New Hotel Manager Seeks Advice to Better Serve

[jeffersonkim]

Can you send us pictures of what you have?

I just uploaded video walk throughs with my camcorder. The Kid's Suite walk through can be found at:

http://www.comfortinnmaingate.com/kids-suites.shtml

The rest of the "tour" is on the main page of the site through
http://www.comfortinnmaingate.com

I haven't done the breakfast area yet because I need to get up early enough to film it before all the people get in there. . . which would be about 5:30 AM

 

[Albort]

hmm... where our free rooms.

i demand free rooms!

lol, im just playing... Nice videos though... would make me book of i was travelling to Disneyland.

 

[arliepooh68]

really not related to this, but noticed albort's sig templated and you know what, everytime I go I forget to LOOK to find you. . . . we get so involved in having fun, the finding albort game goes out the door.

 

[Tink-n-Pink]

WOW! Those kid suites are inviting to say the least! I'd love to stay and wish we could afford it! We are saving money and staying with family instead!

Question on tickets from your place! Can I have a relative pick them up for me?
Are they the actual ticket or are they a voucher for a ticket? TIA!

 

[jeffersonkim]

They are the actual tickets. And it's okay for your relatives to pick them up. I updated the site to reflect that information.

http://www.comfortinnmaingate.com/disneyland-tickets.shtml

 

[kylieh]

We're looking for a hotel at present for our stay next year. We're from Australia.

What we would like to see

• Reliable room servicing and clean.
• In room Internet, wireless preferred, but if not, please supply the Ethernet! Happy to pay if necessary, but reasonable.
• Compliamentry breakfast is good, but I'm happy to pay for that.
• Comfortable beds.
• Someone at reception/concierge who "cares" and will assist.
• Fridge most important, microwave good.
• Towels. Lots of them.
• And on behalf of most Australians, Kiwis (NZ), and British, a kettle/jug to make a cup of tea on a rolling boil. Or least available to borrow from reception. It would be most appreciated.

Good luck with your endeavours.

 

[keishashadow]

I just uploaded video walk throughs with my camcorder. The Kid's Suite walk through can be found at:

http://www.comfortinnmaingate.com/kids-suites.shtml

The rest of the "tour" is on the main page of the site through
http://www.comfortinnmaingate.com

I haven't done the breakfast area yet because I need to get up early enough to film it before all the people get in there. . . which would be about 5:30 AM

do you have a pic or layout of 2 Q suite that i see on the website (non-bunkbed)?

another suggestion or 2:

*any thought on an "extended stay rate/special" as in more than 7 nights, perhaps with reduced housekeeping (every few days?)

*early booking discount (above & beyond the usual discounts), with a penalty for cancelling ressie?

 

[Tink-n-Pink]

They are the actual tickets. And it's okay for your relatives to pick them up. I updated the site to reflect that information.

http://www.comfortinnmaingate.com/disneyland-tickets.shtml

I'll call with a CC and send them on over!

 

[jeffersonkim]

I'll call with a CC and send them on over!

FYI, we won't be able to take the order via the phone. Whoever picks up the tickets will have to pay for them on the spot.

If by credit card, we'll have to swipe and process the card on the spot. Sorry if this causes inconvenience!

 

[jeffersonkim]

do you have a pic or layout of 2 Q suite that i see on the website (non-bunkbed)?

another suggestion or 2:

*any thought on an "extended stay rate/special" as in more than 7 nights, perhaps with reduced housekeeping (every few days?)

*early booking discount (above & beyond the usual discounts), with a penalty for cancelling ressie?

Our 2 Queen rooms are the same dimensions as the bunk bed, Kid's Suites except without the bunk bed room. So the picture of the Bunk bed Suite is the same as the 2 Q room. Just picture it without the bunk bed room attachment.

The building used to have no bunk bed rooms, but they tore down the wall to the adjacent room and converted to suites.

The double queen rooms are best described as standard rooms rather than suites.

