Advice for Hotels, Hostels & Campgrounds
in Transitional & Developing Countries:
The Qualities of Great, Cheap Accommodations
Including links to how-to-start-a-hostel resources
Not everyone visiting a transitional or development country wants to stay in five star hotels, believe it or not. Many travelers want to stay in small, cheap/affordable accommodations, such as family-run hotels and bed & breakfasts, hostels and even campsites. These travelers are not only looking for lower costs, they are also looking for a more personal experience. And these international travelers are essential to building up the reputation of an area as a good place to visit: they talk about their experiences to their friends, and broadcast such to the world via the Internet.
If you are in a transitional country or developing country, and want to keep your hotel, hostel or campground fully-booked, you must build up a great reputation among international travelers, who share good and bad stories online and various travel guide companies. Here are the qualities of a great, cheap hotel, hostel or campground anywhere (and note that most of these don't require any expenses but, rather, a particular attitude or practice by staff):
- Guests, particularly women, are safe, as is their property (entrances are always monitored or locked, area is fenced, staff are trained and well-supervised, locked doors to accommodations cannot be opened easily, it would be difficult for a non-guest to roam the grounds or hallways, etc.). Think about safety from a woman traveler's point of view.
- Everything -- bathrooms, floors, linens (upon arrival), windows -- is clean. It doesn't have to be new, but it does have to be clean.
- Friendly staff that smiles, always greets everyone who enters, asks "How may I help you?", etc.
- There is drinkable water in each room, or in the bathroom.
- There is secure parking (a lot that is surrounded by a tall fence, with a gate that is always locked; this is particularly important for motorcycle travelers.
- The rooms are built such that guests cannot hear each other (well insulated walls, beds in different rooms are not up against the same wall, etc.).
- There are free maps and a list of attractions in the rooms or a common area.
- If breakfast is offered, it's a real breakfast, not just bread and coffee.
- There is information on cheap, reliable local excursions/tours.
- There is a list of area services available in each room or the common area (laundry, groceries, pharmacy, toiletries, Internet access, phone cards, restaurants, pubs, etc.).
- Staff can make reliable recommendations regarding accommodations for a traveler's next stop.
- Staff are familiar with area transportation options.
- There is a common area with shelves for travelers to leave magazines and books they are done with; these are neatly kept and offered to guests for free, or for a very minimal charge (such as $.25 a book).
- There is free instant coffee, tea and sugar available, either in individual rooms or in a common area.
- There are at least two rooms that are easily accessible for person's with disabilities (no stairs leading to the rooms, doorways wide enough for a wheel chair, railings in the bathroom, etc.)
- The hotel, hostel or campsite office will charge cell phones for free.
- Visitors are under the impression that your staff wants to be there, not just that they have to be there because it is their job.
- Staff are familiar with what the latest issue of various travel guides say about the area (Lonely Planet, Rough Guide, Rick Steves, Marco Polo, etc.).
- Staff should be familiar with what is on the Web about the area -- or even the hotel, hostel or campground where they work.
- Rules of the hotel, hostel or campground (quiet hours, use of kitchen facilities, etc.) are posted in more than one place, and in more than one language (English, French and German will cover most of your guests; Chinese, Japanese, Arabic and Russian are also good choices). Guests are often happy to help you translate such signs into their native languages.
- Quiet hours are enforced; staff reminds those guests who are not adhering to quiet hours to do so, and staff does not wait for complaints from other guests before doing so.
- Give guests the option of requesting that their room's linens (towels and sheets) not be changed every day, or are changed only by their request, in order to save energy; many green-minded guests view such practices very positively.
In brief, here is what you will need to do to create a viable, sustainable budget accommodation site:
First Steps
- Directors/board members (for youth hostels, these should be unpaid)
- Mission statement
- Goals & objectives (draft)
- Markets/clients
- Proposed services
- Business/hostel identity
Research & Partnerships
- Strategic alliances
- SWOT analysis
- Strategic positioning / competitive research
- Market analysis
- Licenses & zoning (building permits, fire inspection, health inspection)
- Funds required / first year's budget
- Potential donors
Administration
- Operations goals & objectives (including timeline)
- Operations team/management and personnel
- Administrative organization
- Pricing
- Marketing goals & strategies
- Location
- Layout
- Construction needs
- Contingency planning
- Overall financial projections (income and expenditures)
Risk management
- Risk reduction
- Exit strategy
If you have the finances for such, consider joining a tourism business association -- meeting their standards and displaying your membership at your hotel or camp site will help you attract even more visitors. This web site has a long list of such associations.
Also see:
So you want to start a hostel?, a list of excellent advice on how to start a hostel, by Global TESOL College (GTC), based in Canada.
HostelManagement.com is a resource for hostel managers/owners, and people who are interested in information about how to open new backpacker hostels. Lots of terrific, free information.
Starting a hostel, from the Canadian chapter of Hosteling International. Includes a list of the benefits of starting hostel and the standards required of a Hosteling International hostel. Although developed for Canada, the information here is helpful for anyone who wishes to create a hostel that meets the standard of HI membership.
The best hostels in the world have..., an article from Lonely Planet that lists the qualities of the best hostels in the world (and links to some of the hostels that have them!).
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by Jayne Cravens, all rights reserved
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