SEPTEMBER 21 - 30, 2005
TOP O' THE NEWS
- Travelers access the same Internet sites but buying habits still vary by country
- Era of tailor-made travel has arrived, reports American Express poll
Travelers may access the same travel sites and visit many of the same places, but their buying habits still vary by country. A new PhoCusWright study (Online Travel Shopping and Buying Behavior: Key European Markets) reports that:
- The Internet is the main purchase channel for 80% of U.K. online travelers, but German and French travelers are more likely to use offline methods as well.
- 68% of online travel buyers in Germany use multiple methods for purchasing travel, not just the Internet, compared with 40% in the U.K. This is due to the high volume of online airline tickets purchased directly from U.K. low-cost carriers, whereas more German and French travelers use traditional travel agencies and tour operators.
- Among online travel buyers 20% of the German and 27% of the French purchased travel in person in the past year, compared to 9% in the U.K.
- On average, European online travel buyers search 4.76 Web sites before purchasing leisure travel, but Germans check more sites (5.09) than the other nationalities.
- Nearly half of all online buyers purchased packaged tours through one channel or another in the past year, 70% of them online.
- Reflecting the growth of dynamic packaging, online travel buyers still purchase holiday travel from airlines more often than from any other travel source, although this is slipping as more choose online agencies and tour operator Web sites for longer-stay travel.
For more information contact www.phocuswright.com.
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Emphasizing that last point, a poll by American Express Travel reports that the era of tailor-made travel has arrived. The survey reports that 39% of consumers research price comparisons on the Internet, but then use travel agents to book a custom-tailored vacation based on their preferences. Nearly 75% of the respondents said they booked through a travel agency for reassurance that all arrangements will be taken care of both before travel and when they are overseas. The study also found that British travelers are more concerned about accommodation quality than about the means of getting to their destination, treating air travel as a commodity and preferring to fly from a more convenient local airport even if at a higher fare.
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PEOPLE ON THE MOVE
- Mark Hoare hired as Vice President, Product Management for Hotel Booking Solutions
Mark Hoare has been hired as Vice President, Product Management by Hotel Booking Solutions. With over 25 years of hospitality industry experience, Mr. Hoare was most recently Vice President, Product Management of Pegasus Solutions. He previously held Product Management positions at Hilton International and Disneyland Paris, and earlier served five years with Hotel Information Systems.
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PROPERTY MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS
- Elizabeth Hotels implements Guestline’s centralized RezLynx PMS for 17 hotels
- Torquay Leisure Hotels orders Visual One Systems for four hotels at its resort
- Regis Hotels contracts with HIS for core CIS, epitome PMS/CRS/POS/Web booking
- Solare Hotels & Resorts rolls out MICROS Opera to 17 properties in Japan
- Rotana Hotels upgrading Fidelio v6/Micros 8700 systems to Opera at 40 locations
UK-based Elizabeth Hotels has implemented Guestline’s web based RezLynx for its 17 hotels, on a centralized ASP basis hosted by Guestline at secure facilities in Manchester, UK, with co-location in London. The system includes a Property Management System (PMS), Central Reservation System (CRS) and Head Office Management module. (www.elizabethhotels.co.uk, www.guestline.com)
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UK’s Torquay Leisure Hotels has ordered Visual One Systems for the four hotels at its resort, which include 440 guestrooms and 29 self catering units. Modules to be implemented include Property Management, Sales and Catering, Web Bookings and Spa Management. The resort also includes four swimming pools, 14 Bars, four restaurants and numerous indoor activities plus tennis courts and a croquet lawn. (www.tlh.co.uk, www.v1s.com)
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Regis Hotels has contracted with Hotel Information Systems to install HIS’ core Central Information System (CIS), epitome Property Management System (PMS) epitome Central Reservation Systems (CRS), epitome Point of Sale (POS) and epitome Web Reservations in four of its eleven properties. (www.regishotel.com, www.hotelinfosys.com)
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Tokyo-based Solare Hotels & Resorts has completed the initial phase of its MICROS Opera roll out program to 17 properties, becoming the largest multi-property Opera user in Japan. Solare’s brands include Chisun Inn, Chisun Hotel, Chisun Resort, Chisun Grand and the Solare Collection. It currently includes 25 properties, and plans to exceed 40 by year end.
Rotana Hotels is upgrading its Fidelio v6 PMS and Micros 8700 POS systems to MICROS's Opera Enterprise Solution (OES) at all 40 locations in the Middle East by the end of 2008. The deployment will include OPERA Property Management System (PMS), OPERA Sales & Catering, OPERA Web Services, and the MICROS 3700 and 8700 Hospitality Management System. The contract was closed by Key Information Technologies, MICROS’ distributor in the United Arab Emirates. Rotana’s growth strategy calls for an additional 19 hotel properties by the end of 2008.
