High-end hotels go the extra mile to please

Mar 30, 05 | 8:52 am

   
To attract and retain clients, local hotels are providing an increasing array of amenities

Some guests like the amenities at top hotels so much that they want to take some of them home with them.
  

As a result, The Four Seasons Resort and Club is selling mattresses like those used in the hotel through its guest shop.

Despite their prices -- from $1,100 to $2,100 -- guests are snapping up the beds, and springing for linens and pillows too.

"Our best amenity is the Four Seasons bed," said Steve Shern, director of rooms at the Irving resort. "We're always receiving guest comments about what a restful night they've had."

It's just one offering from a slate of amenities that include 24-hour technology troubleshooting and room and concierge service. The hotel upgraded its spa last year to include relaxation rooms and other offerings, Shern said.

Guests also can take advantage of the resort's fitness center, tennis courts and award-winning golf course.

Yet to the resort's business-traveler guests -- the bulk of its business -- consistency and excellent, personalized service are more important than gadgets and goodies.

That includes placing room-service menus in the town cars that pick up guests at the airport, so that dinner is ready when they reach the resort. Curbside check-in is another amenity that speeds frequent guests through the process.

"It's the little extra touches that count," Shern said.

Travelers find an amenity-rich array of hotels in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

It's almost a "something for everyone" situation, with each hotel offering a customized blend of products and services to meet the needs of their customers. These products and services come with a price tag for the hotels. But they're also a big part of the effort that upscale hotels make not only to distinguish themselves in a fiercely competitive field, but to hold on to their best customers.

'Unexpected delights'

"You have to give people what they want," said Matt Greene, general manager of Hotel ZaZa in Dallas' Uptown.

Source:  Dallas Business Journal