Feature: Budget Hotels
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it’s urban and contemporary, you pay for what you consume and we don’t charge for wifi internet because it’s practically free. It’s an honest proposition,” says Chadha. One trend that may work in favour of new entrants and mid-market hotels is that, increasingly, corporates are fixing a maximum room rate for specific city destinations. Whether it’s in response to rate recovery or the fact that many hotels no longer offer fixed rates except for very high volume business, it is pushing travellers to shop around. HRS' managing director UK and Ireland,
Jon West, has seen evidence of this with fewer travellers, especially in the white collar sector, opting for hotel chains, preferring instead to see what is the best available option for their money. He also sees independent hotels winning out against budget chains currently as travellers use technology to compare location, price and increasingly consult independent reviews. “Chains give you a consistent product and service so you know what you’re going to get.
But for the same room they will charge £29 one night and £150 another night. Independent hotels, meanwhile, are only as good as their reviews because there is no brand recognition and it is giving them an equal playing field.” West says that one company introduced restaurant reviews as a means of reducing hotel meal spend and believes user reviews will become a primary factor in travellers' buying decisions going forward. It is unclear what impact the new entrants will
have and whether they’ll be able to gain much traction among the business travel community with their budget boutique offering. What is clear, however, is that there does not seem to have been the wholesale down-trade to budget accommodation that many predicted when the recession began to bite.
“There does not seem to have been the wholesale down-trade to budget
accommodation that many predicted when the recession began to bite”
Pictured, clockwise from left: Jurys Inn; Sleeperz breakfast room; Tune Hotels
“Budget hotels is still a small percentage of what we do and has not taken off completely. It is increasing but that is because of the coverage,” says Margaret Bowler, director global hotel relations for Hogg Robinson Group. “Where we have clients that do use them they
are now drilling down to see it is not the cheapest. There is this whole illusion that low- cost equals best price but it’s about being able to analyse, benchmark and make savings.” BSI’s Elswood believes budget properties have
not only grown in terms of presence but also in pertinence to the business traveller. “As the profile of customers and these properties becomes more aligned, more corporates are willing to put these properties in their portfolios because they are fit for purpose,” he says. Turn over for a run-down of who's who in the budget hotel sector.
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The Business T
ravel Magazine
Golf Masters in association with Travelport
Tuesday 30 August 2011
The Oxfordshire Golf, Hotel & Spa, Thame, Oxfordshire
For more information or to book your team/place visit:
www.thebusinesstravelmag.com
68 I THE BUSINESS TRAVEL MAGAZINE 18 I THE BUSINESS TRAVEL MAGAZINE
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