There are deals to be had. Hotels need you, and they need your money, and in this time of downturn, they aren't going to let rooms stand empty if they can generate some cash.
But beyond needing you, they also want you -- to enjoy your stay, to call on them to cater to your every whim, to tell them what makes you tick and lights your life.
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Thursday, July 23, 2009 Home Edition Main News Part A Page 4 National Desk 1 inches; 61 words Type of Material: Correction
Hotels: In a June 28 story in the Travel section on luxury hotels that are opening or under construction, the company that owns the Hotel Bel-Air and the Beverly Hills Hotel was incorrectly identified. It is the Dorchester Group, not the Dorchester Collection. Also, the hotel 45 Park Lane in London is now scheduled to open in 2010, not this year.
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Sunday, July 26, 2009 Home Edition Travel Part L Page 3 Features Desk 1 inches; 52 words Type of Material: Correction
Upscale hotels: A June 28 story, "Sweet Deals on Upscale Hotels," incorrectly identified the company that owns the Hotel Bel-Air and the Beverly Hills Hotel as the Dorchester Collection. It is the Dorchester Group. Also, the hotel 45 Park Lane in London is now scheduled to open in 2010, not this year.
Watch out for both this summer as you check out what's going on with checking in.
Great deals have proliferated, and that probably won't change much in the year ahead. But luxury hotels have been especially hard hit, so they're expected to keep offering reduced rates, free nights or resort credits to attract business.
"Consumers are going to find better discounts, percentage wise, by taking advantage of more upscale hotels that have to provide dramatic discounts," said Bruce Baltin, vice president for PKF Consulting, a national hospitality consulting firm.
Travelers may not have to hurry to snag deals this summer. When hotels cut their room rates by as much as 40% after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, prices stayed depressed, said Duane Vinson, vice president of Smith Travel Research, a hospitality research firm based in Hendersonville, Tenn.
"It took six years for hotels to recover the rate cuts from 2001," he said.
Atlanta-based PKF Hospitality Research recently called 2009 the worst year on record for the industry, thanks to an all-time low occupancy rate and this year's forecasted 17.5% decline in revenue per available room, an important performance measurement. Worse, the typical U.S. hotel's net operating income is expected to fall 37.8% in 2009 and 9.2% more in 2010.
As they compete for fewer guests, hotel operators are trying more diligently to reach customers before, during and after their stays, says David Brudney, a Carlsbad-based hospitality consultant. He expects that hotels will put greater emphasis on customer relations, particularly in the form of social media, websites and e-mail.
Websites may more easily allow guests to preset such preferences as the content of their mini bars or the delivery time of their breakfasts. E-mail marketing and social media will be keyed more to such psychographic measures as attitudes and interests.
"We're really in the business of creating experiences," Brudney said. "The ones who master the new forms of communication to deliver on those experiences are the ones who are going to be successful."
