A Sad Story - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
The caller was Chinese, and he wanted a medicine. That could mean anything. He gave the name which, through his thick accent, sounded like "desitin," an over-the-counter treatment for diaper rash.
Operations & Strategy
Hotels Tout Cleaning, But Guests Say, ‘My Room Was Dirty’
In June, Charles Kunz stayed at the Westin Atlanta Airport and found "the largest cockroach I've ever seen" on his bed the next morning. The lawyer from Durham, N.C., a Titanium member of Marriott's Bonvoy loyalty program, said the insect "was the size of my pinkie. I live in the South and I'm no stranger to bugs."
OYO Hotels reiterates its commitment to the US; Elevates Kasra Moshkani to lead business as it shows stable signs of recovery
OYO Hotels, one of the world's leading hotel chains, today announced that Kasra Moshkani has been named as its head of business in the United States. Moshkani, who has overseen OYO's Eastern US business as Region Head since October 2019, will lead the US business, with support from Abhinav Sinha, who will focus more on his role as Global COO of OYO Hotels & Homes. Kasra took on this new role starting September 1, 2020.
Rashes are Easy, Part 2 - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
His client had developed redness over her eyelids. Could I come?
Graduate Hotels® Launches Graduate Cares® Program
As Graduate Hotels continues to reopen locations across the country, the company has taken additional steps to ensure the health and safety of its guests and associates through its Graduate Cares® program. Created in partnership with top medical professionals at the Cleveland Clinic and cleaning and disinfection experts from P&G Professional, the away-from-home division of Procter & Gamble, and the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA), Graduate Cares was designed to meet the standards of the industry's most trusted experts and rethinks the end-to-end cleaning and guest interaction procedures.
Rashes are Easy, Part 1 - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
A woman at a Sunset Strip hotel had seen a doctor for an allergic rash, and now she wasn't feeling right. Rashes are easy, and her symptoms were probably medication side-effects, so I expected no problem. That seemed to be the case, and she agreed to stop the medicine.
Googling a Hotel Doctor - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
If you get sick in a local hotel, you might google "hotel doctor" and the city. In Los Angeles my name turns up but only with links to my blog. I don't have a web site. Nor do my long-established competitors.
Survey: Frequent Travelers Cite Priorities For Hotel Stays
A new national survey commissioned by the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) conducted by Morning Consult shows that a number of improvements to health and sanitation protocol at U.S. hotels would have considerable impact on guests' comfort levels staying there, with the top three including face coverings for employees (87% a lot/some impact) and guests (85%), suspending daily housekeeping of rooms (86%), and utilizing technology to reduce direct contact (85%), are the top priorities among frequent travelers to staying in hotels during this pandemic. These priorities align with AHLA's Safe Stay Guest Checklist and CDC recommendations distributed on behalf of the industry.
EPA To Approve American Airlines Use Of Surface Coating To Fight Coronavirus
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is set to announce on Monday it will issue an emergency exemption to the state of Texas permitting it to allow American Airlines to use a new surface coating that kills coronaviruses for up to seven days, sources briefed on the matter said.
More Competition - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
A caller from the Airport Hilton asked how much I charged. This is often the first question I hear. If I answer immediately, the guest is likely to thank me and hang up. So my first response is that phone calls are free and might be all he or she needs. What's the problem?....
Travel Channel Star & Industry Expert Anthony Melchiorri Calls on Congress to Save Hotel Industry
Anthony Melchiorri, CEO of Argeo Hospitality, host of Travel Channel's Hotel Impossible and one of the hospitality industry's top podcast, Anthony Melchiorri Live, appealed to Congress to address the liquidity crisis facing the nation's hotel owners as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Choice Hotels' Midscale And Upper Midscale Brands Outpace Industry In First Half Of 2020
Known for their segment leadership, all of Choice Hotels International, Inc.'s (NYSE: CHH) popular select service midscale and upper midscale brands saw material year-over-year revenue per available room (RevPAR) and average daily rate (ADR) index gains versus local competitors through the second quarter of 2020. The company expects this trend to continue as leisure travel bounces back faster than business travel amidst the pandemic environment, with leisure travel now comprising over 80% of room nights across the Choice Hotels portfolio.
I Have Syphilis - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
Those were the first words from a young flight attendant in a hotel room as soon as we had exchanged greetings.
New York’s M&R Hotel Management, Magnuson Hotels rebrand 285 room New Jersey conference center
M&R Hotel Management, a top US management company with operations across 5 states, has selected Magnuson Hotels, the fast-growing franchise alternative, to rebrand its 285 room Magnuson Grand & Conference Center Somerset-Bridgewater located in New Jersey.
Expert Views (7)
Craig Coughlin, Chief Executive Officer, LUXXE Outsourced Hotel Services
I have always believed that a well organized and vigilant housekeeping department could pass any hygiene test. Detailed training and record-keeping is the key and utilizing technology platforms to record this information is critical.
Soenke Weiss, Founder & Chief Strategy Officer, Optii Solutions Pty Ltd, Optii
The sudden changes and swift momentum triggered by COVID-19 have placed many housekeepers outside of their comfort zone without advance warning. Just like other department heads, they suddenly found themselves having to deal with a situation they were not trained, nor prepared for.
Anemoon Schepel, Senior Lecturer, Hotelschool The Hague
Aside from skills relating to hygiene and perhaps even technology and hygiene, I believe the most important skill during this pandemic for housekeeping, but anyone for that matter, is resilience. To have resilience yourself, but also resilient leadership is vital to keep yourself, your department and your organisation going.
Americans Are Hitting the Roads and Heading to National Parks
Since the beginning of the pandemic, key consumer sentiment surveys have indicated that Americans will hit the road this summer and head to destinations that allow for physical distancing, such as national parks.
A Model for Hotels to Hospitals (H2H ©) During an Unprecedented Era
During the early months of 2020, once it was apparent that the novel coronavirus (COVID19) was a global pandemic, people everywhere started to think of creative solutions to help ease the problems of the virus. One solution was to convert hotels into hospitals (H2H ©) and into housing for healthcare workers. With the virus halting travel, many hotels were left close to vacant. On top of that, many healthcare professionals were worried about traveling back and forth between work and home, at the risk of infecting their household.
By Fred DeMicco, Executive Director (2019-2024), Full Professor in the School of Hotel and Restaurant Management, the W.A. Franke College of Business, Northern Arizona University
I Prefer Vomiting and Diarrhea - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
Two women at the Holiday Inn were ill. The mother suffered low abdominal pain with vomiting and diarrhea. It seemed like the usual stomach flu. I assured her that it wouldn't last long and gave medication.
Airline Passengers Are Finding 'Creative Ways' To Remove Masks, American Pilot Says
American Airlines pilot Dennis Tajer has taken several flights during the coronavirus pandemic, both in the cockpit and as a union official, and has noticed something unsettling lately: passengers removing their masks for more than eating or drinking.
Study: SF Cleaning Ordinance To Cost Hotels $47 Million
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors' Healthy Buildings ordinance will cost San Francisco's 215 hotels $220,000 each adding more than $47 million in annual industry costs, extending hotel closures and extending joblessness for 15,000 employees, according to an independent analysis of the ordinance's cleaning mandates.