And guess what?

Through all my travel experience, lately, what I have drawn is that hotels aren’t really focusing on catering to millennials.

Last year, when I was in Vientiane, Laos, my hotel didn’t have a stable internet connection. And working with the laggy internet was frustrating.

I didn’t take much time to check out from that hotel.

This isn’t just me. I am sure hundreds and thousands of other millennials would agree with me.

So, hey hoteliers, if you’re reading this, I am here to discuss ‘how you can turn your hotel millennial-centric’.

Trust me, we millennials have quirks and expect our hotel experience to be a little different than others.

If you have been struggling to cater to us, then you’re in luck as I am going to list some of the prominent tips to offer millennials a great experience.

What Do Millennial Hotel Guests Want?

In most common situations, millennials follow a busy and cluttered schedule in their regular life where they do not get to spend quality time with family, friends, or themselves.

The reason they go on a vacation is not just the craze to explore the world but to spend some days without work stress, doing fun activities, and relaxing.

Fun fact: According to a survey result, 83 percent of millennials somewhat or strongly agreed with the statement “I’m all about taking a nap on the beach, spa treatments, and all-day relaxation”

This means comfort is the basic key to targeting millennial guests as they long for a vacation that comes with every service and minimum effort.

Explore more about the travel trends of millennials

Ways to Attract Millennials to Your Hotel

To cater to them, the hospitality industry needs to keep a checklist of what millennials are looking for in hotels while traveling.

For making it convenient, I am sharing with you all the contemporary ways to attract millennials to your hotel. These are easy to be followed at any hotel and can make a massive difference in driving booking from this group of travelers.

1. An amiable ambiance

People today are sensitive to how they are treated at any place. Especially on vacation, they need everything to be positive, and the people around them to be welcoming.

So your hotel, its staff, and overall ambiance should set up a friendly tone. Giving a kickstart with unnecessary professional attitudes can make your millennial friend feel aloof and uncomfortable.

Therefore, it is important to train your hotel staff in a way that your guests feel light and cheerful while interacting with them.

Moreover, the basic tone of your hotel should feel comforting; this includes the building, its colors, and the vibe of the whole space.

Millennials might not spot the particular thing which is wrong but they will just not feel excited if things are in any way dull or lousy.

2. Value for money

Millennials earn, save, and spend their money with care. These people are much more experienced in handling finance and judging services by value.

Therefore, it is a compulsion to give justice to what they pay.

They can live with less adventure but not with fewer facilities. So if they have booked your hotel, then they must have inquired or seen reviews to make sure that your property offers all the necessary amenities at a reasonable price. And it becomes your job to ensure they get it all; be it travel conveyance, good food, comfortable rooms, or quick service.

3. Mobile tech-first

Nobody likes to carry around various documents, papers, or even money nowadays, especially when they are going on a vacay. And millennials are the generation of people that have seen the revolution in mobile technology from the very start.

They are up to date with technology and prefer things to get done with a few clicks. Hence your hotel must become tech-first to give a green signal to millennials. 

Let’s see how.

Millennials travel with planning, the priority being where they will stay. To finalize this, they will always surf the internet. 

Now, if you have not made a website or listed your hotel on Google My Business (GMB) and OTA platforms, they can never reach you.

If they need to call the frontdesk for every small thing rather than just getting access to everything digitally, that will also be a buzzkill.

If they can’t make cashless payments, that will be a killjoy.

It means technology is a major factor through which hotels can keep up with millennials.

4. Transparent hotel policies

Transparency is the key to your hotel’s success. If you are not honest about your policies from the very start then you can lose your millennial audience in no time.

Because these are the people who get agitated the most in such situations where hotels do not mention their policies clearly or only mention when something goes wrong. This is a big disappointment!

Let’s look at this with an example:

Samay has to travel with his pet. He surfed through many booking platforms using a specific keyword – “pet-friendly hotel” and got one property claiming they welcome pets wholeheartedly. So, he made the pre-paid booking. 

However, at the time of check-in, he was told to pay additional charges for his pet. 

See, the reason for his dismay was not that he had to pay extra charges for the pet. But the hotel has showcased only half information about its policy. They have displayed their pet-friendly services but not the charges they cost.

So, even after providing an additional service, hotels can lose their integrity if their policies are not clearly mentioned and taken care of.

5. Indigenous frills

Millennials are always longing to mingle with activities, food, clothing, and even the slang language of the place they are visiting. They desire to enjoy a 360-degree tour of the place and its cultural roots. (Xanax)

To put a fair impression on them, turn your hotel into a flavor of the place they are visiting; in terms of infrastructure, services, food, and overall hospitality. 

