Do You Know What Guests Really Want?

As Covid concerns increase with colder weather, hotels are looking to reassure guests. A clear way to do that is by preparing the hotel amenities they expect. A recent survey by HotelsByDay has shown that there are 2 important types of amenities: physical and digital. And these days, guests expect hotels to have a healthy mix of both.

The problem then becomes: which hotel amenities should your hotel choose? We have prepared a shortlist of the top amenities that should be considered standard. 
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Physical Hotel Amenities:

• ‍Sanitation stations - 53% expected this hotel amenity. It’s hard to deny that these stations are now one of the most important hotel amenities to offer, as the CDC encourages hand sanitation. 
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• ‍Masks - This hotel amenity is a must based on the fact that many hotels require that both staff and guests wear masks.

  But just as valuable as the physical mask, is the policy’s enforcement. Forbes reported that many hotels require masks, but did little to enforce them. Similar to the airline industry, this resulted in guests feeling unsafe and angry. Make your guests feel safe by providing masks and an environment of compliance.
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• ‍Welcome Safety Packages - 43% of respondents expected this, which can be a blend of the first two. Packages can feature items such as portable hand sanitizers and masks.‍
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• Windows/Balconies – To be clear, we don’t expect you to start knocking extra holes in your walls. But keep this amenity in mind to offer guests access to whenever possible.

  Guests’ expectation of access to outside air is unsurprising. As Dr. Allison Arwady, the Chicago public health commissioner, has stated, “...letting the outdoors in is one … of the more important things for limiting the risk of COVID in buildings."

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Digital Hotel Amenities

• ‍Contactless Check In/Out – 31% of respondents expected to see some form of this in hotels.

  There’s good reason that guests expect it, as contactless services limit physical interactions and help to keep both staff and guests safer.‍
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• Contactless Communication - 32% wanted to be able to contactlessly communicate with staff. This included the ability to text requests and messages to the Front Office. 

If your hotel is willing to offer these top-requested hotel amenities, there is a distinct possibility it will improve your guests’ return rates. Especially since one of HotelsByDay’s most encouraging statistic was that 72% of respondents were confident about staying in a hotel again.