Franchisee group Choice Hotels Asia-Pac has rolled out a new long-term pricing model along with a suite of innovative new offers for guests seeking a place of refuge for self-isolation or other reasons in an effort to support members.
Under the umbrella title of ‘Work From Hotel’, the initiatives complement a number of moves made by the Choice Hotels Asia-Pac head office designed to help franchisees navigate the difficult times of the current market environment. These include measures such as suspending a variety of fees including reputation management and guest relations handling fees.
The Choice Hotels Asia-Pac head office is also assisting franchisees by handling reservations and cancellations, pausing quality assurance reviews, suspending brand standards except where government minimums come into question and offering guidance and tips on managing cleanliness protocols, crisis preparation and other preventative measures.
A number of Choice Hotels Asia-Pac franchisee members have opted to offer their rooms as daytime offices for guests to use as isolation areas where they can work in comfort. A variety of packages have been introduced for room use of 3-10 hours, including a takeaway coffee, morning tea and lunch depending on the length of stay. Guests can also access hotel WiFi, unlimited pod coffee, work desk, printing, room service menus and other facilities. Special offers for stays of a week or more have also been rolled out.
Choice Hotels Asia-Pac CEO, Trent Fraser, said the group is doing everything it can to support property owners and franchisees to help mitigate the long-term impact of the current health crisis.
“We appreciate the commitment that our hotel owners have to their staff, guests and communities, and we are taking action to support them with tools and resources to assist with daily operations, to help address issues impacting guests, and ultimately help a return to recovery as we move through this situation.
“Although these are tumultuous times, I’m particularly proud to see franchisees innovating and using their creativity to pivot their operations and experiences – out of these bleak times we are seeing our hoteliers more than ever strive to maintain a personal connection with their guests and communities,” Fraser added.