5 hospitality trends for SA’s summer season

Source: ©rawpixel via 123RF

For the hospitality sector, summer is also peak visitor time for domestic and international tourists alike. Travelling by road, air, and sea, they’ll flock to the country’s tourism hotspots in large numbers. For local travellers, it’s a chance to unwind after a long year of hard work. Many international visitors, meanwhile, choose to visit the country at this time to escape the harsh cold of the Northern Hemisphere winter.

Whatever a traveller’s reason for visiting a destination, their experience of the hospitality sector once they arrive will play a significant role in whether they return in the future or recommend that destination to others. But what those travellers are looking for from hospitality providers is constantly evolving.

With that in mind, what trends should South Africa’s hospitality players be on the lookout for this summer?

Personalisation is becoming increasingly important

Not all that long ago, hospitality providers offering personalised experiences to their guests was a way to surprise and delight them. Today, it’s increasingly expected. A 2021 study, for example, found that 78% of travellers are more likely to book with properties that offer personalised experiences.

It’s also in a hospitality provider’s best interests to provide that kind of personalisation. A study released earlier this year by research company Medallia found that 61% of hotel guests are willing to pay more for a personalised experience.

Of course, personalisation is about more than simply providing some crayons and colouring books to a family that’s travelling with small children, for example. It should extend to the hospitality provider’s communications and marketing as well as the offers and services it provides to each of its guests.

At Radisson, for example, we use our “stay your way” initiative to empower guests to personalise their stays with things like online check-ins and instant messaging options, which allow guests to easily make requests and queries in the run-up to, and during, their stay. Whether it’s queries about parking, room service, and restaurant bookings or requests for things like fresh towels or an extra toothbrush, everything can and should be done in the ways that guests are most comfortable with.

1.

Immersive and experiential travel take off

While there are still travellers who are happy to spend whole days lounging at a hotel’s pool, venturing out only when they’ve grown tired of the in-house restaurant, most now look for something more fulfilling.

They want to immerse themselves in the culture of the destination they’re visiting and have unique experiences that they can look back on fondly for years to come.

A 2022 report from American Express Travel found that 70% of travellers said that they’re interested in cultural immersion on future trips. It’s also true that 86% of Millenials prefer to travel for experiences and culture, showing how important those factors are becoming in destination choices.

It’s critical, therefore, that players in the hospitality industry facilitate those experiences wherever possible. To do so, hotels could partner with local experience providers to offer packages that are available during the booking process and once the guests have arrived.

2.

More than just a hotel room

While it’s been a long time since hotels were simply places for people to sleep and eat while on holiday, they now need to embody the idea that they offer more than just a hotel room.

Themed stays, for example, are becoming more common. Whether that’s for yoga, surfing, or safaris, hospitality providers can and should cater to guest’s desires as well as their needs.

Another example of how they can adopt this trend is in the wellness space. Rather than simply offering a spa and gym, the accommodation provider could hold dedicated classes, offer healthy food options, and empower guests to make healthy, mindful choices.

Hotels should also ensure that they’re capable of catering to the mixed work and leisure needs of digital nomads, who’ve used the remote work explosion of recent years to travel and experience new destinations while earning money.

3.

Connection to the neighbouring surrounds

While this could easily fall into the section on immersive travel, I believe it’s worth its own entry. Hotels don’t exist in a vacuum.

They’re usually part of a neighbourhood (even if that neighbourhood is in the middle of a business district). To meet guests’ growing appetite for authentic experiences, they must foster connections to those neighbourhoods.

Whether it’s by buying fresh baked goods from the bakery down the road or by recommending local cafes, bars, and restaurants to guests, they can establish a mutually beneficial relationship with the surrounding people and businesses.

They can even take things a step further, helping out local charities and NGOs, demonstrating that they’re valuable members of the community rather than simple occupants.

4.

Meaningful sustainability

While sustainability has been important to the hospitality sector for some time now, it’s only becoming more so. The latest edition of Booking.com’s Sustainable Travel Report, for instance, found that 83% of travellers view sustainability as important.

But sustainability initiatives cannot just be token efforts. They must be meaningful too. That means taking care of things like energy efficiency, carbon reduction, water stewardship, reducing food waste, and uplifting local communities.

5.

Evolving for this summer and summers to come

Ultimately it should be clear that, no matter how big a player is in the hospitality space, it must keep evolving. Summer in South Africa is a boom time for the local hospitality sector but that doesn’t guarantee a full load of bookings for accommodation providers and other players.

By staying on top of the latest travel trends, they can ensure that they have a good summer this year and for many years to come.