appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

hooksArticlePageFloatingButtonConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Daniel Langer

This article is part of STYLE’s Luxury Column.
In a recent masterclass for luxury hospitality, I tried an exercise. I asked the participants to name three hotels in any part of the world. Their first choice was in Dubai, the second in Paris, the third in the Maldives.
(Almost) the final frontier: hotels to set you dreaming of the stars

All three properties position themselves in the luxury space and all of them were priced above US$500 per night. I asked the group to open the three hotel websites and analyse the content and storytelling.
From 007 to Lost in Translation: 5 famous film hotels you can stay in
All had a brand video on their website. When we compared the messages, imagery and even social media, we found they told the exact same story. All promised their guests a paradise-like experience, all showed images of the location, hotel facade, check-in area, guestrooms, restaurant and bar area. We joked that they could have saved the money and simply asked one provider to do the websites for all of them to save money.
This is not an isolated example but a harsh reality for many brands in hospitality. They define “luxury” by beautiful real estate, cavernous rooms, efficient service and generous amenities, but what many hotels are unable to do is to create lasting memories for their guests. This has dramatic implications for the top and bottom line: less loyalty, reduced opportunities to raise prices, customers that only come back because of loyalty programmes and not because they were mesmerised by the stay. It’s only luxury if the customer feels it.

Don’t get me wrong. A beautiful location and great interiors – paradise, as many hotels call it – are critical preconditions for a hotel stay to be perceived as a luxury experience. But they are not enough. In luxury, great real estate is simply expected and “priced in”. A true luxury experience needs to go much further.
In a recent conversation with an expert who manages experiences for ultra-wealthy and celebrity clients, I asked him when his clients feel true luxury. His answer? “When they feel taken care of, treated as humans, not as celebrities.” The ability to make someone feel valued, taken seriously and offered experiences that feel extremely personal is what makes people feel special.
Can Larry Ellison really turn Lanai, Hawaii, into a ‘health utopia’?
To make a stay extraordinary, a hotel needs to understand what makes them special, beyond great architecture and design. It must develop a strategy to differentiate itself from others through how they make people feel, and to create internal systems and training that ensures that the feeling they provide is not just sporadic but systemic. Every interaction counts.

Ideally, from the perspective of the guest, the stay should feel curated without ever giving the feeling of being forced or strained. And of course, there is a difference between a one-night or two-week stay, a visit for business or pleasure, and whether the guest is a regular or visiting for the first time. Very few hotels differentiate their approach to cater to different situations.
The ultimate ego trip? Who knew Trump owned all these New York landmarks
In the end the only thing that counts is whether the hotel created a lasting memory for the guest? Moments worth experiencing, treasuring and sharing. If there is no memory, then no value was created. In luxury hospitality, neglecting this will prevent brands from building up brand equity and successfully attracting loyal guests willing to pay significant premiums for the experiences they receive.

Is Nobu Matsuhisa taking the dining destination trend to new heights?
As the world prepares gradually for a return of post-pandemic travel, hotels must be able to describe what sets their “paradise” apart from the other alternatives out there, and make customers feel exceptional. Consider this a call to action for many hotels all around the world.
Want more stories like this? Sign up here. Follow STYLE on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter.


Style Edit: Audemars Piguet to host hands-on watchmaking masterclass in Macau

What has Billy McFarland been up to since the Fyre Festival flop, made famous by Netflix and promoted by Bella Hadid and Ja Rule? A sequel has just been announced, but will it even happen?

Inside Hong Kong’s exclusive watch boutique The Lavish Attic, as the timepiece-collecting community’s beloved independant hang-out turns 10

4 Chinese luxury watchmakers celebrating local craftsmanship: from Atelier Wen and Qin Gan to Celadon HH and LYH, horologists are redefining wristwear by turning to heritage and cultural influences

Inside Luxury

Dubai, Paris, the Maldives: for luxury hotels everywhere, memories matter more than the spa, choice of restaurants or size of the room

What makes this luxury experience stand out from any other? The Island Shangri-La, Hong Kong. Photo: @shangrilahotels/ Instagram

Shangri-La Paris hotel. Photo: @shangrilahotels/Instagram

Quintessential Maldivian luxury. Photo: Marriott International

The Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong. Photo: @ritzcarltonhongkong/Instagram

Shangri-La Hotel Dubai. Photo: @shangrilahotels/Instagram

Hong Kong’s 8 best private members’ clubs, from Soho House and The American Club to the iconic Hong Kong Club and Aberdeen Marina Club by Shangri-La Hotel Group – so which do millionaires prefer most?

