Joho the Blog: Hotel Factoids and Fictionoids

February 28, 2003

Hotel Factoids and Fictionoids

Note: Still on the road. Back tomorrow.

The speaker before me at the Hospitality Design conference was Peter Yesowitch (spelling?) who reported on trends in the "hospitality industry" — in quotes because the two words just don't go well together.. His company does research, so he was able to give the attendees actual information, unlikely some of us. Among the items that caught my attention: While 40% of hotel decisions are affected by the Internet, only 8% of reservations are made on line. So, I ask myself, what are we doing in the delta between 40 and 8? We're talking. We're complaining about the hotel that forgot to leave a chocolate on the pillow and were gushing about the one where the staff was nice to our kids.

The hotel the conference was at, the Fairmont in Sonoma, was lapfully luxurious. But I felt bad for it. When I checked in, I asked about broadband in the bedroom. Yes, it had just been installed three days earlier. Oy, I wanted to shout. You should have gone wifi! Wifi is going to rock the hotel boat, so to speak, because not only will it make connectivity available everywhere on the grounds, but we'll flock into groups if given half a chance. "Room service is running slow tonight!" "How much should I tip the shoe shine person?" "Anyone going into town tonight and want a ride?" Hotels are conversations, as Doc might say.

Posted by D. Weinberger at February 28, 2003 07:18 AM

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» Hotels & Temporary Communities from Cluster
Hotel guests constitute potential temporary communities of interest: groups of people dislocated from their familiar context, but with similar needs. [Read More]

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Joho apparently works in the hospitality industry - or at least we attended a hospitality design conference. This this entry, he talks about wireless and the (social) impact it could on the ways hotels are run.... [Read More]

Comments

/rant on

Just how do we shake up business people and make them understand the impact WiFi can have? How funny that the Fairmont (I like the one up on the hill in SF the best) doesn't have it, yet the Radisson here in nowhereville USA does.

I've been in talks recently about putting hotspots in Montpelier and the Capitol building, but feel like I was talking to people who just don't get it. Untethered Internet? But my computer is in my office. Oh laptops....we don't have those.

Still lobbyists, activist groups, lawyers, and all of us who get dragged in to testify could sure stand to see some improvement.

How do we gain the buy-in for technologies like WiFi from the trailing edge, often trailing years behind? An exercise in frustration some days.

/rant off

/kac

Posted by: Ken Camp | February 28, 2003 11:47 AM

exacly my reason for becoming a niche guru in Drurydom. As in the Drury inn. As in free highspeed access. As in Cheap and clean.

Oh welcome thou fount of blessing...

Posted by: Jonathon | February 28, 2003 12:45 PM

Posted by: Teo | October 21, 2004 09:45 AM

i like meat

Posted by: d | June 10, 2005 05:09 PM

I have been in that Hotel (Fairmont in Sonoma) just few days ago :-)