Post #574923 by Cammo on Sun, Feb 6, 2011 12:27 PM

Limbo is so right on here its like he's reading my answer, so I'm going to have to post this in like 2 or 3 posts.

Here's the original winner, although Limbo may need an award here too.

"Regarding business travelers, I was just going to add that when I travel for work, I have very little say in the hotel I get anyway. The company travel agent picks them for cost, proximity to a meeting or event or airport, internet, etc. Not sure if anyone cares whether I feel at home, or familiar, or somewhere unique, as long as it's not so bad that I tell the travel agent to put that place on an "exclude" list for the future."

That's right, AQUARJ wins, he's already been contacted and he says he will graciously accept the BLACK OKI Mug of FAME. I would have accepted any answer that involves expense accounts, or simply pointing out that business travelers don't select their hotels, or any one of the little details about hotels and the business of business.

The Answer, Part 1

The answer is simple:

Because the Hanalei is after corporate business people who are on expense accounts. These people have no decision about booking, nor pay for the hotels they stay in, nor pay for the meals they eat there, nor can exhibit any whiff of fun in the receipts they submit at the end of their junkets to the accountant who pays for their trips.

Here are the Booking of a Hotel rules with expense account corporate businessmen;

The corporate business people who stay at the Hanalei DO NOT BOOK THEIR OWN HOTEL. They don’t. Think about that for a second. The travel department at their company books them from a pre-approved list of national chain business hotels. You’re not allowed to book your own trip, because corporate bees only stay at these “Recognized Travel Vendors” hotels; ie. ones that submit regular, correct, monthly billings and a full year end statement to the corporation if asked. These hotels are usually paid 30-60 days after submitting their national group billing invoices, that is from ALL their hotels, not one at a time. This keeps the day to day work down for the accountants, its very reasonable.

A company will usually go with one and only one chain for their events, with backup hotels in cities not represented by the chain. Usually these backup hotels have arrangements with (eg.) Crowne Plaza so the billing isn’t even done by them, but goes out on the one bill to Crowne Plaza. It’s all invisible to the business traveller. The corporation of course usually gets huge discounts, based on their hotel usage, sometimes staying for 1/2 the full price or less, and always getting the best rooms. Corporate dinner rates are usually $10 a plate at the restaurant, for group meals and lunch meetings. That’s pretty affordable to a business.

In fact, I can state it even more simply:

A hotel’s #1 clients aren’t the business people who stay there, but the corporate accountants who pay for it.

Being a “Recognized Travel Vendor” to a corporate travel department is the ultimate goal, the priceless Diamond Eye of Dallmundo to a national-level hotel chain manager. Huge amounts of money are at stake. Sheraton Hotels have had this whole market locked up for decades; they are known as a middle-level not too great hotel for the precise reason that that’s EXACTLY what they want to be known as. Corporate bees stay longer, represent more guests, book conference rooms and giant dinner events and are often reliable for years. That’s who they want to stay at their hotels. That’s their plan. It pays enormously.

To be a corporate vendor you have to represent a national chain that charges the same per room (or really similar) so a business bee can get the best room for the money everywhere they go. The rooms all look the same because they're all priced the same, and the same amount is spent in their decor. The decor is selected from a corporate hotel "Style Book." I'm sorry, but this is just the way it's done and it makes sense. The vendors need to have locations in as many cities as possible, with as many similarly priced/same sized & decorated rooms or else the corporation will switch to another chain that DOES.

All of which means that “themes” are unnecessary, expensive, and literally dangerous to a corporate chain hotel. And because ALL bookings are done from a computer screen which lists only city, room and bed size, and standard corporate rate from a national vendor, any money spent on extra decor is money literally thrown away. It would be nice to have a perfectly maintained 1882 Penny Farthing bike in the front lobby of the Sheraton’s Baltimore location, but it has nothing to do with booking rooms, future bookings, or the business meeting you have to get to the next morning at 7:30am. Also, consider this: every dime spent on the Penny Farthing bike is one less dime they can spend on the free breakfast you get the next morning, and that is what most bleary eyed travelers care about. Or the computer room that needs printing paper. The whole “theme” idea makes them uncompetitive and leaves them open to bad local management decisions and bankruptcy.

Next: Receipts, Fun, and Booze