Drinks at Cipriani at the China Club, Hong Kong. Photo: Cipriani

A Carlyle & Co flat. Photo: Rosewood

Food at Cipriani. Photo: Cipriani

The American Club Hong Kong. Photo: Handout

Samsung heir Lee Boo-jin: the Hotel Shilla CEO finalised a dramatic divorce in 2020, but she’s also a style icon with a big heart

Lee Boo-jin, the Samsung heir with a big heart.Photo: @able.celebrity/Instagram

Lee Boo-jin and her brother Lee Jae-yong in their childhood. Photo: Tistory

Lee Boo-jin and her mother Hong Ra-hee in the past. Photo: Tistory

Stronger then Yoo? Lee Boo-jin. Photo: @ltttanya/Twitter

Yonsei University. Photo: @yonsei_official/Instagram

Lee Boo-jin and Lim Woo-jae’s wedding. Photo: Segye Ilbo

The logo of Samsung Electronics in Seoul, South Korea. Photo: Reuters

Lee Boo-jin. Photo: @ltttanya/Twitter

The Shilla Seoul hotel. Photo: Handout

Lee Boo-jin in an elegant outfit. Photo: @frenchsenseofstyle/Instagram

Lee Boo-jin and her son. Photo: Namuwiki

Why five-star hotels are flying private jets – Four Seasons and Aman offer luxury in the skies as safety and discretion becomes the post-pandemic travel trend

Concerned fliers wary of virus-related safety on commercial planes are looking to private jets for the first time. Photo: Getty Images

Blue Island in the Bahamas’ Exuma Cays is for sale for US$95 million. That makes it one of the most expensive private islands on the market, in part because it is the only Caribbean isle with its own jet landing strip. Photo: Sotheby’s International Realty

As the pandemic continues, private jets may be literally the only way to travel. Photo: VistaJet

Coming soon to skies near you – Four Seasons Private Jet service. Photo: Four Seasons

This image shows the opulent inside of the private Zetta Jet aircraft. Photo: Handout

Caviar service on board a private jet. Photo: Handout

Dior’s Dioriviera pop-up hits Hong Kong, plus Armani’s Fala Chen tie-up and Fendi’s Pet Travel Line – this month’s hottest luxury fashion launches

Photo Credit: FENDI

The Vespa 946 Dior collaboration at Dior’s pop-up at Hong Kong’s K11 Musea. Photo: Dior

Fendi has got your pooch covered with its optimistically named Pet Travel Line. Photo: Fendi

Fala Chen signed up for Armani’s Crossroads campaign. Photo: Giorgio Armani

Will China’s Hainan island kill the duty free industry? International shopping sprees are out now the tropical paradise lets domestic travellers leave with US$15,000 of tax free goods

Haikou City is the capital of Hainan province, a free zone and major tourism destination that aims to displace international destinations as the luxury goods marketplace of the world. Photo: Shutterstock

Atlantis, Hainan’s top integrated resort with over 1,300 luxury rooms, a huge water fun park and the largest natural seawater aquarium in China, in August 2020. Photo: Steven Ribet

An aerial photo taken in April 2020 shows the Atlantis resort in Sanya, Hainan. Photo: Xinhua

Tourists shop at a duty free shopping centre in Sanya City, Hainan province, in October 2020. Photo: Xinhua

Customers select products in a duty free shopping centre in Haikou, Hainan province, in October 2020. Photo: Xinhua

Magazines

Style

Luxury

Many hospitality brands have beautiful locations, huge rooms, efficient service and generous amenities, but still fail to create lasting memories for guests
With no memory, no value is created, preventing a hotel from building up brand equity and attracting loyal guests willing to pay a premium for their experience


Luxury hotel brands everywhere face the same issue – how to stand out when everyone has a spa, a choice of restaurants and vast, well appointed rooms?


Luxury travel

Tourism

Social media

Travel news and advice

Luxury Hotels

Maldives

Larry Ellison

Expresses the views, ideas and conclusions of the author. (Eg. Enough of Crazy Rich Asians, think of crazy poor Hongkongers.)


Opinion