Overbooking in higher-end hotels ?
Mar 17, 2009, 8:28 am
#1
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Overbooking in higher-end hotels ?
I am working on an article on overbooking at luxury hotels.
Nearly all hotels practice some level of over-booking. It's more common at the lower end of the market and at business class hotels that can more easily trade comparable rooms with each other without too severely impacting customers who were expecting specific amenities that will not now be delivered. The higher up the ladder you go the more compensation the hotels will offer in the form of comped rooms, room upgrades, and points.
It is much less common at higher-end hotels. Resort type properties in the US supposedly rarely practice it while European resorts would consider having to 'walk' a customer to be a supreme personal failure on their part - it's simply anathema to their culture. According to general managers at two properties in the Phoenix area, if for some reason they do have to 'walk' a customer one of the two sr managers (gm or assistant gm) will be on hand to talk to the customer personally and will immediately insure that the customer knows that he will be well compensated, usually on the order of 3 for 1 (eg, 3 comped nights or 6 upgraded nights for each night disposed). As one manager stated, "we could be ruining someone's one day of expected vacation before a 4 day conference."
While some situations are beyond their control such as a sewage backup, the majority of overbooking is a willful act on the part of the hotel management to increase their revenue per room. They guarantee you a room but then don't deliver. You likewise guarantee them that you'll stay and if you don't they'll charge you anyway. In the former you may loose out on valuable vacation time in the latter they loose... well, nothing. They actually come out ahead since they will often charge full revenue for the room you didn't stay in but not incur cleaning expenses. Sheryl Kimes, a Professor at Cornell's School of Hotel Administration, stated the hotels also must be fully aware of their ethical obligation to customers who've guaranteed revenue to the hotel and thus been been guaranteed a room by the hotel. Another professor said "That word guarantee means something, it's a promise, and if someone thinks otherwise they should consider another occupation."
I'd be interested in your experiences with overbooking at luxury resorts and hotels. Were you notified ahead of time or not until check-in? Was someone from sr mgmt present to talk to you? Were you offered adequate compensation up front? Did you have to get angry or threaten the staff in order to get adequate compensation? How were you impacted (eg, just needed a nice business place for a night or two so no big deal, or, had planned a romantic getaway with my husband that instead of being in a nice resort was in an embassy suites)?
Thanks,
Nearly all hotels practice some level of over-booking. It's more common at the lower end of the market and at business class hotels that can more easily trade comparable rooms with each other without too severely impacting customers who were expecting specific amenities that will not now be delivered. The higher up the ladder you go the more compensation the hotels will offer in the form of comped rooms, room upgrades, and points.
It is much less common at higher-end hotels. Resort type properties in the US supposedly rarely practice it while European resorts would consider having to 'walk' a customer to be a supreme personal failure on their part - it's simply anathema to their culture. According to general managers at two properties in the Phoenix area, if for some reason they do have to 'walk' a customer one of the two sr managers (gm or assistant gm) will be on hand to talk to the customer personally and will immediately insure that the customer knows that he will be well compensated, usually on the order of 3 for 1 (eg, 3 comped nights or 6 upgraded nights for each night disposed). As one manager stated, "we could be ruining someone's one day of expected vacation before a 4 day conference."
While some situations are beyond their control such as a sewage backup, the majority of overbooking is a willful act on the part of the hotel management to increase their revenue per room. They guarantee you a room but then don't deliver. You likewise guarantee them that you'll stay and if you don't they'll charge you anyway. In the former you may loose out on valuable vacation time in the latter they loose... well, nothing. They actually come out ahead since they will often charge full revenue for the room you didn't stay in but not incur cleaning expenses. Sheryl Kimes, a Professor at Cornell's School of Hotel Administration, stated the hotels also must be fully aware of their ethical obligation to customers who've guaranteed revenue to the hotel and thus been been guaranteed a room by the hotel. Another professor said "That word guarantee means something, it's a promise, and if someone thinks otherwise they should consider another occupation."
I'd be interested in your experiences with overbooking at luxury resorts and hotels. Were you notified ahead of time or not until check-in? Was someone from sr mgmt present to talk to you? Were you offered adequate compensation up front? Did you have to get angry or threaten the staff in order to get adequate compensation? How were you impacted (eg, just needed a nice business place for a night or two so no big deal, or, had planned a romantic getaway with my husband that instead of being in a nice resort was in an embassy suites)?
Thanks,
Last edited by JSFox; Mar 17, 2009 at 8:40 am
Mar 17, 2009, 8:40 am
#2
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Nearly all hotels practice some level of over-booking. It's more common at the lower end of the market and at business class hotels that can more easily trade comparable rooms with each other without too severely impacting customers who were expecting specific amenities that will not now be delivered. The higher up the ladder you go the more compensation the hotels will offer in the form of comped rooms, room upgrades, and points.