(www.solarehotels.com, www.rotana.com, www.micros.com)
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RESERVATIONS
- Settle Inn to offer systems suite from Topaz, Hotel Travel Check, Innfusion and AutoClerk
- Jumeirah launches private label GDS code, terminates Leading Hotels of the World and Utell
- Hilton International, Golden Tulip list properties with Expedia, Hotels.com
- CNG sells placestostay.com to FEXCO
- Priceline.com launches new FlexRez private-label travel distribution platform
- Cendant TDS signs Vagabond Inns and Spain’s Abba Hotels for Voyager CRS
Settle Inn has contracted with Topaz Hotel Service, Hotel Travel Check, Innfusion and AutoClerk to offer a full suite of technology, e-marketing and voice center services to its franchisees. The applications include integrated Property Management, E-marketing, Internet and Central Reservation services. (www.settleinn.com, www.topazhotelservices.com, www.hoteltravelcheck.com, www.innfusion.com, www.autoclerk.com)
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Jumeirah is launching its own private label GDS code for all its hotels from 1 December 2005, terminating its five-year association with Leading Hotels of the World and, for its non-Leading members, with Utell by Pegasus. (www.jumeirah.com)
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Hilton International is listing over 400 of its properties with Expedia's preferred hotel program. As part of the agreement, Hilton International is implementing an OTA-based direct connection between Expedia and its CRS.
Golden Tulip Hospitality has listed its 400+ properties with Expedia.com and Hotels.com in a preferred marketing partnership.
(www.hilton.com, www.goldentuliptop.com, www.expedia.com)
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CNG has sold its hotel booking web site (placestostay.com) and complete leisure division to Irish payment company FEXCO, which has an online travel division featuring hotel content and car hire. FEXCO will take on CNG's 48 staff.
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Priceline.com launched its new FlexRez private-label travel distribution platform for third-party Web site operators. FlexRez is available in two platforms: an XML gateway to make direct calls to the priceline.com network, and a PageBuilder toolkit to create a hotel reservation application that resembles the third party’s own Web site. (www.priceline.com)
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Cendant Travel Distribution Services (TDS) has signed new agreements with Vagabond Inns in the US and Abba Hotels in Spain to provide Voyager Central Reservation System (CRS) and its supporting data management tool EasyAccessPlus RateManager. Abba Hotels is a Spanish chain of urban area hotels and currently has 15 hotels and four projects in development. The Vagabond offers franchise licences for its Vagabond Inn or Vagabond Inn Executive brands. (www.vagabondinns.com, www.spain-hoteles.com/abba-hotels/, www.cendant.com)
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MARKETING / MANAGEMENT
- New .travel Internet domain launched Monday, October 3
- Virtuoso contracts with VRX Worldwide for visual destination content to 331 agencies
- Lodging Interactive launches End2End ROI platform to measure pay-per-click effectiveness
- Ramesys adds dashboard view to MPower data mining and statistical reporting tool
The new .travel Internet domain had a limited launch on Monday, October 3. The limited launch precedes the official launch, which is planned for January 2006.
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Virtuoso has contracted with VRX Worldwide to provide its library of hotel, cruise, and destination content to Virtuoso’s 331 member agencies. (www.virtuoso.com, www.vrxstudios.com)
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Lodging Interactive has launched its End2End ROI reporting platform, which allows clients to measure the effectiveness of their pay-per-click advertising campaigns. Measurements are taken from the initial search engine and keyword, website visits, property telephone calls generated and online bookings. Lodging Interactive also provides confirmation numbers and revenue generated as a result of all pay-per-click bookings. For branded properties, the system will track the search engine and keyword source of website traffic, click throughs to the brand web page and phone calls generated by pay per click placements. (www.lodginginteractive.com)
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Ramesys has added a dashboard view to its MPower data mining and statistical reporting tool, displaying room occupancy/vacancy statistics, room revenue totals and breakdowns of revenue sources by individual property or across a multi-property chain. Comparisons of ADR vs. RevPar, room revenue by month, occupancy by month, and sources of business for reservations, key decision making criteria are also available; drill-down is provided for in-depth review of results. (www.us.ramesys.com)
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REVENUE MANAGEMENT
- Somerston implements EasyRMS at two Express by Holiday Inn sites
- Atahotels installing Optims revenue management in two more hotels
- Uppal’s Orchid Hotel, New Delhi, orders Optims.Hotel RMS
- Starhotels Italy installing Optims Revenue Management in six of its Milan based hotels
Somerston Hotel Group has implemented EasyRMS’ EzRMS Core Module, Ez-QUOTE, Ez-REGION and Ez-COMPETE modules at the 133-room Express by Holiday Inn Bristol North and the 145-room Express by Holiday Inn Edinburgh Waterfront. (www.easyrms.com)
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Italy’s Atahotels is installing Optims revenue management system in two more of its hotels, the Atahotel Villa Pamphili of Rome and the Atahotel Concord in Turin. Three of its hotels in Milan installed Optims in 2004; Atahotels currently operates 19 hotels, resorts and residence properties.