For instance, you can welcome them with a snack your place is famous for. In addition, have proximity to the local beauty such as markets, popular monuments, and restaurants having indigenous cuisines.

Millennials love to breathe in the new air because this is why they are visiting the new place – to explore its unique features.

6. Spaces to socialize

There is one thing that most millennials are good at, and that is ‘building real-life networks’.

Even if they are traveling alone, they will find a companion just like themselves and hit it off. Therefore it is only considerate to provide them such spaces where they can socialize and meet new people.

To fulfill this you can set up an in-house restaurant or a small gym area. You can also host some interesting activities or events, where they can socialize and play something together.

Apart from this, utilizing the roof is important for such spaces because a roof can attract a lot of people without much effort. Be it a rooftop bar, a clean pool, or a gaming area.

7. Coworking space

As I mentioned at the start, with changing times and technology, millennials nowadays prefer to work remotely in the comfort of their homes. And while doing this, they can easily plan and go on workations; for they have the leverage of working and vacationing together.

The only terms required here are a good network and workspace. If your hotel provides them with these two things then millennials are all yours.

Though it is comfortable for them to work from their room, they want to go out too. They don’t want to feel like they are at home.

Here comes the need of building a dedicated coworking space in your hotel and set up a required ambiance for working people, and bleisure travelers, who have to take client meetings, to help them crack their deals.

8. Blend of aesthetic and modern

Millennials have become modern in this digital era, yet they seek aesthetic beauty while on a vacation. 

To complement this requirement, your hotel, along with modern tools and technologies, should have an aesthetic beauty attached to it.

Though your hotel building can play a big role in setting up the aesthetic score, there has to be beauty otherwise; the furniture, lighting, artsy decor, and most importantly greenery - trees, and flowers.

These small things can help set a bright mood as most millennials travel from cities to vacation spots and are always up for a green breeze.

9. Personalization

In the hospitality industry, the power of personalization can never be neglected and the same is true with millennials.

When you offer even the tiniest personalized service, they feel like they are in charge of choosing things on their vacation and they like this idea.

Attract them in with this power of control.

You can maybe ask them their food preferences when they book your hotel and give them a welcome meal, help them get trusted conveyance for traveling around, and if they make a special request, do consider it.

10. An extra dose of comfort

Millennials are working all the time whether it is to earn or to run domestic chores therefore, it is reasonable to long for more comfort.

To cater to this, you can provide them with a few services to bring them a feeling of relaxation; a spa service, hot water bath, massage services, an outdoor pool, or whatever best suits your hotel.

Also if you are offering complimentary meals then set the time limits a bit open. I have seen hotels keeping the breakfast only till 7 AM and after that, you need to buy it. This can break the comfort zone of your guests who aren’t morning people and wake up at 9 or 10 AM – which is most of the millennials on trips or vacations.

Also, keep these services free or at discounts, or you can maybe give them a coupon when they book you. It will enhance your image for your millennial guest.

The post How to Turn Your Hotel Millennial-Centric? [10 Effective Ways] appeared first on eZee Absolute.

“If we were meant to stay in one place, we’d have roots instead of feet” – Millennials.

We live in an era where the virtual world is more real, likes and reviews are more appreciated than word-of-mouth publicity, social media engagement makes more sense than gossip over tea; likewise, millennials are one of the biggest attractions for the hospitality industry. 

Talking about the recent events taking place in the world tourism industry; millennial travel trends have significantly taken over the market with a notable hype. Thus, giving way to endless opportunities for the travel and hospitality industries.

Who are millennial travellers?

Before diving into the millennial travel trends, let’s first understand who millennials are.

Millennials or Generation Y (Gen Y) are people born between 1980-1999. They are tech-savvy, well connected with the world, independent and not afraid to try new things or go to lesser-known places. 

Gen Y is no longer limited to create fashion trends or travel to exotic destinations. Rather, they seek a purpose and meaning behind all the places they visit; explore their culture and tend to interact with new people.

Millennials enjoy life to the fullest being workaholics, crazy shopaholics, and seasoned party-goers. They travel for adventure and to earn money. They often work with employers who give them the freedom to travel and pay for the same.

All the more, we see so many examples of people leaving regular 9 to 6 jobs and becoming full-time travelers or travel bloggers. 

How millennials are changing the hotel industry?

Millennials are using technology to make savvy travel-buying decisions that largely depend on their experience, cost and the type of stay hoteliers offer.

