2019 World Tourism Efforts: Upgrading to another level

This year’s World Tourism Efforts are to raise awareness on the potential contribution of digital technologies to sustainable tourism development, while providing a platform for investment, partnerships and collaboration towards a more responsible and inclusive tourism sector.

Harnessing innovation and digital advances provide tourism with opportunities to improve inclusiveness, local community empowerment and efficient resource management, amongst other objectives within the wider sustainable development agenda.

New Beginnings

The arrival of March brings new beginnings for those in the Hospitality and Tourism Industry and this of course includes a new start for Aphrodite Hills Holiday Residences. After a long and busy Winter 2018-2019, where an array of renovations and upgrading took place in the majority of the Holiday Residences properties, we are super excited to be enhancing our product for the 2019 season and are thrilled to be delivering an exceptional level of service to all Holiday Residences guests.

With the growing competition between Hotels, but also Villa suppliers today, the revamping of hotel inventories, premises and properties comes with no surprise, as it is almost becoming an annual trend, a necessity, or some could even say.. a current marketing vogue.

Keeping the properties up to standard

But does hotel or property renovation simply come down to the replacing of worn out furniture and mattresses, or is it something more? And what happens in the Holiday Residences scenario when renovating means making changes in properties of an average of 200 m2 (not hotel rooms) and all in a short period of time of a few months?

Operations Manager Mrs. Lazari, answers ‘property upgrading can be chaotic, but it’s totally worth it!’. Mrs. Lazari makes a good point as it is essential to keep the Holiday Residences properties up to standard, fresh and technologically aligned. She mentions that despite the difficulties that come along with property renovation, ‘the positive feedback of our guests, who appreciate the quality and excellence of our properties, is motivation for us to keep upgrading’.

General Manager Mr. Hassapis argues that ‘the regular revitalising of the Holiday Residences is non-negotiable, as upgrades extend the life of our properties, but also boost the company image, competitiveness and efficiency’.

Revitalising the inventory

So, what exactly have we been working on you may ask? The Operations Team have been making internal and external improvements in the Holiday Residences properties and have been doing everything possible to revitalise the inventory. The work done includes the refurnishing of living areas, kitchen refurbishing, painting work and varnishing, plumbing, A/C and water tank maintenance, swimming pool maintenance, gardening, soft furnishing and in some cases the upgrading to high-speed internet (20 mbps) in our Mythos Collection Villas. The ‘levelling-up’ of the company does not end here though..

‘Culture starts with the concept of a sense of place’and so the company now has its own ‘Reception & Guest Lounge’, situated in the heart of the Aphrodite Hills Resort, which serves as a second home for our valuable guests and for our on-growing team. The idea is that our guests experience more convenience and comfort and that they feel more like they are ‘home away from home’, from the minute they check-in at and not only once they arrive into their holiday home. Following the ‘mi casa es su casa’ philosophy, guests are invited to make the most of the modern and cosy atmosphere of the Lounge whilst enjoying complimentary refreshments available throughout the day, while our little guests are invited to have fun at the Kid’s play area. The Lounge also serves as a meeting point where guests can attend the daily Welcome Meetings and find out useful information about how to make the most of their stay with us.

Come as a Guest, Leave as a Friend

All these changes may not seem that major, but guests seem to be enjoying the simple details we have been focusing on, such as being able to store their luggage in our storage room (if they have a late flight back home and want to make the most of their last day) or guests making use of the shower and changing facilities before they head to the airport for their flight back home. Small and thoughtful changes always go a long way showing that a “courteous treatment will make a (happy) customer a walking advertisement” as Penney (Founder J.C. Penney Stores) stated.

Digital Technologies

The upgrading has not only taken place on an Operational level, but also within the Sales & Marketing department. The Sales & Marketing team has teamed up with the IT & E-Business department, in order to set the foundations for the evolution of the business on a digital level.

If there is anything indisputable about sales techniques, it’s that everything changes, all the time. Therefore, the teams have already made the first steps towards improving and advancing its existing sales strategies, by looking into innovative technologies and systems that can be implemented.

With a few simple, straight-forward steps, a guest can easily book their holiday through the brand-new online Booking Engine (designed and tailor made by Web Hotelier) implemented into the new Aphrodite Hills Resort website, making the booking process easy and speedy, but at the same time safe and reliable.

Welcoming 2019

Aphrodite Hills Holiday Residences is moving forward into 2019 with a much more effective Revenue Management System (hosted by IDeaS Revenue Solutions), enabling the team to forecast accurately, price confidently, and achieve greater profitability. The system is not only perfect for optimal profitability and productivity, but it also ensures that the fairest and lowers prices possible are offered to our guests.

In terms of Marketing, the Aphrodite Hills Resort has undergone complete Re-branding, meaning that a lot of change has taken place. The brand-new website (in both English & Russian languages), the organisation of property photo-shooting (following the new inventory acquired over the past months), the updating of collateral, the redesigning of the brand and the new plans for Social Media are some of the areas that the team has been working on. The Team has also been monitoring competition on a deeper level, closely observing the new marketing trends, working on campaigns that are actually fruitful and gathering information that can help point our marketing efforts into the right direction.

From visibility to credibility

Finally, with the arrival of 2019, the Aphrodite Hills Holiday Residences Sales & Marketing team established its presence at several exhibitions including ‘The Holiday World Show 2019’ in Dublin and the ‘Destinations: The Holiday & Travel Show’ in both Manchester and London.

From visibility to credibility, exhibiting at a trade show has hundreds of benefits for the Holiday Residences business. Shows related to holidays and travels make for a powerful platform for the team to meet new people including prospect clients and business partners, but also reach out to existing clientele. The team actively promoted the Holiday Residences but also Aphrodite Hills Resort at all the shows, highlighting the recent changes and upgrades that have taken place on the Resort.

The Aphrodite Hills Holiday Residences have never been readier to work rapidly and efficiently making sure to be offering the best possible holiday at the most beautiful properties in an area of Cyprus that offers beauty and historic legacy, that is second to none. We hope that all the upgrades will contribute to another prosperous and successful season and that our guests have only the best feedback to give about their holiday experience at Aphrodite Hills Resort. After all, a satisfied customer is the best business strategy of all!