A Postcard From Napier

Remember that blogger I posted about recently?

The one that has been on a short road trip and staying at commercial accommodation along the way. The blog is, Oswald Bastable's Ranting and the writer has been described as a 'Surly Curmudgeon', by those who meet him on a good day and having a poor regard for the human species, in general.

Yeah him!

Well, Mr Bastable has visited Napier and has commented about his views on the accommodation establishment he stayed in.

In fact, he stayed in the same establishment that appeared in our post HERE

I am pleased to report that my visit to Napier itself was entirely satisfactory.

Our hotel, The Tennyson Motor Inn, was comfortable, very well priced ($139 for a premium suite) and located right in the CBD next to a park and in the same block as numerous cafes, bars and eateries. The top shelf of the bar was well-stocked with excellent whiskeys (obviously another fan of Islay was involved here) and there was a good selection of local brews at very good prices. All the staff were most friendly and helpful. Obviously owner-operators.

Phew!

Good on the new owners of the Tennyson that have recently taken over and are obviously injecting their own positive personality into this well established business. Well done!

Popular Blogger Fronts-Up In Prime Time

A bit off topic here, however it was good to see popular blogger Cameron Slater of Whale Oil front up on Close Up last night.

The Worth saga is intriguing to watch. How has Key handled what could be his biggest crisis to date and how can Labour react to a golden opportunity to politically score? It was not a good start for Labour - Ironically "Phil-in" Goff failed to show!

We know that more and more people are turning to blogs and other social media for their news and commentary. What is interesting is that the popular media have been quoting comments from blogs (often without divulging a sources) for some time. Now we see that a blogger has been elevated by the popular media to front up and directly contribute in an open interview in prime-time.

Good to see!

In The Motel Industry Sex Sells!

Clearly, she was extremely excited about staying overnight at a motel

Have you noticed the way cars are being advertised at the moment? The car industry is giving the public what they think they want.

They have endless surveys and focus groups to back up the bland virtues that they are pushing in their adverts. They assume the car purchasing public are focused on fuel economy, safety and the car manufacturer's social commitment.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

OK, I admit there may be a few gray shoe and cardigan wearing school teacher types that simply wish to purchase an efficient metal box on wheels that will take them from A to B. Thankfully we haven't reached the stage yet, where the majority have lost the passion.

What the surveys don't tell car manufacturers is that most people purchase a car as a sex aid. What they REALLY want to know is: how big is the car's engine, how fast will it go and will it out-perform the neighbor's car. And most importantly, will purchasing the car increase their sex appeal?

GM once knew that sex sells and made cars that the public wanted and desired. Sometime many years ago they lost their way and started making cars that they thought the public should have and ended up with this:


Look at the young lady in this photo. She is trying hard to be impressed by this delusional bearded fool, but frankly this ain't going past the first date! No wonder GM are now bankrupt and being run by government advisers.

OK, so what has this got to do with the motel industry?

The point we are (laboriously) trying to make is that often the public do not communicate what they really want. We are too caught up in trying to be politically correct and giving the the answers that we think others want to hear.

Motels should not be temped to become just another soulless, bland utility that is simply a place for the public to rest their head. Staying at a motel should be an attractive proposition. Guests should be made to feel a level of excitement and anticipation before they check-in.

Do the public really care about a motel's environmental credentials and social responsibility commitment? Do they wish to feel awkward about whether to hang up their towel to reuse or to throw it in the bath to be replaced? Do guests see any benefits in using those power saving key cards? Do guests care if the bathroom amenities they pocket have been shipped from Carterton or China?

We say probably not. So what do guests REALLY want?

The answer is simple. They want to stay in an environment with no restrictions where they are relaxed and comfortable enough to have sex.

We are not suggesting that our Kiwi motels follow the perceived seediness of our American no-tell-motel cousins. However as an ideal, motel owners should ask themselves if they are offering the environment, service and the quality to enhance the chances of their guests to have sex.