On average, Gen Y takes 30-35 days of vacation each year with an increasing trend in their annual travel spend as compared to Gen-X (born between 1946 and 1964) who tend to be more conservative on budget.

It’s observed, that the millennial generation matured much quicker than their ancestors in this area; realizing that it is better to travel now and save money later rather than doing it vice versa.

Earning handsomely, they wish to travel more as well as explore tourist destinations. And, look forward to places filled with exciting experiences, offering them a variety of new dishes and hidden adventures that add on with them.

So, for hoteliers, it’s time to focus and adapt to the millennial travel trends; as well as their passionate demands when it comes to booking a stay.

What are the latest millennial travel trends?

From planning to experiences, below we’ve listed out the top millennial travel trends you can easily adopt.

1. Extremely active on Social Media

For millennials, when it comes to planning a tour, their phone is the source of planning, experiencing and sharing every detail of the trip. It is one of the most effective and easiest trends through social media engagement. 

If you are in the hospitality industry and you haven’t created a social media profile yet, then it’s time to create one! Live streaming, mandatory check-ins, offers, discounts and much more will definitely make your property trending on the social media platforms.

Let’s take an example of Instagram: Millennials choose a hotel deal that is just picture-perfect. So, on your Instagram profile, showcase images, contact details, offers, discounts, etc to let them choose you over others.

As a hotelier, you have to ensure that guests can book your hotel from anywhere i.e your website, through OTAs, social media and elsewhere. 

Further, you also get a chance to engage with them from your social media page. This gives them a personal touch while they’re planning to book with you. 

Interacting with them at this point will make them remember you when they wish to visit; thus developing an enduring relationship with them.

2. Will enroll in loyalty programs

Gone are the days of proposing the same type of offers for the millennials. Nowadays, these millennials are on a constant lookout for attractive packages, memberships, and deals that can help them to save up a little on budget. 

Give them instant delights such as happy hour discounts, complimentary event tickets, free services and other such experiences which they remember and wish to visit again.

Over 80% of millennials are already enrolled in a loyalty and rewards program.

Offering them the right package at the right price; with an option to easily join a loyalty scheme can make them go a long way. The better loyalty programs you run, the more chances for you to get millennials as your guests.

Also, they could turn to be your guests for a longer time. So, investing to meet their expectations and offering them what they like makes a lot of your business.

3. Want you to be easily reachable

Often, Gen Y is pretty hot-headed and short-tempered with little to no patience when it comes to services. They want you to be available for them whenever they need, whether it’s at the time of booking, checking-in, or something else at your property.

As millennials prefer to go by smartphones, having a mobile app for your hotel can be an advantage. By doing so, you’re ensuring that the millennials not only reach you easily, but they’re also able to book with you in a few clicks; which makes their experience a whole lot better.

On the same lines, get a responsive booking engine integrated into your hotels’ website. Here, millennials can book with you directly. Do give them the BEST DEALS and OFFERS on your website to get more commission-free bookings.

4. Focus more on online reviews

Reviews are realistic and available at the ease of fingertips. Hotels with right reviews don’t have much to worry but if your hotel has negative reviews, then it’s time to take control and change things for the better.

Well, word of mouth recommendations is one thing but online reviews are definitely way different; holding an important place in the millennial travel trends. They often tend to check out your reviews on as many platforms as they can and make sure that they’re booking their stay at a good place.

Specifically, reviews on Google and sites like TripAdvisor are a big hit amongst millennials to get real opinions from travellers who have stayed at the hotel.

82% of millennials think that online travel reviews are important.

So, maintaining a positive online hotel reputation is a must these days. The better, clear and answered your reviews are, the likelier it is for the millennials to choose your hotel.

All the more, for independent hotels since they don’t have the advantage big brands have should respond to both positive and negative reviews proactively. If you don’t, your hotel would be skipped by the millennials.

5. Prefer digital payments

Bulky wallets are a no-no for young travelers. They keep less cash and rely more on credit or debit card payments, net banking, e-wallets, online payments, etc. They are backing away from cash by preferring digital payments for any purchase or booking. 

Further, digital payments offer several advantages like points, cashback, free tickets, etc which makes millennials opt for them more.

84% of millennials use credit or debit cards to make purchases.

This wave of digitization has been unanimously accepted by the millennials as it’s safe, convenient, easy to keep track of with a matter of a single click. Hoteliers like you should be open to accept digital payments, through the right payment gateway integrations at your property; thus welcoming the Gen Y at your doorstep.

