitoring of hundreds of processes and systems.




• Lighted Hair Dryer - Andis' environmentally friendly hair dryer has a quiet turbo motor and diffused night light.




• Tri Spa Showerhead - Oxygenics' system introduces air into the shower creating a powerful oxygenated spray.

Personally, Id like too have a white-noise machine in my room. Being a lite-sleeper, a white-noise machine would be a feasture that I'd pay extra for.