Hotel Report

BM 0970 Introduction to Hospitality & Tourism Executive Summary Introduction Hotel Rendezvous, Singapore Products/Services: They offer worldwide hotel services in countries such as Singapore, Shanghai and many parts of Australia. They are from The Marque Group of Hotels and they have hotels by the name of both Marque and Rendezvous. Hotel Rendezvous in Singapore offers good location too. It is situated in the heart of the civic, cultural and commercial district; Bras Basah Road, just stones throw from the always-crowded Dhoby Ghaut MRT Station. Without a doubt, this is the perfect place to rendezvous for business or pleasure. Competition: Hotels nearby includes the known Concorde Hotel, once known as Le Meridian Hotel, Hotel Fort Canning, Mandarin Orchard, which is a 5* Hotel and Hangout @ Mt. Emily, a themed budget hotel. Unique-selling points: Hotel Rendezvous Singapore has the â€Å"Telepresence† Room. This state-of-the-art facility connects users the world with unparalleled convenience and ease, while reducing corporate travel expenses and increasing productivity and environmental friendliness. The hotel is also the first to offer the facility, thus more business visitors will be attracted to stay in Rendezvous. Furthermore, those who book the facility will get discounts for rooms and also f/b services. Target Market: Business travellers Potential Opportunities & Challenges Of Hotel Rendezvous Challenges include: 1. Some hotels nearby in Orchard Road have better services An example will be Mandarin Orchard Hotel; they have: * Medical clinic in case of emergencies * Baby sitting services for customers who stays in the hotel with their families and need someone to mend their children when the parents are away * Postal services (Immediate mail from the hotel to Singapore Post) 2. Online guest reviews affect the competitiveness of Hotel Rendezvous Websites like Trip Advisor will have both negative and positive comments. While positive comments may encourage first-time travellers to visit Hotel rendezvous, negative comments will deter travellers to enter the hotel, especially the business travellers who want better services. Since, the negative comments will not be removed immediately, thus causing an influence to the choices made by first-time travellers. 3. Shopping centres are located far from hotel Major shopping malls like ION Orchard and Wisma Atria are located far from Bras Basah Road, where transportation is needed. 4. Due to IR, business and leisure tourists may prefer hotels such as Marina Bay Sands for stay in Singapore instead. 5. F1 Night Race The F1 night race occurs in the month of September each year and during this period, it is much more inaccessible to get to Hotel Rendezvous. Major road closures at locations such as Orchard Road and Stamford Road will make it harder for drivers to get to the hotel. Challenges: Since F1 will end in 2011, the hotels surround the F1 track race may experience a significant drop in hotel occupancy rate. Therefore, suggestions such as organising local Singapore track race are recommended. Key Developments & Opportunities 1. Zoukout An annual music, dance and art event hosted at Sentosa Island. Organised by Zouk Club. Tourists all over the world come to Singapore where â€Å"30- 35% of the total turnout come from the region, mainly from Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Hong Kong and also as far off as the United States. †   This year’s Zoukout has guests like David Guetta and Tiesto, who are known worldwide. . Christmas Light Ups The Christmas light ups are done annually on the stretch of Orchard Road, where many tourists can photograph their memories with wonderful lights on the background. 3. Great Singapore Sale Great Singapore Sale is an annual event with extensive discounts to attract global and Singapore shoppers to buy merchand ises from international brands such as Topshop, Nike, and River Island. Foreign shoppers may need an accommodation to stay when they come to Singapore and shop. Since Rendezvous hotel is located near major shopping district, it is an opportunity for the hotel to attract both leisure and business tourists. They can collaborate with GSS such as private sale for Rendezvous hotel’s patrons or discounted room rates if they purchase $500 with 3 combined receipts during this Sale period. Resources available 1. Transportation; Shuttle Services For easier travel, the Rendezvous Singapore Hotel offers an airport shuttle service for guest use. However, the international airport can be reached within minutes by guests driving their own vehicles and the MRT station nearby offers additional transportation options. Airport Airport is air transportation for international tourist to reach Singapore. With airport, it is 20 minutes away to reach hotel rendezvous which give tourists convenience to reach their accommodation faster. It increases the probability for business tourists to choose Rendezvous as their accommodation since it is not far from airport. The 20 minute distance allows better traffic to enter Hotel rendezvous. As such, it is a resource that Hotel Rendezvous can tap on to further establishes its status as a business tourist’s hotel. 2. Land; Minor expansion of the hotel grounds can be done at the fountain lounge (Ref 1. 