As far as the public is concerned, housekeeping is the most fascinating aspect of hotel operations. Just search a phrase like “shocking hotel housekeeper secrets” and behold the plethora of results – many of them from major news outlets. People want to know what goes o...

Back in 2017, Cornell University did a study on reviews written by hotel guests. Researchers wanted to locate the pressure points – the key factors that cause guests to write the kind of reviews they do. Not surprisingly, comfort came first. Service also had an importa...

The mystique of a good hotel has always centred on the idea that unexpected things can happen. I’m not talking about rude surprises, like a hot shower that suddenly turns cold, or a $30 surcharge for wireless internet. I’m talking about intrigue. A good hotel is a plac...

Hotels these days have been having a lot of fun tearing down old ideas and putting new ones in their place. There are good reasons for this. The global travel business is surging, competition is fierce, and the rise of Airbnb and the travelling millennial has changed t...

The image of an anchor is useful for a hotelier. It is not to say that we need to stay in one place and not get out of the harbour, but rather to emphasise ways in which we can remain successful when others around us are being buffeted by the waves.

The only way to deli...

When the New Year confetti is swept up and the rubbish is hauled away, we’re left with keeping the promises we made to ourselves. Some succeed and others don’t, but most of us – for at least a week or two – take the opportunity to think about how we could better arrang...