Traveling Boutique style – in mind & spirit – not the same as just plain traveling

By:  Frances Kiradjian, Founder, The Boutique & Lifestyle Lodging Association (BLLA)

This month I had the pleasure of traveling to Europe (Paris, Berlin and Amsterdam) for the International Hotel Investment Conference, the ITB Exhibition as well as the Hunter Hotel Conference in Atlanta.

Charming Amsterdam

On my flight home, I was thinking about how the thrill of travel (as well as the anxiety) was omnipresent and has never really changed that much, at least as far as my own personal experience.

Through the trial and tribulations of planning complex itineraries, booking planes, trains, automobiles, hotels and conference registration, making it to and from airports and lodging and through security with different experiences country by country from lifting your arms as they take an image and body scan through giving up my almond milk while the exact same box in my daughter’s bag made it through security.

Princess Diana memorial looking over to the Eiffel Tower

The real thrill is in connecting with people and cultures in hotels, in trains and buses and planes and who are attending or exhibiting at these conferences.  It’s simply a marvelous experience and I can’t help but love just about every single person I come in contact with.  Whether it’s the bellman at the front door of the hotel (I have learned to highly respect ALL hotel staff and treat them like pros), the TSA staff at the airport checking your identification, the Passport Control officers (although some are pretty cranky but if you smile, look good and are friendly, you can make it through and not have the various Dutch tulip bulbs you forgot about in your suitcase confiscated, although the sniffing dog may just find that banana you took with you from the European breakfast buffet just in case the airplane food was no good, in which case you’re screwed as you will have to have all your bags checked).

One of the best museums in Amsterdam.

Additionally, I simply love connecting with people on-board airplanes.  From a couple flying back from Sydney and across America through Los Angeles to make it home, to a Delta staff trainer sitting next to me to a complete family of 10 kids / grandparents / siblings flying to Los Angeles on vacation from Venezuela.  I connected with every kid (you couldn’t help it as they were all over the place bumping into you, knocking over things and being disruptive) … but seriously, in a nice way if you can imagine that.  They were just a lovely family to watch and I can just imagine how much fun they’re going to have from San Diego to San Francisco as they create lifelong memories for all of them.  I was touched by the 7 year old boy who spoke quite good English.  I taught him to take pictures of his experience along the way, including the beautiful snow-covered mountains out the airplane window and he said with a big smile, “Thank you for giving me this idea of taking pictures so I can remember every single day of my vacation!”

Best Sushi ever at the Sir Albert Boutique Hotel Amsterdam

Staying in boutiques all along the way (I wouldn’t dream of anything else), you cannot help but love the experience of unique stays staffed with friendly, helpful people who can’t do enough for you.  We were only in Amsterdam for 2 days so running around the city left us little time to make plans for dinner.  When we returned to our hotel, the Sir Albert, we were exhausted and it was very late.  The fantastic hotel restaurant was full with no seating available (I did not heed the advice of the staff in the morning who suggested I make a reservation).  So I went to the hostess and begged her to see what she could do.  She consulted with the restaurant manager and he came to the lobby to speak with us.  “For you, madame, we will serve you here in the lobby.  Please tell me what you don’t like and I will create something very special for you.”  Ginger, as HE was called, created the best sushi platter I have ever had in my life and my daughter and I were in heaven, enjoying every single bite.  This is what you can expect from boutique & lifestyle properties … REAL boutique & lifestyle hotels that is!

The people and the places around the world are what inspire and touch me on a deep level to work tirelessly for our wonderful Boutique & Lifestyle Lodging Association members.

New terminal at Charles de Gaulle Airport Paris

So that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

Travel Trends to Watch in 2013

With 2013 now rolling along, the luxury travel and hospitality industries have set their sights on new horizons. With the Generation X crowd exploring travel, businesses are tailoring their services to this energetic, tech-savvy group. In other words, the Millennials are coming! In order to harness the vitality of this generation, the way people travel will change in 2013. Most noticeably, there will be trends involving cruise lines, airport security and mobile travel capabilities.