4), where more space can be given to the Palong Bar, since its size is small. With the expansion, a dancing floor, with a disco theme can be built for guests to have parties or dinner and dance events in future. We have also found out that with the inclusion of a duty free shop in hotels may earn the hotel more revenue with the fees for rental and commissions. An example will be Royal Plaza on Scotts, where DFS Galleria is located in the hotel premises. Many foreigners love to shop at DFS because their products are much cheaper too. Thus, we recommend that Hotel Rendezvous should hire services from DFS Galleria for the land expansion, to cater to guests who ove shopping, at their convenience. 3. Relationship (Networking); The Cathay Cineplexes The Cathay Cineplexes are just stones throw away from Hotel Rendezvous. Guests at the hotel can go there for shopping paradise and movie galore. The Cathay Building has been a distinct landmark since 1939 when it first opened its doors to avid movie-goers. Now a shopping mall infused with fashion and trends, five storeys house retail and dining indulgences while two floors are dedicated to an eight-hall multiplex cinema, including The Picturehouse – Singapore's first arthouse theatre. Guests will be interested to watch movies there, and with winning movies from the Cannes Film Festival, it is a good place for guests to watch it first hand here in Singapore. Recommendation: The Cathay Cineplexes could collaborate together with Hotel Rendezvous to have priority seats for the guests by showing their hotel keys or vouchers issued from the hotel. There should also be a convenience service for advance booking of tickets which allows guests to get their tickets at the reception of Hotel Rendezvous This will allow them to get their tickets at ease, without having to rush between meetings and leisure. The Cathay will then receive better exposure via putting up advertisements such as pamphlets in the hotel to gain reputation among the travellers. Also, collaboration may bring higher revenue since the priority seats is an incentive for them to watch movie in The Cathay. Guests might even recommend the movie theatre to their colleagues who might come to Singapore in future. The Cathay could also provide Hotel Rendezvous complimentary movie passes to be given away to guests. When the guests visit The Cathay Building for the movie, there may be higher chances of them visiting the retail outlets as well. Therefore, it will increase revenue and in turn, they can increase the monthly rental of the shops. 4. Labour (Human Resources); When guests enter the hotel, the first people they are greeted by are the staffs at the hotel lobby. Porters/Bellmen are those who meet and greet customers upon their arrival. Hotel Rendezvous have about 4 porters and security officers on duty on a normal business day. Valet parking is also a special service the hotel offers for guests who drive. The porters also collect and deliver luggage to guests’ hotel rooms once they arrive. In Hotel Rendezvous, receptionists are better called as Guest Reception Officer. . Technology; The hotel needs a good room allocation system. We have researched for best technology supplies and one of which we recommend is Pelican E-Hotel Distribution System. This company provides services such as central reservation and also the Global Distribution System (GDS), which connects with over 600,000 travel agencies worldwide. T his will benefit the hotel through preventing confusions over room allocations. Different guests may want particular rooms such as: * Smoking/Non-smoking rooms * High/Low levels * Queen/2 Single Bed Rooms, etc. We have also found a company, First Data ®, which processes all major credit cards. They can also use the Payment Software solution to process debit/ATM cards, checks, stored value/gift cards, even private label cards and line-of-credit applications. Network for Electronic Transfers (NETS), a Singapore-based payment method can also be used by the hotel to provide smooth transactions for guests. 6. Entrepreneurship; Capitalization through opportunities 1. Attractions and entertainment; Museums Singapore Arts Museum, National Museum, Asian Civilizations Museum are located near Rendezvous Hotel. These museums usually have different exhibitions shown at different periods of the year. An example will be Pompeii: Life in a Roman Town 79CE, at the National Museum of Singapore till January 23rd. Istana The Istana is the official residence of the President where he receives and entertains state guests. The entire domain occupies over 100 acres and is located along the busy Orchard Road. The grounds also contain: * Sri Temasek, also built in 1869, for the Colonial Secretary and was the official residence of the Prime Minister * The Annexe * The Istana Villa (1938) * The Lodge (1974) * The Japanese Gun, presented to Lord  Louis Mountbatten  after the Japanese * surrender in 1945 Marsh  Garden (1970) * Lily  ponds * A nine-hole  golf course * A  burial place  of the  Bencoolen  Muslims, who came to Singapore between 1825 and 1828, located on the southern slopes of the grounds close to the Orchard Road entrance The main purpose of guests to visit Istana is to see the architecture, the facilities, which is only unique to Singapore 2. Destinations; Peranak an