It is much less common at higher-end hotels. Resort type properties in the US supposedly rarely practice it while European resorts would consider having to 'walk' a customer to be a supreme personal failure on their part - it's simply anathema to their culture. According to general managers at two properties in the Phoenix area, if for some reason they do have to 'walk' a customer one of the two sr managers (gm or assistant gm) will be on hand to talk to the customer personally and will immediately insure that the customer knows that he will be well compensated, usually on the order of 3 for 1 (eg, 3 comped nights or 6 upgraded nights for each night disposed). As one manager stated, "we could be ruining someone's one day of expected vacation before a 4 day conference."
While some situations are beyond their control such as a sewage backup, the majority of overbooking is a willful act on the part of the hotel management to increase their revenue per room. They guarantee you a room but then don't deliver. You likewise guarantee them that you'll stay and if you don't they'll charge you anyway. In the former you may loose out on valuable vacation time in the latter they loose... well, nothing. They actually come out ahead since they will often charge full revenue for the room you didn't stay in but not incur cleaning expenses. Sheryl Kimes, a Professor at Cornell's School of Hotel Administration, stated the hotels also must be fully aware of their ethical obligation to customers who've guaranteed revenue to the hotel and thus been been guaranteed a room by the hotel. Another professor said "That word guarantee means something, it's a promise, and if someone thinks otherwise they should consider another occupation."
I'd be interested in your experiences with overbooking at luxury resorts and hotels. Were you notified ahead of time or not until check-in? Was someone from sr mgmt present to talk to you? Were you offered adequate compensation up front? Did you have to get angry or threaten the staff in order to get adequate compensation? How were you impacted (eg, just needed a nice business place for a night or two so no big deal, or, had planned a romantic getaway with my husband that instead of being in a nice resort was in an embassy suites)?
It is much less common at higher-end hotels. Resort type properties in the US supposedly rarely practice it while European resorts would consider having to 'walk' a customer to be a supreme personal failure on their part - it's simply anathema to their culture. According to general managers at two properties in the Phoenix area, if for some reason they do have to 'walk' a customer one of the two sr managers (gm or assistant gm) will be on hand to talk to the customer personally and will immediately insure that the customer knows that he will be well compensated, usually on the order of 3 for 1 (eg, 3 comped nights or 6 upgraded nights for each night disposed). As one manager stated, "we could be ruining someone's one day of expected vacation before a 4 day conference."
While some situations are beyond their control such as a sewage backup, the majority of overbooking is a willful act on the part of the hotel management to increase their revenue per room. They guarantee you a room but then don't deliver. You likewise guarantee them that you'll stay and if you don't they'll charge you anyway. In the former you may loose out on valuable vacation time in the latter they loose... well, nothing. They actually come out ahead since they will often charge full revenue for the room you didn't stay in but not incur cleaning expenses. Sheryl Kimes, a Professor at Cornell's School of Hotel Administration, stated the hotels also must be fully aware of their ethical obligation to customers who've guaranteed revenue to the hotel and thus been been guaranteed a room by the hotel. Another professor said "That word guarantee means something, it's a promise, and if someone thinks otherwise they should consider another occupation."
I'd be interested in your experiences with overbooking at luxury resorts and hotels. Were you notified ahead of time or not until check-in? Was someone from sr mgmt present to talk to you? Were you offered adequate compensation up front? Did you have to get angry or threaten the staff in order to get adequate compensation? How were you impacted (eg, just needed a nice business place for a night or two so no big deal, or, had planned a romantic getaway with my husband that instead of being in a nice resort was in an embassy suites)?
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/luxur...ury-hotel.html
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/luxur...d-service.html
Last edited by Kagehitokiri; Jun 8, 2015 at 2:11 pm
Mar 17, 2009, 9:23 am
#3
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Thanks Kagehitokiri. I'd looked at these earlier (should have mentioned that). The details can get even more interesting, especially some of the legal/contractural issues surrounding the word 'guarantee'.
Mar 17, 2009, 10:02 am
#4
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Go look in the Starwood Forum where someone going to Mauritius is getting walked to another hotel b/c the hotel owner's son has taken over the resort for his wedding. They are due to stay in 5 weeks or so.
Mar 17, 2009, 2:48 pm
#6
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On my first visit to the rooftop bar at the Burj al Arab some years ago I got a hotel tour by the Front Desk Manager. The hotel was buzzing and the manager told me that they were overbooked by a few rooms due to bank holiday in the UK.
Mar 17, 2009, 4:30 pm
#7
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Summer 2007 at Cap Estel in Eze Bord Sur Mer. Booked stay about 8 months in advance. All was well until about 1 month before arrival. Received an email stating that the hotel was completely booked for the last night of my stay. The hotel was walking me to the Royal Riviera basically down the street for the last night. They were paying for the room. As I had stayed at the Royal Riviera before I was ok with this arrangement.
