YOURSAY | Tiong's 23hr hotel stay idea not impossible

YOURSAY | ‘Hoteliers ought to try new revenue-generating ideas.’

Where in the world is there 23hr stay, hotel association asks Tiong

Raja Chulan: From my own experience, most hotels in India, for example, do 24-hour check-in and check-out.

To the many ignorant commenters here, for your information, that does not mean the rooms are not cleaned.

No hotel in the world is always 100 percent occupied all the time and they have an efficient cleaning and check-in system.

Additionally, they also employ a sufficient amount of cleaning manpower for this purpose.

One must also remember that guests don’t check in and check out all at the same time.

Checking in and checking out take place throughout the day at different times.

This is especially relevant and helpful as tourists and guests arrive and depart at all hours.

Tourism, Arts, and Culture Minister Tiong King Sing’s proposal will help boost tourism.

What the minister has proposed is not impossible but instead relates to efficiency in workforce utilisation, management and good service.

I believe the minister has done his homework and those resisting this proposal are, as usual, those who are used to resisting change.

In a world of fast-changing technologies, management and service expectations, we have to change or be changed.

RedMarlin1833: Tiong has a valid point! If you want tourists to spend money in your country, be different. It’s that simple.

I have been a hotelier for the past 41 years in four different countries and it can be done.

As a general manager, I used to encourage my staff to allow early check-ins when rooms were available and allow late check-outs when there were enough rooms for new check-ins.

It worked wonders with most of my hotels having excellent occupancy rates as this was a selling point. However, hoteliers nowadays want the easy way out!

Then go ahead and become like some Western nations - Australia for example, where you can only check in between 2pm and 4pm and by 10am the next day you are “shooed“ out of your room!

Try asking for an extension. No way! Does Australia have repeat business? Very negligible!

Please don’t destroy Malaysian hospitality. The minister is right when he says it can be done.

World Citizen: Why blame everything on Covid-19? Why don’t these hotels look at their deficiencies and try to improve them

Instead, these people are only interested in profits, as the tourism, arts and culture minister said.

Try improving the productivity of your workers by implementing the right policies and providing the right training.

Try cutting costs by not having too many staff and inessential departments. Try plugging the holes wherever there is corruption and leakages.

Try new revenue-generating ideas and have better sales and marketing programmes to woo both individual and corporate customers.

There are so many things hotels can do to increase their bottom line instead of complaining all the time about Covid-19, shortage of workers, higher minimum wage and so on.

Hmmmmm: Many years ago, the check-in time here used to be 2pm and check-outs at noon.

Nowadays, check-in varies from 3pm to 5 pm, while check-outs remain at noon, I think. I have not stayed later than 10am on any of my trips lately.

During my stay, I usually do not want housekeeping to clean my room.

I find the room is not that dirty to require daily cleaning or changing of towels. I would be out most of the day and only come back to sleep at night.

Commenting has been disabled: Tiong did not say hotels must give 23-hour stays.

Neither did Tiong say that the 23-hour stay is a standard rule. He said that a 23-hour stay does happen. This is true.

In many hotels, especially during off-peak season, you can request a 23-hour stay and hotels do allow it on a case-by-case basis.

I used to travel a lot. I have personally experienced this many times. Requests are sometimes entertained and at other times they are rejected.

Common sense tells you that it is indeed possible to clean the room in an hour. The daily routine of room housekeeping takes far less time than that.

Again, Tiong is not saying it is the norm. Neither did he say you must do it. He cited that as an example of what is possible.

I suggest these hoteliers take a course in English comprehension instead of being defensive and combative.

Tiong is trying to propose solutions that work for tourists and that is to the benefit of these hoteliers too.

NIC: @Commenting has been disabled Why can’t the hoteliers communicate as adults cordially?

The hoteliers are so very sure of their facts. There are people out there who can do things you cannot.

They are those who can resolve what you cannot even comprehend or refuse to comprehend!

Any situation provides us with an insight or a lesson if we are willing to open our minds to it.

IndigoLion4899: Very simple solution. Implement 24 hours from the time of check-in.

So if you check in at 10pm, you check out the next day at 10pm.

This way, you spread out the check-in and housekeeping staff throughout the day.

Imagine you check in at 9am after an overnight flight, and you must check out at noon. I have seen hotels in India doing this.

Yes Sir Yes Sir 3 Bags Full: Why so negative about a proposal? Because it has never been done before? Then start it and become the first in the world to do it. This is what leaders do. How to lead when one is so negative?

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