Museum The museum explores the culture of Peranakan communities in the former Straits Settlements of Singapore, Malacca and Penang and their links with other communities in Southeast Asia (SEA). It is a boutique museum with one of the finest and most comprehensive collections of Peranakan artefacts in the world. Three floors of permanent galleries illustrate important rituals, practices and the material culture of the Peranakans, as well as how the unique fusion culture is viewed today. The Peranakan Museum provides an enjoyable and educational experience for all, with intricate displays innovatively presented in ten galleries, children’s interactive and special merchandising in two shops. Two temporary exhibition galleries will present a programme of special exhibitions throughout the year. The Peranakan museum is a museum under the Asian Civilisations Museum. Recommendation: Due to the popularity of Mediacorp drama Little Nyonya, the museum may attract Chinese-indo to appreciate the historical artefacts from this museum. In addition, non-Nyonya tourists who want to experience Nyonya culture, they may want to visit this attraction. As such, the hotel may collaborate with the museum with promotional activities like 15% discount off the museum ticket price with any 2 night stay in the hotel. Also, Hotel Rendezvous may collaborate with Singapore Tourism Board (STB) to showcase their promotions and activities regarding Peranakan Museum through STB website. With STB a reliable source for travellers, not only the collaboration will expose Hotel Rendezvous to leisure travellers, and also gain higher reputation among business travellers. For STB, this collaboration will fulfil their mission: We develop and champion tourism, so as to build the sector into a key driver of economic growth for Singapore by the increase in popularity of Hotel Rendezvous and the need to experience Peranakan culture. The Battle Box The Battle Box provides tours to tourists and also local residents of Singapore. For a price of S$5 for children and S$8 for adults, visitors can attend a guided tour of the location. It is the latest military operations complex in Singapore and was the hub of the Malaya Command Head quarters during World War II. They use the specially arranged audio and video effect, high quality animatronics and crafted figurines; they bring back February 15th 1942 to guests, when Singapore fell to the Japanese. So, this destination allows guests of Hotel Rendezvous to get to know the history of Singapore better while they are here. Killing two birds with one stone, they get to do work and know Singapore. In-hotel Resources Meeting rooms and Events Venues * Six functions rooms which can accommodate from 10 to 240 people and a Telepresence Suite * A total  880 square metres of banquet space * A superb selection of food ; beverage packages * The latest in audio visual ; web technology * Special accommodation rates Technical Equipment The latest in audio visual ; web technology is conveniently available upon request. We will be pleased to discuss with you any special presentation requirements you may have, whatever your requests, we will help make your event a success. Value Promise (Fig 1. 1) This service is available free of charge. The hotel promises value to their customers and thus, more of them will go back to the hotel more than once. Business Benefits (Fig 1. 2) This service costs less than a full breakfast meal; $29. 50 Lowest Price Guarantee (Fig 1. 3) Customers are assured that they get the lowest rate they can find in the nearest vicinity. They will even get claims if they find a lower room rate somewhere else with the equivalent facilities/services. Conclusion The top three resources that are significant to the success is labour, technology and travel agencies. Firstly, labour is important in the business. Workers like the receptionist might be the first person the customers will meet when they reach the hotel. If the workers do not treat their work seriously, customer might have a bad impression of the hotel. However, if the workers give a pleasant first impression to the customer, customer might visit the hotel again or recommend the hotel to their friends and family. This will increase the hotel revenue. Secondly, having better technology than other hotel will enable customer to enjoy better benefits that they can’t enjoy in other hotel. An example will be, customers will choose a hotel with wireless than a hotel which doesn’t have as wireless enable customer to surf the net easily. Better technology will also mean that the workers can serve the customer better as the waiting time will be shorter. An example will be customer checking-in to the hotel. Customer will than doesn’t have to wait for long queue to check-in to the hotel if the computer system is able to locate the customer room easily. Lastly, travel agencies play an important role in the hotel. If many travel agencies are willing to advertise to the customer the hotel, there will be huge increase of customers coming to the hotel, which result to more revenue. Working with travel agencies will greatly helps the hotel to earn more revenue. However, if no travel agency wants to help the hotel to their customers, hotel would have lesser customer than hotel with travel agencies helps.