Extended Stay
As for extended stay, that's something that we determine on a case by case basis. If a guest wanted to stay longer than their original reservation, but those extra days would be more per night, we often just keep the same rate in exchange for their longer term stay.

Early Booking Discount
That's an interesting concept, but I don't know if I want to get into the customer complaint issues that might come from there (including credit card chargebacks ).

 

[jeffersonkim]

We're looking for a hotel at present for our stay next year. We're from Australia.

What we would like to see

• Reliable room servicing and clean.
• In room Internet, wireless preferred, but if not, please supply the Ethernet! Happy to pay if necessary, but reasonable.
• Compliamentry breakfast is good, but I'm happy to pay for that.
• Comfortable beds.
• Someone at reception/concierge who "cares" and will assist.
• Fridge most important, microwave good.
• Towels. Lots of them.
• And on behalf of most Australians, Kiwis (NZ), and British, a kettle/jug to make a cup of tea on a rolling boil. Or least available to borrow from reception. It would be most appreciated.

Good luck with your endeavours.

When you say hot tea, do you mean hot tea in the rooms? We have hot tea available at the reception desk and I'm working on getting hot chocolate as well, but I don't know if the rest of the world is as crazy for that stuff as Americans.

 

[Avery's mom]

I cannot speak for all of them, but what I think Kylieh means is an electric kettle that can be used to boil water for tea. Most hotel rooms in those parts of the world have them, since guests prefer tea to coffee.

I know that one of my favorite parts of a British hotel room is the electric kettle. Tea just isn't the same without the rolling boil the kettle provides.

As Kylieh posted, you don't need to have one in every room, just some to loan out upon request.

 

[kylieh]

Yes - As Avery's Mom posted every hotel room in Australia and NZ has an electric kettle. Regardless of whether it's the cheapest room in the world or the fanciest suite you will find an electric kettle, 2 mugs or cups/saucers, tea bags, portions of milk or fresh milk in the fridge, and sugar satchels. Because as any tea drinker knows there is nothing like a good cup of tea after a long day, nothing too fancy, Twinnings English Breakfast, regular English Breakfast is always good or any "black tea" like Liptons. The Brits love it too.

Just being able to have them on request would be fantastic and would win you points with many people from this part of the world.

 

[Judy from Boise]

of course the ghastly "flip" side of this is that they then use instant coffee packets ! A true nightmare for a coffee drinker !

 

[mommy2allyandaveri]

Wow Jeffersonkim, you did such a nice job. I would love to stay in that suite if we weren't already booked in a cheaper suite on Harbor. I will definatley look into your hotel for our next trip in 08. Thank you!

 

[ducklite]

I haven't stayed at your property, but I've spent thousands of nights in hotels, so I'll give you a bakers dozen of what's important to me.

#1--It's got to be IMMACULATE! I don't want crumbs, dust, mold, smells, someone's dirty sock under the bed, or a single stray hair. Bedding needs to be spotless, and beds should be triple sheeted. There should be no burn marks, rips, tears, or stains on any bedding, curtains, or carpet. Rooms should be vaccumed and floors mopped between guests. TV remotes should be sanitized between guests (Clorox Anywhere is great for this!)--with a card placed saying this was done.

#2--Service needs to be extremely polite. Reserved is fine, I am not staying there to make friends with the front desk staff. But all requests should be greeted with a positive attitude, no matter how absurd. And a guest should NEVER be promised something just to make them go away when there is no way it's ever going to happen. I'd rather hear "I'm sorry, but unfortunately we're just unable to accomodate that type of request at this point, I could offer you 'x' as an alternative" then "Sure we can do that" and not have it happen. Empower your employees to make decisions within their scope of knowledge, and train them to seek the knowledge of associates if the guest issue is beyond that scope--but never to make the guest feel "pawned off."