The 84-room Uppal’s Orchid Hotel, a luxury property set in over 10 acres of grounds in New Delhi, has ordered Optims.Hotel RMS. This is Optims’ second Orchid Hotel client; an earlier installation was completed for the Mumbai property.
Starhotels Italy is installing Optims Revenue Management in six of its Milan based hotels as a pilot project. The chain manages 19 hotels in Italian cities, one in Paris and one in New York.
(www.atahotels.it, www.uppalsorchidhotel.com, www.starhotels.com, www.optims.com)
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F&B/POINT OF SALE
- White Spot upgrading to SquirrelOne restaurant management system in 57 locations
- Squirrel Systems achieves validation for Visa Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCIDSS, previously CISP)
- PGA Golf Properties implements hosted MICROS 9700 HMS throughout dining and retail
- Outback chooses mymicros.net Enterprise Solution for business analytics at 1,200+ locations
White Spot is upgrading its existing Squirrel Classic POS system to Squirrel’s next generation SquirrelOne restaurant management system in 57 corporate and franchise locations.
Squirrel Systems has achieved validation for the Visa Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCIDSS) (previously CISP, Visa Cardholder Information Security Program) for its SquirrelOne POS, claiming the first POS in the table and quick service category to receive a “Strong Encryption” designation.
(www.whitespot.ca, www.squirrelsystems.com)
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PGA Golf Properties has implemented the MICROS 9700 Hospitality Management System and the MICROS Workstation 4 (WS4) throughout its enterprise dining and retail operations. The system is hosted centrally at the PGA Headquarters in Palm Beach Gardens FL, and connects to the PGA Village in Port St. Lucie, FL (which includes The PGA Golf Club, The PGA Learning Center, and the PGA Country Club) and to the Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, KY. The 9700 is integrated with applications managing tee time reservations, financial performance and merchandise inventory systems.
Outback Steakhouse Inc. has chosen mymicros.net Enterprise Solution for business analytics for over 1,200 locations including Outback Steakhouse, Carrabba's Italian Grills, Cheeseburger in Paradise, Bonefish Grill, Fleming's Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar, Paul Lee's Chinese Kitchen, Lee Roy Selmon's and Roy's. Mymicros.net will be used to analyze trends, product mix, meal periods, customer preferences and other key performance indicators.
(www.pgavillage.com, www.outbacksteakhouse.com, www.micros.com)
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SPA/GOLF/LEISURE
- TravelHero to spin off GolfHero into separate company
TravelHero announced plans to spin off its GolfHero division into a separate company. GolfHero works with hotel reservations systems to provide one-stop shopping for golf and lodging. (www.golfhero.com)
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GUEST SERVICES
- Wayport announces US introduction of CyberCenter Express public space PC
- Guest-Tek to offer Sigpro VoIP products to its hospitality customer base
- HotSpot International switches infrastructure to Eleven Wireless’ ElevenOS
Wayport announced the US introduction of its CyberCenter Express public space PC, which offers access to the Internet and to various Microsoft applications in hotel lobbies and other public areas. Customers are connected after swiping a prepaid Wayport card or a major credit card. (www.wayport.net)
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Guest-Tek Interactive Entertainment has partnered with Sigpro to offer Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) products, including handsets, gateways and IP private branch exchanges (IP-PBX) to Guest-Tek’s hospitality customer base. Guest-Tek customers will be able to use the OneView technology platform to personalize the communication needs of each guest. (www.guest-tek.com)
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HotSpot International (HSI), which provides high-speed Internet access in the Latin American hospitality industry, has switched its infrastructure to Eleven Wireless’ ElevenOS. (www.hotspotinternational.com, www.elevenwireless.com)
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ENGINEERING
- Energy Eye introduces standalone Wireless Radio Frequency Energy-Management controller for hotel guestrooms
- Mintek listed among Software Magazine’s top 500 global software/services providers
Energy Eye has introduced a standalone Wireless Radio Frequency Energy-Management controller for hotel guestrooms. Energy Eye combines Passive InfraRed (PIR) sensors and wireless technology to control room Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) temperatures while occupants are not in their guestrooms, detected through information from a Passive Infrared Detector and Micro Door Sensor. Pilot installations include the W Hotel Honolulu, the Intrawest Golf Resort in Palm Desert, Calif., and the Sandals Resort in Jamaica. (www.energy-eye.com)
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Mintek Mobile Data Solutions is listed among the top 500 global software and services providers based on 2004 revenues, as compiled by Software Magazine. The Software 500 ranks the world’s largest software and services suppliers targeting medium to large enterprises, and includes both public and private companies. Mintek appears on the list for the first time, and provides a Lodging Asset Management Suite for hospitality building maintenance, and a set of automated applications for the cable industry. (www.mintek.com)
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