Those moteliers that truly understand this concept, will ease their way through the recession and have many happy retuning guests.

Another reason NOT to stay in Masterton

The Internet has enabled instant feedback from traveler's experiences and this has to be a good thing. Hey, the market is always correct and the Internet allows the market to speak in real-time loud and far.

I enjoy following the blog, Oswald Bastable's Ranting and I note that the writer has been on a short road trip and staying at commercial accommodation along the way.

Oswald Bastable's blog faithfully records:

"...opinions on matters of the day that, generally, have pissed me off. Being described as a 'Surly Curmudgeon', by those who meet me on a good day. I have a poor regard for the human species, in general."

*Gulp*....so how is the trip going?

Best leave it to "Oswald" to take up the story of his travels so far:

Blacksmiths Motor Inn. The Faulty Towers of Masterton

I can't complain about the service. There wasn't any.

I visited the above website and found this place to look very pleasant- the wife had attended a conference there and agreed that it was very nice, so I booked a night on-line.

We arrived in the snow (yes- actual snow in Masterton) looking forward to a couple of rounds of drinks by the fireside in the bar.

We found a note on the locked door giving a phone number to call- we had committed the sin of not giving an arrival time (nobody asked) The time was 4pm...

After a few minutes a car pulled up and we were admitted. Here we told that the restaurant was closed. The bar never opened despite there being a couple of dozen 'guests' on site and all that was left of the fire was a smell of woodsmoke. The whole 'reception' area was freezing

We were shown to a room (very nice, I must admit) and left to our own devices. In fact, that was the last time we saw a staff member- nobody showed at the front desk come checkout time, so I tossed the keys on the desk and departed never to return. A conversation with another disgruntled customer informed that this shambles had been going on for at least two days.

If you are reading this (of course you are!) I advise you to seek lodging elsewhere.

I have travelled New Zealand extensively over the years, staying at everything from camping ground cabins to five-star hotels. Never before have I had the misfortune to encounter staff with such a pitiful understanding of the 'hospitality' industry. A quick look at the images in the above link will show you that this is physically an up-market establishment- not some seedy backpackers, so the pathetic service is all the more of a puzzle.

Be afraid, be VERY afraid. Where will the writer of Oswald Bastable's Ranting strike next?

UPDATE

The accommodation provider mentioned in this post has responded extremely well and it would appear that the complainant is most satisfied with the result.

Hey, we all have our "off-days" and often we are judged by how we respond to criticism more so than the original indiscretion. In this case we are delighted that the accommodation provider passes with flying colors!

Read the full exchange HERE.

Wotif General Manager Resigns

Many moteliers have had contact with Tania Witheford from their association with wotif.com or attending MANZ Roadshows and conferences.

Tania has announced her resignation as General Manager (Accommodation) New Zealand of the Wotif Group after 6 years service.

Over this time, Tania assisted indroducing moteliers to the virues of selling live on-line inventory. At Motella, we enjoyed our association with Tania and are sad to see her leave.

All the best, Tania, we hope to see you pop-up in the accommodation industry sometime soon!

Tourism Budget Freeze An Opportunity?

In our Predictions for 2009 post we predicted "a nil or at best a token increase in the tourism budget."

We are pleased that we were correct with Bill English leaving out a boost tourism spending in last week's Budget.

Predictable howling ensued from the usual suspects demanding more of others people's money. This was led by the Tourism Industry Association that stated that "the government needs to take the lead in promoting New Zealand tourism overseas."

There is an opportunity for the accomodation and tourism industry to increase efficiencies and start to move away from its dependance on public money. Maybe the lead in promoting New Zealand should come from within the industry itself?

Celebrating the 40th anniversary of Woodstock

Jimi will more than likely not make it to the 40th anniversary of Woodstock

The small, but perfectly formed team at Motella are often the first to scoff at anything left wing or environmental by decree. It was with amusement and mirth that we viewed on TV in the weekend the pictures of the pot-smoking, mystical, socialist hippies at the Green Party gathering to select their "leader without a penis."

