Traveling for business may have become quite the status symbol among South African businessmen and -women, but that doesn’t mean they are willing to settle for second best when it comes to their accommodation. If your hotel, guest house or self-catering accommodation venue caters for the business demographic, there are certain aspects of your service offering that need to be on point if you wish to play in the big leagues.
As the travel management company of choice for some of South Africa’s foremost corporate jet-setters, we have plenty of experience in finding suitable lodgings for these high flyers. Here are four things we always look for when booking accommodation for our top-tier clientele:
Early check-ins and late check-outs are a lifesaver if you’re traveling from one time zone to the next. There is nothing worse than disembarking from your flight at the crack of dawn to realise that you can only check in and freshen up at your hotel after 2 pm. Or even worse, being forced to vacate your room by 10:00 when your flight back home only leaves at 5 pm. This is why hotels that offer some flexibility in this regard gain the upper hand.
Most business travelers spend at least an hour or more per day doing work in their hotel rooms. This is when they catch up with correspondence and communicate with their teams back home. As such, they need a dependable source of high-speed internet to allow them to use their time effectively. In short - fast, accessible Wi-Fi is non-negotiable.
Business travelers have crazy schedules - they often spend up to 9 hours either commuting or engaged in active meetings. These folks get hungry and they need the energy to keep them going. This is why we normally recommend hotels that had a good, solid breakfast included in their rate. Ideally, there should be a variety of options available to suit travelers with different dietary needs (e.g. gluten-free, vegan, carb-free, etc.).
No matter how important the executive, a company’s travel policy always dictates that overheads should be kept to a minimum. As such, we prefer to make bookings with accommodation providers who offer the possibility of free room upgrades to corporate travelers. It often makes the world of difference to the comfort of their stay and paves the way for future business to boot. It’s a win-win for all parties involved.
Ticking these four boxes will go a long way to making your accommodation venue attractive to corporate travelers. Check the blog in coming weeks and months for more expert advice on appealing to the working traveler demographic. In the meantime, contact our team of dedicated corporate travel planners if you would like to learn more about our services.
