GUEST CYCLE

 PRE-ARRIVAL

 Guest first select a hotel for stay. Choice affected by factors like:

a) Advertisement

b) Recommendation from family and friends

c) Previous experience with the hotel

d) Reputation

e) Location

f) Contractual agreement with the hotel

 After hotel is selected guest contact hotels through

a) Telephone

b) E-mail

c) Fax

Interaction between a guest and a hotel.

 Reservation staff efficiency and competence in handling the request creates a good first impression of the hotel in the mind of the guest.

 Processing the reservation request of the guest.

 For confirmed booking /reservation ask for the credit card guarantee or advanced deposit from the guest (so in case of no shows or cancellation retention can be charged. In case of advance received guest folio is created.)

 Noted any special arrangements to be made like wheelchair and a barrier free room, airport or railway station transfer, or extra bed or crib in the room.

 Feeding all the information in the system from the reservation slip and creating a reservation on the system for the particular date.

 Accordingly block the category of room as per request.

 Sending the confirmation request.

 If any mail has come before the guest arrival message is kept in reservation docket.

 On the day of arrival an expected arrival and departure list is distributed in other departments H.K, I.R.D, Restaurant.

Arrival

On arrival the guest fills in a registration form giving his name, address, passport number, etc. (In some countries he must still turn over the passport for a short time for registration with the local police.) This information the front office staff transfers to an accounting card, called a folio, used to record charges made to the guest during his stay. The ribbon copy of the folio goes to the cashier or credit department, but a carbon is retained by the front desk in a card-index file usually called a room rack.

. Some of the credit indications and other features of the folio's content are the following:

1.     Name and address. 

2.     Reservations. 

3.     Room choice and price. 

4.     Credit cards. 

5.     Luggage. 

6.     Special arrangements. 

7.     Mr. and Mrs. 

8.     Day use. 

STAY

 Guest experiences the facilities and services offered by the guest.

 During stay various activities happens

1) Handling guest account: The creation and maintenance of auditing of guest account by the front desk cashier and the daily auditing of guest accounts by the night auditor.

2) Message Coordination: Receiving message for the guest when they are not in their rooms and ensuring the delivery of the same on their arrival by the information assistant.

3) Key Handling: Accepting the room keys when the guest goes out of the hotel premises and returning the same to the guest when she comes back to the hotel after cross checking.

4) Guest Mail Delivery: Accepting mails of a guest and delivering the same to them. When a guest is not in the room the front desk receives the mail, keeps in the room key rack and delivers it when the guest comes back.

5) Guest paging: Locating the guest in a specific area of the hotel when she/he is not in the room. If a guest is expecting a visitor she may request for this services by filling a form.

6) Safety Deposit Locker: Providing the locker facility to guest to keep their valuables like important documents and jewellery. It is located in the back office of the front desk.

7) Guest room Change: Changing the room of a guest, in case the guest preferences for view, type of room, or location could not be fulfilled at the time of check in due to unavailability of such a room .May be change due to some problem in the room or guest want to upgrade the room ,also during up selling.

8) Handling guest queries and complaints: Responding to guest queries and communicating guest complaints to relevant departments.

9) Information about the hotel: Providing information to guest about the products and services offered by the hotel.

10) Information of the city: Providing information to the guest about the products and services offered by the hotel.

11) Travel Arrangements: Making intra-and intercity travel arrangement for the guest if required.

Departures

Guest settles their account by making payment through cash, credit card, and travel agency vouchers.

1) Preparation & Presentation of guest bills: The front desk cashier prepares a guest bill on the basis of financial transaction between the hotel and the guest and then the bill is presented.

2) Settlement of guest account: A guest account is settled by zeroing the guest folio balance. The folio balance may be credit or debit. If the guest folio balance is in debit then the required amount of money is received from the guest and if the folio balance is credited then the balance amount of is returned to the guest to settle the guest account.

3) Luggage handling by the bell desk: After the settlement of the guest account a luggage pass is made and a bell boy carries the guest luggage from the hotel to the guest vehicle.

4) Left luggage handling: in case a guest wants the hotel to keep his/her luggage for a short duration of time after checking out the hotel, the hotel keeps the same in the left luggage room. The front office makes a luggage tag and handed over a guest copy to the guest which the guest has to produce when she comes back to claim the luggage.

5) Farewell: The guest is given a warm farewell at the point of departures.

AFTER DEPARTURE

1) Important to keep in touch

2) If any belongingness left behind by the guest send it to lost and found department and accordingly inform the guest.

3) Keep updating the guest through mailers and flyers with special discount, gift vouchers and hotel updates like change in room rates or room categories on a regular basis.

4) Keep proper record of left luggage.

5) Keep guest history and profiles for future reference.