Believe it or not, we are not all pro-business, free-market and capitalism. Tucked away in a dark recess, we have a small "Bohemian" side to us. Not to the extent that we would be able to stomach attending a Green Party conference, but just enough to tempt us to consider attending the 40th anniversary of Woodstock in New York state.

August 15 marks the 40th anniversary of the Festival with a celebratory concert at The Bethel Woods Center for the Arts.

The good thing about commercialism and the passage of time is that the celebration of the hippie heritage at Woodstock means that the legend has been digitalised and sanitised into a boxed highlight package. Trampling though an open muddy field with hygiene challenged hippies is thankfully off the menu!

The highlight for motel-philes like us will be the choice of accommodation. For our money you can't go far wrong at booking into the Roxbury Motel, 2258 Country Road 41, Roxbury.

Conveniently located between Woodstock and Bethel, this motel has studios, kitchenettes and suites with psychedelic decor. Some are theme rooms inspired by 1960s and '70s TV shows: George's Spacepad has a red light-up bathtub. Two-night minimum for weekends. RATES $125-$335. Sounds perfect!

The Mod Pod (Room #13) at the Roxbury Motel

Rotorua Accommodation Providers Feel The Pain

It was interesting to read about comments from hoteliers attending the recent New Zealand Hotel Industry Conference in Auckland. These observations are applicable to the motel industry.

There appeared to be a competition amongst hoteliers attending the conference as to who was the hardest hit by the recession and global economic downturn. Funnily enough the concerns reported by the media were from the main areas populated by hotels: Queenstown, Rotorua and Christchurch.

It would appear that Rotorua hoteliers were able to win the unenviable kudos of being worst hit of all.

Interestingly, the downturn in demand in Christchurch and Queenstown was largely attributed to either newly built hotels or soon-to-be-completed hotels coming on board. It is claimed that Rotorua had much bigger issues as it was simply suffering from a lack of visitors.

It was reported that Rotorua's downturn has stemmed from their reliance and the subsequent downturn in the tour markets from Asia. The steady decline in the Asian markets has been occurring well before the recession and swine flu hit. By comparison, Queenstown is more exposed to fully independent travellers.

It was claimed that Rotorua's room rates had always been low compared with other markets. But even in the past few years when others had enjoyed growth, Rotorua had missed out.

Rotorua's market does not have a corporate base and is is exposed to the leisure market. From a hotel industry perspective, it is viewed that Rotorua has a lot more motels than other cities to cater for the domestic market.

Like many other tourism operators, Rotorua appears to be looking towards the Australian market to provide some positive flows. The Rotorua airport is currently being upgraded and with completion expected in July, the city is in talks with the airlines to try to attract a trans-tasman carrier. It is hoped by the end of this year or the start of next that trans-tasman flights will start.

Hotel occupancy rates in Rotorua have fallen from 81 per cent in 2004 to 70 per cent in 2005 and most recently to 66 per cent. Room rates are the same as they were in 2004.

God Save The Queen

God Save The Queen was released by the Sex Pistols in 1977. What was seen at the time as being radical and shocking, now seems sorta naff. 

Crank it up and celebrate HR's birthday!

Setting Tariff Over Events And Peak Periods

Kathie Shepherd has been entrenched in the motel industry for many years.

She was a co-owner/operator of the Aaron Court Motor Inn in Hamilton for 10 years and a past secretary and vice president of the Waikato Motel Association. She has served on the national Motel Association of New Zealand as a board member, a member of the "Tourism Waikato Advisory Board" and The "Waikato University Hospitality Advisory Board.".

Kathie is currently a specialist motel broker for John Griffin Realty and we recommend that if you are contemplating entering into the dynamic world of the motel industry, you give Kathy a call.

In her blog "Motels" Kathie has done a post on motels setting tariff over events and peak periods and we suggest that you give it a read HERE.