#3--Pillows needs to be hyperallergenic and free of lumps and bumps. If it's dirty or smells, throw it away, there's nothing worse than a pillow that's been through a washer and is misshapen and full of lumps. Don't use real down products, use down alternatives--many people have allergies to feathers and down or the mold that breeds in them. Make sure you've got enough extra pillows that if a guest needs three or four extras you've got them to spare. And never, ever question the guests request for the extra pillows, some people require them for medical reasons. The mattress should be of good quality with a pillow top. If it's out of the bedget to replace all mattresses with pillowtops, then pillowtopped mattress protection pads should be used instead.

#4--Towels should be fluffy and soft. Throw away towels that become threadbare or have holes in them. Nothing takes your establishment down a notch or three more than ratty looking linens and lumpy pillows. There should be at least two more towel sets than the room has occupancy for.

#5--Housekeeping should check all lights and replace all burned out bulbs between guests. They should leave extra toilet tissue and facial tissue. Toiletries should be of a reasonable quality and bars of soap should be larger than a matchbook. Toiletries should be nicely arranged on a small basket or tray, or incorporated into a towel design.

#6--The ability to book a guaranteed room type. If I book a king, I expect to get a king. Not to get to registration and be told "we're out of those" when I had booked your hotel because it offered me a choice of a king bed. If I've booked a king and for some reason you can't accomodate me, walk me to a nicer hotel in the same general area. Same thing for a Kids Suite or any other room type, including smoking preferences.

#7--If you offer a free breakfast, stale donuts and mud for coffee is not acceptable. I'd rather have no free breakfast than be insulted. It's always a nice touch to offer coffee and tea service all day in the lobby. A basket of apples or hard candies is also a nice touch.

#8--Equipping rooms with a coffee maker that's CLEAN and mini-fridge is nice. Adding a microwave is better yet. Having a clean iron and board, as well as a high powered hair dryer in the rooms is a must. If the iron is a rusty old thing, then throw it away and get a new one.

#9--If you are offering rooms as suites, they darn well better be true suites. The bedroom should be seperate from the living room with a solid door that closes and locks. A half wall or doorway does not make a suite. If they aren't true suites, either call them junior suites or come up with another name that doesn't include the use of the word "suite."

#10--A lighted, magnifying makeup mirror mounted on the bathroom wall will make you my hero.

#11--Look at the Hilton Garden Inn concept for a "Guest Pantry" in the lobby area that stocks a variety of snacks including ice cream, microwaveable meals, chips, cookies, sodas, beer, wine, milk and cereal, and a small variety of toiletries and OTC medications. It's perfect when you arrive on a late flight and want a nightcap or bedtime snack, or need something you've forgotten. (It's an additional revenue source as well!)

#12--Install insulators around the doors to connecting rooms. There's nothing more aggravating than hearing the guy in the next room snoring all night.

#13--This might sound nuts, but it's something I really wish all hotels would do. Leave a plunger in each bathroom. We stayed at a B&B that had a nice lucite handled plunger that had a cover (like some bowl brush sets) next to the lav. There's nothing worse than having to wait for engineering to show up in the middle of the night with a plunger, give it one or two shots, and the clog is cleared when it could have been done by the occupant saving everyone time and trouble.

 

[ShawnaF]

Hey Jeffersonkim - first of all, I'm really impressed that you took the time to post and talk to people without slamming a marketing scheme. Impressive!

Okay - as a parent of a new 3 year old, here's what I love and like and really want. Distance is really important to us, we're junkies and naps are still a necessity for us - but we're growing out of that. I really like to see room service and/or kid snacks (healthy) available to purchase onsite at the hotel - can't even tell you how many times we've ordered grocery delivery or paid extra for room service because places on site didn't have things like yogurt and milk.

Comfortable beds that don't kill your back is pretty important, especially when you're there an entire week. Childproofing rooms is really great - and those end tables with sharp corners don't need to be anywhere near a bed when you're trying to attract families. CLEAN - bathrooms without junk and hair in them or on the bathroom floor. People to clean UNDER beds too - you wouldn't believe stuff that kids pull out from under furniture in hotels. Please clean carpets regularly too.

