Travel & Hospitality Award | Africa 2019 | www.thawards.com

FACILITIES
Award-winning guest rooms come in all shapes and sizes,
but they all have one thing in common – a home-awayfrom-home
feel. The comfort of the facilities on offer are
of vital importance; we look for luxurious linens, stylish
bathrooms and a coordinated colour scheme that work
together to create a cohesive sense of relaxation. Additional
touches, such as complimentary toiletries, free wi-fi or tea
and coffee making facilities are always a bonus in making
us feel welcome. We’re always impressed to find hotel
rooms that embrace technology and offer amenities like
tablets or smart thermostat systems, but this does not
always necessarily trump the traditional – four poster beds,
ornate fireplaces or antique furniture can add a touch of
decadence to a hotel stay.
LOCATION
Location is one of the most important factors, but also
one of the most subjective, as the ‘ideal’ is very much
determined by the type of visitor and the type of hotel
itself. However, there are a few factors we take into
consideration when determining the winners of locationbased
awards. The first is convenience; that is, hotels that
are easy to travel to. Many of our winners in this category
are in convenient locations, such as adjacent to airports,
close to beaches or found in the heart of easy-to-navigate
cities. We are always impressed when hotels go the extra
mile to take the hassle out of traveling and offer such
additional services as airport shuttles or car hire services.
However, we’re always excited to come across a hotel
that is, to use a familiar phrase, off-the-beaten-track. A
hotel that can offer something a little different, in terms of
natural surroundings, can make the difference between a
good holiday and an incredible one.
In today’s modern age, a hotel or tour operator cannot
rely on word of mouth to get their message out into the
world. As social media has become a vital part of everyday
life, we like to see companies that go the extra mile to
engage with their guests, both past and future. Attractive
and informative websites and engaging and honest
content are what we look for when judging a company’s
use of marketing; how well they display their services, how
up-to-date their content is, how well they get their brand
message across, and, most importantly, how well their
marketing can tempt us to go and see what they have to
offer for ourselves.
What better way is there to know about an organization
than by getting first hand reviews? Customers are the best
judges of any service out there as they are the ones who
experience them and can assess whether they were up to
the mark or not. Considering reviews from hundreds of
customers gives us a fair idea about the general pros and
cons of any organization and also gives us valuable inputs
for the other criteria as well.
MARKETING
CUSTOMER REVIEWS
Diversity is one important aspect that needs to be taken
into consideration when in the travel and hospitality
industry. It is essential to have staff that has varying diversity
to ensure that the organization can properly connect with
their guests. Diversity is taken into account in terms of
gender, nationality as well as languages spoken among
other factors. Not only do we take the diversity of the staff
into account but even that of the facilities and services
offered; a hotel or tour operator providing a better range
of services is preferred over those that do not.
It is of prime importance that an organization has thorough
industry knowledge. Without knowing the nit-bits of the
in, it is difficult to flourish and provide services which are
a class apart. Before any organization ventures into the
industry, it is essential that they know how the industry
is moving and how they should make changes to their
methodologies in order to remain relevant and also be a
top-performing organization.
DIVERSITY
INDUSTRY
KNOWLEDGE
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