Travelers find exceptional hotels in Latin America

Latin Trade, June, 2004

Travelers can choose from many quality hotels throughout Latin America, but will likely return again and again to those they feel offer an exceptionally good stay.

Although the definition of an exceptionally good hotel stay varies from traveler to traveler, there are generally a few standards most travelers agree on, according to Langley Steinert, chairman and founder of TripAdvisor, Inc.

TripAdvisor provides a comprehensive travel search engine that helps consumers research their business and leisure travel plans via the Internet. The company's website TripAdvisor.com, which was awarded Forbes Best of the Web, also post thousands of hotel reviews for properties worldwide that are either written by former guests or by professional reviewers.

"Service is clearly the most important to the majority of travelers," said Steinert. "A caring staff makes the difference to most hotel guests who often comment on such things as good maid service or a helpful concierge."

Room quality comes next in importance, with travelers giving hotels high marks for comfortable beds, nice views and large, luxurious bathrooms, Steinert maintains. Good restaurants and attractive outdoor facilities, such as pools, are also frequently mentioned.

"Whether a hotel is exceptional or not to travelers is really about whether it exceeds their expectations," he added. Three qualities distinguish Radisson hotels in Latin America, according to Michael Turner, president of Radisson Hotels & Resorts, Latin America: Radisson's YES, I CAN staff training program, the company's STAY YOUR OWN WAY program, and its excellent distribution throughout Latin America. Two new hotels were added in the region in 2004, the Hotel Radisson Decapolis in Panama City, and the Radisson Ciudad Empresarial.

Radisson's YES I CAN training program aims to provide all staff with the power to surpass the expectations of guests in an efficient and effective way.

"Radisson is very proud of the quality of service of its employees, who make a difference within the hotel industry. The YES I CAN program is constantly offered to all staff, so every employee who joins the hotel gets this training before coming into contact with our guests," Turner said.

Radisson's worldwide STAY YOUR OWN WAY offer personalizes guests' experiences by granting them the freedom to enjoy the hotels with services tailored to their needs.

To accommodate the needs of executives who travel throughout Latin America Radisson currently has 10 award-winning hotels located in El Salvador, Guatemala City, San Jose, Panama City, Bogota, Quito, Sao Paulo, Montevideo and Santiago. New Radisson hotels will soon be added in Cali, Colombia, Lima, Peru, and Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Exceptional hotels strike the perfect balance between their quality product and service elements, according to Jeff Karlson, regional director of sales and marketing for Hilton International in Latin America. Hilton operates 10 hotels in Latin America, which are located in Buenos Aires, Sao Paulo, Belem, Caracas, Barquismeto; Isla Margarita, Quito; Guayaquil and Cartagena.

"Hilton Hotels in Latin America are from the onset strategically designed to be 'special places' where guests can always expect a more exciting and rewarding experience," Karlson said.

Hilton guests rave most about the personal recognition they receive at the hotels and the unparalleled reward system Hilton provides through Hilton HHonors[R], Karlson added.

"Our staff are trained to create personal ties with guests that go beyond the business relationship," Karlson said. "We understand the need of travelers to feel a sense of belonging and personal attachment as they travel around the globe."

The Hilton HHonors program is unique in allowing travelers to earn both hotel points and airline miles at more than 2,500 hotels worldwide.

"It is one of the few programs which does not make travelers choose between earning miles and points," Karlson added.

Hilton International recently outlined plans for a unique five star resort development scheduled for completion in early 2006, which is to be situated at the heart of the Amazon Rain Forest in Brazil.

Guests of the Hilton Sao Paulo Morumbi in Brazil particularly appreciate the luxury hotel's friendly and helpful staff that maintains its professionalism without seeming mechanical, according to Luis Perillo, resident manager.

"The feedback that we have received from guests in the extensive surveys we have taken showed that they place a premium on the service of our staff because they are friendly and helpful, but still very professional," Perillo said. "This is extremely important to us because we encourage staff to be themselves without a lot of restrictions in the belief that they will make guests comfortable if they are happy and proud to work at the hotel."

The 485-room, elegantly appointed hotel, which is owned and managed by Hilton, was the first of the group's hotels in Latin America to offer futuristic guest rooms that provide changes in ambiance and decor to facilitate sleep, work and relaxation.