Having completed a round-the-world trip in under 14 days – Singapore to LA, New York and ending in Antwerp, Brussels – I feel I have enough material to write a trilogy but I will confine myself to one column about something that really stood out for me during my travels – the difference between digital and traditional services.
Antwerp by night
The world of digital today revolves around mobile – which means me – and everything they do is about me. Facebook is about me sharing my experiences. TripAdvisor is about me writing my review and reading other people’s reviews and deciding if I believe them or not. Uber is about me getting my ride when I want, with whom I want, at the price I am willing to pay. Blacklane allows me to book my airport ride when I want and I know where my driver is.
I bet JW Marriott at LA Live couldn’t tell you who I am – even when I am inhouse sleeping on one of their beds. Blakely Hotel in New York is an independently-run hotel, so their service is more personal but, still after I left, I got an email asking how my stay was when perhaps this was something they could have found out from me by actually talking to me while I was in-house.
The Hilton in Antwerp, which was the venue for the conference I was attending, didn’t have a room ready for me when I arrived at 7.30 am – which I accept because that’s how things are done in Europe. But the attitude of the front desk staff conveyed the impression that it’s all about them, not me. “Sorry, it’s not our policy.”
Hilton Antwerp: Location cannot be faulted
When I asked for a space to perhaps rest or take a shower after a long flight, after being told “our official check-in time is 2pm”, she replied, “Sorry, it’s not our policy. Our lounge is only open to Hilton Honours guests. You can wait here,” indicating the open lobby lounge.
Feeling decidedly unwelcome, I found a warm and friendly café nearby where I parked myself for a couple of hours. I ordered coffee and had breakfast – wifi included in the price, by the way. At Hilton, the wifi is only available free to certain guests.
During my stay, I had to make a conference call with a toll-free number. I called reception to ask how I could dial out. She gave me instructions and then said, “Be careful. You’ll have to pay.”
I said, “But it’s a toll-free number.”
She replied, “Yes, but you still have to pay the hotel. Nothing is for free, you know.”
She then warned me that some guests had had to pay up to 250 Euros for what they thought were toll-free calls.
“Why don’t you use your own telephone?” she kindly offered.
I told her I have a Singapore phone, which flummoxed her. Her last word to me was, “Be careful.” Well, at least, she cared enough to warn me.
In the end I had no choice but to use my mobile for the call because I was already late calling in.
Sharing my story with fellow travellers, one told me he faced a similar situation in Dubai and he went out to buy a set of speakers, plugged them to his mobile, and created his own conference call centre for he and his colleagues. Another said he bought a printer when he needed a set of documents printer after he found out the business centre charges.
I guess there is the assumption that because we are corporate travellers, we can put things down to expenses. But the world is changing. There are a lot more small to medium enterprises than there are large multinationals and even the latter are putting the squeeze on expenses.
Anyway, all of that made me wonder whatever happened to hospitality which is defined as “the friendly and generous reception and entertainment of guests, visitors, or strangers”.
Why would you inconvenience your guests just because it’s convenient to you? Unless perhaps hospitality’s taken on the more ironic definition of “the art of making guests feel at home when you wish they were”.
Incidentally, on the ride to the airport, my driver got very emotional when I brought up the subject of Uber. “We don’t like them,” he said. Indeed, Brussels has been a battleground for Uber. A Belgian court banned it in April but you hear conflicting reports about the whole saga.