Extra fun type services - would love to see more hotels doing storytime at night with the kids (other than maybe an hour employee time it sure doesn't cost much) or a fun craft to wind down with. Heck, even serving cookies and milk buffet style for the kids would be really neat!

Disney magic, so you're not officially Disney, but maybe some stickers to play with?

It's not all about cost. If you can ensure your shuttles are quick (we don't have to wait 30 minutes to an hour to get to the park), your prices are reasonable, your staff is friendly and helpful, and your hotel is clean and you continually work to update and not let things get into disrepair, you've got a winner!

I'm thinking of planning a trip end of January or first of February. If you can guarantee shuttle waits and cleanliness to me, I'd be willing to check you out.

 

[Eeyore's Wife]

We stayed at Embassy Suites South in February of this year. Every time I walked out the front door I had to walk through a haze of smoke. When I stood in line for the bus, inevitably some yahoo, upwind, would be busy killing himself and sharing the fumes.

If you promise a smoke free environment and a dedicated shuttle, you will get our business.

As for niche, 70 million americans suffer from allergies or asthma. I haven't found any allergy-friendly hotels in the Disneyland area. If you provided down alternatives, no-smoking, and laminate floors (in lieu of carpet, which just can't ever really be fully cleaned between guests) you could build loyal allergy conscious following. You wouldn't need to make all the changes at once, but as you are updating and refurbishing, you could implement the change over time and as each element comes on board, you could advertise it. The no-smoking on property element would require no investment on your part, and would build a very important niche. All children, elderly persons, pregnant women, asthmatics, and individuals with suppressed immune systems should avoid cigarette smoke, so that is a nice sized group.

As to your suites, like most places, you put the kids bed behind the door that closes. I can't enjoy my vacation, with my husband, when the kids could walk in on us at any minute. Put the bunkbeds and a fold out sofa in the main room space, along with the little table and chairs. The kids can sleep in the main space and allow the grown ups a private space to do grown up things .

With the described set up you could still sleep 6, but Mom and Dad could enjoy their vacations with activities that aren't "G" rated, and my teenagers won't be accidentally "grossed out" by the realization that they weren't immaculate conceptions.

You could become a "family friendly" hotel that also offers romance for mom and dad, and isn't that romance how they became moms and dads in the first place?

I also second the idea of having hot water pots available. I am a tea drinker, and the coffee pot just doesn't cut it. I traveled to Disney World in September, and I took my own hot pot with me to make tea. It would have been really nice to use that space in my luggage for something else.


--Eeyore's Wife

 

[PrincessSitka]

Thank you so much for the photos

It is wonderful that you are asking us for our opinions.

The lay out that you showed looks fine. When I go to a room I look how big it is and how clean the room is.

I look at the design of the room, such as the wallpaper, comforter, etc. I like to feel welcome and comfortable.

I like to see a building that is well maintained, both inside and outside.

I like to see a knowledgeable staff that can meet my needs. I would like my tickets, for Disneyland etc, at the front desk. I would like my room to be ready at check in time. I like suggestions from the front desk or to at least speak to me. Saying good morning ect is always nice

 

[Lillybelly'sMate]

I honestly haven't taken time to read all of the posts, but since everyone has a different experience, then I will just share mine...

We stayed there during May of 2007. We like the layout of the room (especially the "extra" room for the kids). The people at the front desk were nice... the rest of the staff not so much. Our rooms were never completely cleaned - my mother had a fit everynight we came back. Hopefully this has been resolved.

My biggest issue personally was the distance. Lillybelly and I have 4 kids (DS 6, DD 4, and twins DS and DD 2). Even with the shuttle service, it took me 1 hour to get the kids on the bus, wait for the designated time to leave, make 3 stops and walk to the hotel. I was in the room long enough to drop the twins off with Grandma and then had to wait again for the next bus to come, then I had 2 more stops... WAY TOO LONG.

Unfortunately, the distance is the biggest factor - it wasn't even in the running for us next year.

DEDICATED SHUTTLE...