In the Hotel Business, the Name is Everything
Apr 18th, 2008 by Alex
I keep notes about the places I go when I’m on travel, about experiences with vendors good and bad. While a particularly bad place might stand out in my mind, I may forget when a place is just sub-par. If you don’t travel, the following probably won’t be of much interest.
When it comes to profit, there’s a lot of ways to cut corners. In the restaurant business you can jack up the price of a meal or start charging for previously-included sides. Or if you keep the price the same you can reduce the portion size. In the hotel business, you can’t downgrade the furniture or building too easily. You can start charging more, but since savvy consumers won’t put up with paying more for the same thing, something has to change. How about the name?
I recently stayed at Crowne Plaza at Tysons Corner on business. Billed as “the place to meet,” it was a actually Holiday Inn the last time I stayed here last year. From the moment my sneaker-clad feet hit the marble-clad lobby floor last January I knew it was the most elaborate Holiday Inn I had ever been in, so it wasn’t any surprise that they upgraded the name of the place.
Though the two are owned by the same company, Crowne Plaza is a more upscale brand than Holiday Inn. The posted room rate for a 1-2 person King room was $339/night. Now that isn’t what I paid (because that’d be nuts), but it is at least 50% more than last year’s posted rate. Aside from the name, there must be a ton of changes to warrant the increase. Right?
Sorta…
In the bathroom, the water-restricting shower head had been removed from the shower. The impact to water usage is probably neutral as far as I’m concerned. Rather than rinsing slowly, the shampoo and soap are blasted off of you in record time. It provides a quicker but thoroughly pleasing shower experience, right up there with the stainless steel pressure washers they called showers in RIT dorms. Plus I do participate in the towel re-use program, since I see no reason why I’d need fresh towels every day. There’s one of those curved shower curtain rods that give you a bit more space to maneuver while bathing. In addition, all of the provided soaps and shampoos boast the following label: “A warm blend of sparkling bergamot and fresh ginger. Clean musk notes of white tea, amid spicy nuances of vetiver and nutmeg.” I had to look up Bergamot and vetiver: the former is a type of orange and the latter is a type of aromatic Indian grass. Anyways, they smell pretty damned good! There’s more ginger in here then was in the Ginger Chicken.
They’re promoting proper sleep. They’re advertising their wake-up guarantee right on the bedside table. If your previously scheduled wake-up call doesn’t arrive plus or minus 5 minutes from the time you specified you get a night’s lodging on them. That’s supposed to “eliminate anxiety about oversleeping.” Also, when I checked in there was a little gift bag on the bed containing various “sleep amenities” such as an eye mask, ear plugs, a little bottle of lavender aromatherapy spray for the linens, and a sleep CD. The alarm clock — also new — has got a CD player, which is cool by itself. The CD is titled “Sleep Advantage” and it has a bunch of guided mind and body relaxation techniques, followed by 30-45 minutes of tranquil sounds. Track 4 is entitled “Floating” and though it’s only 7 minutes and 42 seconds long I’ve yet to hear the following track.
In the visual entertainment department, there’s a 32″ wide screen LCD (LG 32LC5DC) in the room, upgraded from a 30″ tube model. It’s not a hotel model and all of the inputs (HDMI, DVI, RGB, S-video, RCA) are accessible, although later in the week someone came in and replaced the stock remote with a dumbed down hotel version. Even so the panel-mounted buttons should still work. Wii Sports, anyone?
Though I’m pleased with these upgrades and perks, I’m pretty sure they aren’t worth the extra cash.
As far as amenities go, Internet access is a must for the business traveler. It’s how we connect with friends and loved ones during our stay, get directions to meetings, and keep up with company email while we’re away from our usual desks. Previously free, in-room Internet access (whether wired or wireless) is billed at $9.99/day. Unsecure wireless access is still free in common areas such as the lobby and the hotel’s restaurants, but the reliability of it seems lower than usual.
All of the furniture is the same as far as I can tell, as is the bedding and pillows.
The rest of the facility seems the same too, and while it’s uber-clean and well maintained (and super nice as a Holiday Inn), I think a decent stay could be had at a cheaper rate somewhere down the block. Courtyard Marriot is next door and I’m thinking I’ll give that a shot next time.
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I travel to Colorado Springs on business several times a year, and always stay at the Holiday Inn near the airport, because it’s convenient to all the places I need to go. Directly across the street from the Holiday Inn is a Holiday Inn Express, at which I have also stayed. As near as I can tell, the only significant difference is that the full-up Holiday Inn has a nicer lobby, a better business center, and an in-hotel restaurant. The rooms are identical, and are cheaper at the Express. Go figure.
Courtyards have free internet, but Marriott’s don’t. It’s all part of the expense account game.
Bilbo: But it’s across the street from the airport. I try to stray from those right next to the airport, lest you want to hear planes landing all night.
yellojkt: I’m actually more fond of the Courtyard myself, it’s larger and more home-like. Their suites are excellent for week-long stays, especially the ones with the kitchenettes.