Holiday Plans & Hospitality Tips

From the November issue of Incentive magazine come the following "Holiday hoorahs," "The holiday season is upon us, so if you haven't started planning your employee party, you're scrooged. Alex Hiam, author of Streetwise Motivating & Rewarding Employees: New and Better Ways to Inspire Your People, offers the following alternatives to the traditional rum-and-punch office party: Throw a party for your employees' children, Reduce stress by giving in-office manicures and neck massages, or give employees a day off to do charitable work."

From the November issue of M&C, Meetings and Conventions magazine, "According to a recent survey, one in 10 (hotel guests) aren't donning any duds when they slip between those hotel sheets - with three times as many men going in the buff as women. Among the more modest men, sleepwear choices vary widely, from underwear (34 percent) to pajamas (28 percent), gym shorts (11 percent) and T-shirts (8 percent). Most of the ladies opt for pajamas or nightgowns.
"The study, commissioned by Sleep Inn, the chain franchised by Silver Spring, Maryland-based Choice Hotels International, polled 500 guests about their sleeping habits on the road. Among the survey's other findings: The vast majority (70 percent) of respondents said they sleep on the same side of the bed in hotels as at home, and some have pre-bed rituals that include watching TV (50 percent), reading (14 percent), saying their prayers (13 percent) and requesting a wake-up call (6 percent).
"Also interesting: Two out of five travelers leave the bathroom light on in hotels, 16 percent bring a night-light, and 5 percent bring earplugs - perhaps to block out the noises of the 9 percent who stay up after midnight."
The same issue of M&C includes information on two U. S. government Websites that provide valuable, free information on the health conditions of international destinations: the CDC and the State Department.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention site, www.cdc.gov/travel, offers useful geographic health information, updates on global disease outbreaks and travel precautions, including recommended shots or pills for travelers.
The U. S. State Department, www.state.gov, online consular information sheets list health conditions for every country in the world. Additionally, travel warnings are issued when the State Department decides, based on all relevant information, to advise that Americans avoid travel to certain areas.

From the December, 1999 issue of InnSights magazine, come the (paraphrased for space) results of a survey conducted of travel agents by the Hotel Sales & Marketing Association International. Important Factors in Recommending/Selecting Hotels are as follows:
%Total % Mature %Family %Luxury
Leisure Travelers Vacation Vacation
Rates 58 68 58 47
Location 53 62 49 49
Specials 18 23 20 12
Children 12 0 35 0
Food/Ent. 8 6 7 10
Amenities 8 5 6 12
Fitness 5 1 1 13
Ambiance 4 4 2 7
More than 450 agencies were interviewed at length for the study. They were selected within three categories: of specialization: business travel, leisure travel and a mix of business & leisure travel. The article stated that in general, location and price figured strongly in their recommendations regardless of the client request.

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