The Irish Staycation Tips You Need – Expert insights from Irish Hotels Federation event

“I don’t think we’ll have an opportunity quite like this again.” That’s what Paul Finegan, general manager of the Ashdown Park Hotel in Country Wexford said at the Irish Hotels Federation event How Are Hotels Adapting for the Irish Staycation Market. View the replay below.

It may not be business as usual at the moment, but there is a huge opportunity to attract new hotel guests. Here are the key takeaways from the expert panel.

Take Advantage of Pre-Booking

Guests are now used to booking everything in advance; whether it’s meals, attractions, or activities. So take advantage of having that system in place.

“If people know they can view availability online and see when they can visit x, y, and z,” says Paul, “that makes an enormous difference to the flow around your hotel. That allows you to use resources to the best of your ability. That’s transformational.”

Meanwhile, Vamoos CEO Alisdair Luxmoore noted: “People’s holiday isn’t just the time they’re with you, it’s all the time they spend thinking about it in advance and looking forward to it.” Communicating with guests in advance and ensuring they are looked after from the moment they book is key to ensuring they have the best staycation possible.

Provide Better Service with Digital 

Adopting digital tools is the best way to solve multiple problems presented by the pandemic while also providing a better guest service which will drive repeat bookings.

For example, with restaurant menus, Vamoos has solved the problem of reprinting for each individual guest, says Luccombe Hall Hotel’s Carol Evans. “With apps like Vamoos, we can put our menus on there, so we’re trying to encourage guests to use digital means rather than the throwaway paper items.”

Read more: How Griffin Group created their contactless guest app in 1 day

And once guests have the app, you can innovate by staying in constant touch through instant messaging. “Whether it’s: ‘I’d like new towels’ or ‘is there availability?’, messaging is so powerful,” says Alisdair, “not just at minimising unnecessary human contact but providing a better guest service.”

To find out how you can offer the best staycation experience with Vamoos, click here for a FREE Vamoos trial.