Arrival at Cap Estel was great. Manager apologized about the situation and upon asking what happened he did not really want to discuss the reason. No big deal. Stay at Cap Estel was fantastic. A beautiful trip. When checking out I pressed the person at the desk and she finally admitted that it had something to do with the government. Perhaps the entire hotel had been booked for some big function at the last minute. Cap Estel only has about 17 or 18 rooms but I was paying about $1000 night.
All in all it was handled quite professionally and although a slight disruption it was not really a big deal. Actually saved some money since I got the last night free.
Arrival at Cap Estel was great. Manager apologized about the situation and upon asking what happened he did not really want to discuss the reason. No big deal. Stay at Cap Estel was fantastic. A beautiful trip. When checking out I pressed the person at the desk and she finally admitted that it had something to do with the government. Perhaps the entire hotel had been booked for some big function at the last minute. Cap Estel only has about 17 or 18 rooms but I was paying about $1000 night.
All in all it was handled quite professionally and although a slight disruption it was not really a big deal. Actually saved some money since I got the last night free.
Mar 17, 2009, 9:02 pm
#8
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IIRC, when Tom Cruise and party arrived in Berlin to film 'Valkyrie', they took over one entire floor of the Regent Hotel, displacing some previously-booked guests.
Mar 18, 2009, 6:15 am
#9
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RC Georgetown sort of walked me... down the hall, from my confirmed suite to a standard room last summer. Their story was that my TA had called and changed my arrival from Thursday for three nights to Sunday for three nights, so what was I doing here on Thursday? My TA denied it (I believe him), and management had no answer to his pointed question about documentation of the cancellation and rebooking. Very fishy. The cancellation supposedly happened on Wednesday, and by here Thursday evening they'd managed to sell all the suites in the hotel, so nothing for me. Imagine that! It couldn't have had anything to do with the fact that I was on a weekend rate with a comp confirmed-at-booking upgrade to a suite. Nah. They put me in an unimpressive standard room for a night, then moved me to a suite the following day for the rest of the weekend. They apologized but didn't do much more than that. No rate reduction for the downgrade. No comp nights on a future stay. They seemed vaguely put out that I'd shown up at all. 
In this economy, I'd expect a slightly different attitude.
In this economy, I'd expect a slightly different attitude.
Mar 18, 2009, 8:52 am
#10
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I have 2 instances both at the FS New York.
Both as a result of delayed flight arrivals due to weather.
Was due to arrive early evening on both occasions, had advised arrival times (approx) and flight no's at time of booking. Which they obviously did not check.
On both occasions ended up arriving around 11pm at hotel and both times they said they could not hold my room so they released it.
Both occasions they said they were full and could not accomodate me.
On One they tried to transfer me to the waldorf which l refused so they sent me to RC instead. But l had to pay much more than my original booking. It took them nearly 3 month's to re-credit me after much tooing and frowing. On this occasion they virtually did nothing to help me.
The 2nd time last year they tried to send me to the Crowne Plaza TS which l also refused. I told them l was insulted that they thought they could send me to a much lower class hotel. So they sent me to The Peninsula.
This time l refused to budge until they had confirmed there was going to be no extra cost to me.
The pen only had suite's left so l scored ok with this l think. As a sorry gesture they picked up my room service and hotel incidental costs. But l did not find this out until check out. If l had of known berfore l would have really lived it up.
They also transfered me from them to the pen and then to the JFK when l left.
What got my goat up both times is that they tried to send my to lesser quality establishments in the first instance until l refused.
The trick is to tell them what you require, not let them tell you what they will give you.
Be polite and stand your ground. Once they know your not a fool, then things start to happen your way and not theirs.
I never felt on either occasion, that they were trully sorry, that got my goat up more than anything. If l felt they were sincere, then l would have been ok and happy. Both times l just felt like a hinderence to them, and they really had no time to bother.
Both as a result of delayed flight arrivals due to weather.
Was due to arrive early evening on both occasions, had advised arrival times (approx) and flight no's at time of booking. Which they obviously did not check.
On both occasions ended up arriving around 11pm at hotel and both times they said they could not hold my room so they released it.
Both occasions they said they were full and could not accomodate me.
On One they tried to transfer me to the waldorf which l refused so they sent me to RC instead. But l had to pay much more than my original booking. It took them nearly 3 month's to re-credit me after much tooing and frowing. On this occasion they virtually did nothing to help me.
The 2nd time last year they tried to send me to the Crowne Plaza TS which l also refused. I told them l was insulted that they thought they could send me to a much lower class hotel. So they sent me to The Peninsula.
This time l refused to budge until they had confirmed there was going to be no extra cost to me.
