Long Time No See - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
"Hey, Doctor! It's been a while." I love it when parking valets recognize me. That was the good news. The 'it's been a while' was not so good.
News
The Reopening of Las Vegas Casinos During the COVID-10 Pandemic
On March 17, 2020, Nevada's Governor Steve Sisolak ordered the closure of Nevada's non-essential businesses and urged residents to implement social-distancing measures to reduce spreading COVID-19. Governor Sisolak authorized certain businesses, including restaurants, barbershops, hair salons, and most retail businesses, to reopen with limitations beginning May 9, 2020, and Nevada began its emergence from the pandemic shutdown. Nevada's casinos were allowed to reopen on June 4, 2020, with restrictions. While the pandemic is far from over, this article examines some of the differences observed in casinos in the Las Vegas market since reopening and what has been learned thus far.
By Shannon Okada, Managing Director of Gaming with HVS, HVS
Hotel Industry Launches Training Course To Advance Safe Stay Guidelines
To further expand the hotel industry's Safe Stay initiative, the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) today announced COVID-19 Precautions for Hotels, an online course developed in partnership with the American Hotel & Lodging Educational Institute (AHLEI) and created to help hotels train their staffs on the enhanced safety and cleanliness guidelines. The new training course was created in consultation with the AHLA's Safe Stay Advisory Council and represents a united industry approach around the Safe Stay guidelines endorsed by all major U.S. hotel brands, hospitality associations in 50 states and Canada, and thousands of hotel properties across the country committed to ensuring the health and safety of guests and employees while continuing to provide outstanding service.
Ever Hopeful - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
Years ago, I shared a Four Seasons elevator with Robert Duvall. He was reading a script, and I pretended not to notice.
Caesars Announces Universal Mask Policy In All Properties
LAS VEGAS - Caesars Entertainment Corporation (NASDAQ: CZR) ("Caesars", "Caesars Entertainment" or the "Company") today announced that everyone indoors at its properties across the Caesars network will be required to wear masks at all times, except when eating or drinking. The updated mask policy becomes effective on June 24, 2020 at 12 p.m. Pacific Time and applies to all employees, vendors, contractors, guests and passersby in properties. Previously, all employees plus guests at table games were required to wear masks at Caesars properties.
MGM Resorts International Announces Nationwide Mask Policy
LAS VEGAS, - MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) today announced that it will require masks for all guests and visitors inside public spaces at every MGM Resorts property in the United States. The Company previously required all employees to wear masks, while guest and visitor mask requirements were based on local regulations.
Is It Safe To Stay In A Hotel, Cabin Or Rental Home Yet?
After nearly three months of quarantine, millions of Americans are ready to travel -- an overnight trip, a weekend getaway, a summer sojourn. With states reopening, that's now possible, with a caveat. Before coronavirus, few people likely thought twice about staying in a hotel room, rental home or cabin in the woods. But now, we have to factor in the potential for coronavirus exposure. Even if you're OK with the travel risks taking you to your destination -- plane, train or automobile -- what about the risks of the destination spot itself?
Another Summer - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
A wave of heat poured out of the guest's room as he opened the door.
A Dog-Eat-Dog Business - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
Waiting at the local carwash, my eye ran over a sheet of ads along one wall. Among notices for personal injury lawyers, pest control, acupuncturists, and pizzas was a photo of a smiling young man in a white coat carrying a doctor's bag. According to the text, a phone call would bring him to your door at a fee less than an emergency room's. All ads for housecalls deliver this cheerful boast, never mentioning that the average ER visit, as of 2017, cost $1400.
Hotel Management Agreements - Creating a Win Win Relationship
As a wave of uncertainty overtakes consumer sentiment, investors are using this time to pause and reflect on their assets. Some hotel Owners have concluded that there are areas of improvement at their hotels that would help in maintaining the asset's value through these troublous times. One course of action is the review and revision of the contracts or agreements that impact their hotel's operations, and they are wise to do so. Most notably, the Hotel Management Agreement (HMA) is at the top of our clients' reading list.
How Much Coronavirus Risk Is There In Common Travel Activities? We Asked An Expert
Travel in the middle of a global pandemic presents challenges, with each activity carrying its own level of risk for coronavirus.
In hotels and beyond, UV light robots and lamps could help protect against coronavirus
For guests checking into a high-profile California hotel, they might be staying in rooms that have been sanitized in part by an unusual new staff member: a three-foot-tall robot named Kennedy.
Hotels Transformed New York’s Social Life. Now What?
There was a time in the not so far-off past when hotels lived or died by being an out-of-towner's fantasy: the Plaza, the Four Seasons, the St. Regis.
Savvy Travelers Booking 2020 Vacations, Travel Leaders Survey Finds
A Travel Leaders Network survey of nearly 2,700 frequent travelers found that half are starting to make finite plans for their next vacation or have already made plans, while the other half say they are dreaming of when they can travel again. Fifty percent of those surveyed said they plan to take their next vacation in 2020.
OYO launches the 'Scrubbed Clean' program in line with the CDC and AHLA Safe Stay guidelines to combat COVID-19 in North America
OYO Hotels, one of the world's leading hotel chains, has developed the 'Scrubbed Clean' program with a set of recommendations to ensure that all its hotels in the US comply with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines to ensure health and safety for everyone involved. A clean, safe, and hygienic environment for hotel guests and employees is now more important than ever.
Travel Uptick: Airlines, Hotels Hope Holiday Weekend Travel Revival Points To COVID-19 Comeback
For a travel industry looking for a glimmer of hope, the latest holiday-week statistics offer some encouragement, with hotels seeing an uptick in room occupancy rates and airlines filling more seats.
#QuarantineLife with no break in sight? Here's 7 ways to evoke a vacation state of mind
Staying home has become the new norm as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the accompanying restrictions have momentarily put a stop to most nonessential travel. An Expedia® poll1 of 1,500 U.S. residents, conducted between May 4 and 8, 2020, shows 60% of people have already changed or canceled their travel plans and another 70% are worried about outbreaks impacting future trips.
Things Hotel Guests Ask That I Can’t - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
More than once I'm called when a guest suffers a tragic loss such as the death of a child or spouse. Distressed to witness the misery, family members want me to put her to sleep.
Drury Hotels announces new protocols and partnership with Ecolab
Drury Hotels Company is partnering with Ecolab Inc. - a global leader in hygiene and infection prevention solutions for the hospitality industry - to keep its guests and team members safe. In this collaborative effort, Drury will use Ecolab products as part of enhanced cleaning and disinfecting procedures in its more than 150 hotels nationwide.
MGM Resorts Announces Opening Dates For First Las Vegas Properties
LAS VEGAS, MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) ("MGM Resorts") announced its planned June 4 reopening of Bellagio, New York-New York, MGM Grand Las Vegas and The Signature, following the closure earlier this year of all of its U.S. properties amidst the coronavirus crisis. At opening, amenities at all properties will be limited. As demand for the destination builds, additional venues within these resorts will open and other MGM Resorts properties on The Strip will reopen.