Uncharted Waters
Cruises have conventionally focused routes on the Western Hemisphere, but in 2013 they will explore uncharted waters. Multiple cruise lines will set sail for the Far East. Burma has emerged as a destination for lines such as Silversea and Azamara Club Cruises. The Irrawaddy River in Burma has become a popular route, as Orient-Express will add a second ship.

Cruise lines will also begin to sail to Vietnam and Cambodia this year. Uniworld, Viking, and Aqua Expeditions have added these new locations to their itinerates. While sailing on the Mekong River, ships will visit Ho Chi Minh City and the historic temples of Angkor Wat.

The ventures don’t stop there. Sea Dream Yacht Club will explore Java, Indonesia and other parts of southern Thailand. For those of you enticed by luxury travel on water, be sure to take advantage of these breathtaking destinations!

No Lines, Just Fly
Would you travel more often if getting through the airport weren’t such a hassle? Well, you’re not alone, as this is a universal peeve. With airport crowds ballooning to all time highs, there will be new ways to get through quicker in 2013. Spreading to 39 airports worldwide, The U.S Customs & Border Protection’s Global Entry is quickly becoming the ideal way to travel globally. After submitting to background checks, you simply swipe your passport and breeze through customs.

Don’t worry domestic travelers, we haven’t forgotten about you! There will be no need to remove shoes, laptops or liquids with TSA’s PreCheck. Expedited screening lines will be available to members. Three dozen airports have already caught on, and many more are expected to adopt. The service targets travelers from domestic airlines’ frequent-flier clubs and Loews Hotel & Resorts loyalty programs.

But wait, there are more speedy airport lines on the horizon. For an annual fee of $179, the biometrics-based airport security program, Clear, enables you to jump to the front of security lines. It is available at Dallas, Denver and San Francisco airports, with more U.S. ports looking to add in 2013. Don’t let congested airports cause you to miss a flight, and subsequently ruin your trip!

“Electronic Wallet”
Out with paper, in with digital. Now that the tech-driven era is beginning to travel with regularity, Apple needed to respond. Included in their iOS6 update last fall, Passbook manages hotel and flight reservations. Nobody travels, or goes anywhere for that matter, without their phone right? You can access boarding passes, tickets and coupons on this “electronic wallet”. Airlines such as United and American have embraced the app. Apple realized that it’s far more common to misplace a ticket than a cell phone. Why not have all of your travel documents at your fingertips? Paper tickets will soon become obsolete!

Authenticity – have it and win!

When searching for a new car, what do you take into account before making the final decision?

Price, gas mileage efficiency, and safety features are all common answers. But even more importantly, the authenticity and dependability of the car and brand weigh significantly into your decision.

The same is true when deciding which hotel to stay at. You look for properties that are committed to the guests and offer authentic services. The Boutique and Lifestyle Lodging Association (BLLA) resonates with this idea of authenticity and ensures that this theme is apparent in every aspect of the organization. Within the hospitality industry, it is imperative not to confuse imitation with legitimacy.

In uniting boutique and lifestyle properties all around the globe, BLLA assures authenticity is displayed in all areas of involvement in order to enhance the image of the members. When securing a new property, a vetting process is conducted to uncover all features of the hotel. It is essential for the property to exhibit dependability with their interactions with guests, vendors, as well as their own employees. This commitment to the authenticity of their approach is vital to BLLA. Without credibility, boutique properties lose their main asset, customers. Guests become apprehensive if they believe the endeavors or service offerings are fabricated.

In addition to obtaining credible boutique and lifestyle properties, the authenticity of BLLA events is highly regarded and paramount to the organization. In connecting boutique/lifestyle properties and suppliers, again this theme of authenticity must be presented by BLLA itself, projecting their legitimacy within the hospitality industry. BLLA makes sure that all aspects of their conferences and programs are genuine, ranging from the speakers to the actual venue. It is critical for BLLA to demonstrate authenticity to strengthen the reputation of their properties and the suppliers that sustain them.

Defining Boutique

We consistently hear that this stuff is getting old and what does it matter anyway.  Funny enough, people are still talking about it, especially as it relates to the boutique & lifestyle hospitality sector.

Read this article which is conceived through a writer’s experience at the BLLA Leadership Conference held in October 2012.

http://www.travelweekly.com/Danny-King/Boutique-lifestyle-To-MAY-to-to-MAH-to/