The pen only had suite's left so l scored ok with this l think. As a sorry gesture they picked up my room service and hotel incidental costs. But l did not find this out until check out. If l had of known berfore l would have really lived it up.
They also transfered me from them to the pen and then to the JFK when l left.
What got my goat up both times is that they tried to send my to lesser quality establishments in the first instance until l refused.
The trick is to tell them what you require, not let them tell you what they will give you.
Be polite and stand your ground. Once they know your not a fool, then things start to happen your way and not theirs.
I never felt on either occasion, that they were trully sorry, that got my goat up more than anything. If l felt they were sincere, then l would have been ok and happy. Both times l just felt like a hinderence to them, and they really had no time to bother.
Mar 18, 2009, 9:07 am
#11
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From my experience working on agreements, a higher-end hotel's "standard" walk policy should cover at least the following:
If you are walked the hotel should move you to a hotel of similar quality. They should cover your transportation to the new hotel and one night's stay. You should be given the option of returning to the original hotel and they should pay for your transportation back, an upgraded room and an amenity upon your return. They should also cover the cost of several phone calls so that you can notify people of the change. If you decide to stay at the 2nd hotel you should only be charged the rate you were quoted for the original hotel and they should pick-up the difference. In many cases I have seen them cover the entire stay.
If you are walked the hotel should move you to a hotel of similar quality. They should cover your transportation to the new hotel and one night's stay. You should be given the option of returning to the original hotel and they should pay for your transportation back, an upgraded room and an amenity upon your return. They should also cover the cost of several phone calls so that you can notify people of the change. If you decide to stay at the 2nd hotel you should only be charged the rate you were quoted for the original hotel and they should pick-up the difference. In many cases I have seen them cover the entire stay.
Mar 18, 2009, 10:41 am
#12
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Mar 26, 2009, 3:04 pm
#13
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I can only recall 2 cases right now. First was during our first trip to Paris - decades ago. We had booked at the Prince de Galles. When we arrived - complete with full blown jet lag - reception told us: 1) they weren't expecting us until the next day - and the hotel was full; and 2) they had already booked another room for us at a "sister property" near the airport. Now we had jet-lag - but not so much jet lag that we didn't realize the absurdity of what we were told. So my husband made a big scene in the lobby - and - after about a hour of heated argument - we got our room.
Second case isn't exactly on point - but close. We booked the Lodge At Vail. At the time (again - a long time ago) - it had newly renovated rooms - and dumpy older condo type accommodations. We knew this when we booked - and had specific written confirmation that we had a newly renovated room. When we got to the hotel - it said "surprise" - we have "upgraded" you to a much bigger "condo". Now I took one look at the condo - with its shabby furnishings - rotten looking appliances - etc. - and said "no way". I want the room I was promised. The hotel said no. Now we had paid for this room 100% in advance! And my husband and I decided to walk. But not before we got all of our money. After much heated argument - we walked away with about $3k in cash (our prepayment - we wouldn't accept a check) - and took our rental car to a nice new place at Beaver Creek.
FWIW - a travel agent booked both of these trips - but couldn't play a role when we encountered these problems as a result of the times of day when these problems arose. And in neither case was the hotel the slightest bit apologetic. Obviously - we never returned to either of these properties.
BTW - these days I try to avoid problems like this by being as frequent a guest as possible (I don't travel much compared to a lot of people here) at only a few hotel chains (generally Four Seasons for luxury - a Hilton property if there isn't a Four Seasons property). I figure that I am less likely to get scr**** if I'm spending thousands of dollars a year with a particular company and giving it most of my business when I can. Robyn
Second case isn't exactly on point - but close. We booked the Lodge At Vail. At the time (again - a long time ago) - it had newly renovated rooms - and dumpy older condo type accommodations. We knew this when we booked - and had specific written confirmation that we had a newly renovated room. When we got to the hotel - it said "surprise" - we have "upgraded" you to a much bigger "condo". Now I took one look at the condo - with its shabby furnishings - rotten looking appliances - etc. - and said "no way". I want the room I was promised. The hotel said no. Now we had paid for this room 100% in advance! And my husband and I decided to walk. But not before we got all of our money. After much heated argument - we walked away with about $3k in cash (our prepayment - we wouldn't accept a check) - and took our rental car to a nice new place at Beaver Creek.
FWIW - a travel agent booked both of these trips - but couldn't play a role when we encountered these problems as a result of the times of day when these problems arose. And in neither case was the hotel the slightest bit apologetic. Obviously - we never returned to either of these properties.
BTW - these days I try to avoid problems like this by being as frequent a guest as possible (I don't travel much compared to a lot of people here) at only a few hotel chains (generally Four Seasons for luxury - a Hilton property if there isn't a Four Seasons property). I figure that I am less likely to get scr**** if I'm spending thousands of dollars a year with a particular company and giving it most of my business when I can. Robyn