6. Explore local culture and cuisines

Gen Y is a true explorer and adventure-driven soul. They’re constantly and extensively searching for content online which lets them know about the location they’re traveling to. 

They’re keen on gathering information on the traditions, local cuisines and want to explore every bit of it. This is all gathered by them through social media as well as YouTube videos that many of the travel bloggers upload.

So, here’s a tip for you: Make them feel closer to your roots once they arrive at your hotel. Post blogs or updates on your website to make them aware that you’re in the know of these practices in your region. Host activities, trips, and anything which makes them come to you.

Also, upload various videos and photos that indicate the cultural values followed in your city, a variety of cuisines that you offer and specialties that you have. Along with this, offer some adventure packages during their booking or collaborate with such vendors to gain higher revenues.

7. Spend less, explore more

While millennials travel more than Gen X, they prefer spending less on each trip and explore as much as they can. They are of the view to take multiple trips rather than just one big trip and spend everything on it. 

Likewise, millennials tend to conserve their resources and are budget-oriented for each of their trips. They may shop for last-minute deals, stay in alternative housing (renting a room, hostels, camping, etc.), and even split road trip fuel expenses with a few friends.

The upcoming trend for SOLO travellers or even couples has moved to staying at a hostel as it is much cheaper when compared to a hotel or any other property type. Popular examples are the hosteller, Zostel, goStops, hostels HUB, Mad Monkey Hostels, etc.

So here, you could sell better packages or create an environment similar to a hostel or even offer better rates than the other property types. Similarly, provide them discounts, last-minute deals, complimentary services, promo codes, and much more.

8. Favor business travel or “BLEISURE” travel

This generation has fewer responsibilities at home namely, kids, spouse and therefore has the opportunity to extend business trips more often than previous generations. 

Such millennials while traveling for a business purpose look forward to “Bleisure” travel (business + leisure). In fact, most millennials are likely to extend their business vacations to gain cultural experience and see more of the world, taking and added advantage of their company expenses.

Hoteliers should focus on catering to Gen Y business needs by providing reliable high-speed internet, charging docks and workspaces throughout their property. Further, many hotels have aesthetically design lobbies for business travellers to work or hold meetings. 

Showcase services on your website, OTAs or social media platforms such as the conference room at your property, business event spaces, and such likes.

9. Choose technology driven hotels

Millennials were born in a world of emerging technology. They love technology and would flock to your hotel if you provide them with the right tech tools. Hotels with a self-check-in kiosk or a mobile guest portal are most likely to be visited by millennials. 

With the influx of new technologies and ease of travel, the consumers or travelers demand to have an offbeat experience. These are the most common factors millennials look out for when they plan a trip.

Further, tech-driven hotels are adopting newer hospitality trends to get engaged with their customers more. Invest in a mobile-friendly website or app as millennials would prefer booking hotels on mobile at the comfort of their fingertip.

Future of millennial travellers

Millennial travelers are projected to have more impact on the travel and tourism industry than any other group. Their emphasis on travel will continually grow through their family and likely by their children adapting the same trends.

Additionally, adventure experiences, urban destinations, and online travel planning are expected to grow and control the world of tourism. Likewise, it will show an increasing trend of travelling to foreign countries, enhance solo travellers as well as expand the use of social media for the travel industry.

Further, these travelers are more or less a source of IoT (internet of things) enabled solutions for the hotel industry. The main reason is, because they want quicker and better services. In regards to this, hotels are now turning towards the internet, bluetooth and AI enabled products as well as services to impart them a better service.

Such constant updates in technology and trends will help you future-proof your hotel business and identify potential new opportunities.

Quickly check how IoT can help you grow your business.

Conclusion

Millennials being a paranoid bunch are active and always open to new ideas. Inspite of their specific choice of travel plans, they invariably want to ensure that their trip goes smoothly. Some of them even swap over-crowded destinations for relatively less familiar ones. 

Start with the basics. Be active on social media – the best way to get connected with Gen Y, maintain your online reputation – the best way to reach them by improving your hotels’ branding, be easily reachable – the most solid way to let millennials book with you.

For you as hoteliers, you need to understand their choices and cater accordingly. All you need to do is adapt yourself to the above mentioned millennial hospitality trends and start taking steps to work on it. 

Do share in the comment section below, if you are focusing on any of the travel trends; apart from the above mentioned ones to drive millennials. 

Goodluck to experience a new bunch of generation at your property!

The post 9 Influencing Millennial Travel Trends for the Hotel Industry appeared first on eZee Absolute.