Optimize your hotel site inspection process: a guide for travel advisors
Completing hotel site inspections can be one of the most fun aspects of being a travel advisor! We get exclusive peeks behind the scenes that most guests can only imagine. The task of completing hotel site visits is one that distinguishes travel advisors as professionals and differentiates us from our clients, providing us with insights beyond what websites, booking platforms, or word-of-mouth referrals can offer.
Drawing from my extensive 8-year career as a travel advisor (plus an additional 5 years working for a 5-star hotel!), I can assure you that crafting a strategic approach to site inspections is not only important, but also feasible. It took me several years to learn (through trial and error) the art of thoroughly completing a site inspection…so to save you some of that learning time, here is my list of tips!
I think you’ll discover that my suggested inquiries, note-taking strategies, and crucial considerations will make a big difference in your next inspection. These tips and questions are meant to provide you with information that is normally not found through a Google search.
(Are you a checklist kind of person? Download my free Hotel Site Visit Checklist to organize those inspections and never miss a detail!)
How to prepare for a hotel site inspection
If you’re packing your day with inspections, start by assessing how many properties you can feasibly visit within your allotted time frame. Aim for at least 45 minutes per property, accounting for travel time between venues.
You’ll want to reach out to the sales team to introduce yourself and let them know that you’re interested in scheduling a site inspection. This common courtesy helps ensure that they are prepared to support you, and is a great “first impression” of your business and what it will be like to work with you. I always defer to the hotel team on the best time to visit, as I never know if they have something going on each day. However…
The best times to conduct hotel site inspection typically fall between 11 AM to 3 PM, coinciding with the hotel's turnover period (when guests check in or out). But, bear in mind that peak travel seasons might pose challenges, potentially limiting room availability during these hours.
When scheduling your site inspection, let them know which parts of the hotel and which room categories are top priority for you to see. Here are some of my considerations when deciding what I want to see:
Hotel Features: What are the hotel features that are most important for your clients? Restaurants, pool / beach, spa, etc. Do you also book events? If so, ask to see their event space options. Pro tip: Ask the hotel if they have a feature that makes them unique or that not all clients know about.
Room categories: Are you booking mostly lead in room categories up to Junior Suites? Do you think you’ll send a lot of families to this hotel? (if yes, you’ll want to see those rooms!); Are you booking a lot of larger suites for clients? Is there a room category with a spectacular feature (a view, balcony / terrace, etc)?
What to ask during the site inspection
Performing hotel site inspections is an opportunity to accomplish a few things as travel business owners. First, it is an opportunity to get to know the property in a way that you can’t Google, or sometimes even find out from colleagues or at conferences. Plus, it is a personal way to build a relationship with the sales person you’ll be meeting!
In order to streamline your visit and make it as impactful as possible, here are some questions to have handy:
What are clients’ average lengths of stay? Does the hotel wish that length of stay was different (longer/shorter)?
Ask the salesperson: What would they recommend as the best time of year to visit their destination?
Can the hotel arrange any unique activities or amenities for clients?
What percentage of the onsite restaurant’s business are local patrons vs. hotel guests?
Ask the salesperson: What is currently the hotel’s greatest challenge?
If a client were to ask whether they should stay at this hotel or one of their top competitors, how would the sales person differentiate those two experiences?
Who are considered to be the top 1-2 competitors in the area?
Details to note during a hotel site inspection
The note-taking feature on The Hive is one of our favorites, because it allows you to organize all your information in one place. PLUS, you can tag suppliers, locations, and other travel advisors on your notes to easily find them later.
Want to save a hotel site visit checklist to your notes? Download our free Hotel Site Inspection Checklist and never miss a detail at a site inspection again!
For example, when performing a site inspection, you can take a note and tag the hotel. We recommend some of the following prompts for your note:
What’s the hotel’s vibe? (Sophisticated and discreet? Family-friendly and fun? Are guests wearing athleisure wear or more formal attire? Is there an energetic, happening scene or more of an oasis of calm?)
What areas / features of the hotel exceeded your expectations?
Which of your clients would enjoy this hotel best?
What type(s) of clients would you not book here?
Is this a family-friendly hotel? Are there kid-friendly spaces? Kids clubs/activities? Game rooms? Swimming pools and splash pads?
Are there areas of the hotel / features that did not meet your expectations?
The spa: is it a simple treatment room or is it a full service spa (swimming pool + sauna + steam room + locker rooms + etc)? Are children welcome?
What (if any) activities are on property that you can promote to clients? (Wine tours / cooking classes / tours of the local area) Are they complimentary or paid?
Make your hotel inspection process easier
Site inspections are one of the best ways to gather information about suppliers and hotels where you’ll be sending your clients. But you are only one person, and you can’t visit every hotel, even if you have a specific niche!
Wouldn’t it be amazing to have a database of hotels and suppliers where they themselves provided exclusive profile information … and then, wouldn’t it be even more helpful if on that very database, travel advisors could leave reviews for their and/or clients’ experiences with that supplier?
This was the missing link I saw in the travel industry, bridging travel advisors with each other and suppliers for optimal, streamlined sharing of information!
So, I built The Hive, and in less than a year it has become a true knowledge hub for travel advisors to gather insights, review vendors, and connect.
Reviews from other advisors
When advisors leave reviews on The Hive of suppliers and hotels, they are prompted to share if the review is from a client, a personal trip, or a FAM (familiarization trip).
They can then leave details about the pre/post stay experience, their recommendations of the best client profile for the supplier, the vibe on property, how they confirmed the booking, and more!
All the details you would gather during a site inspection. And even better, you can message the advisor to ask for more details.
Search Filters
Many of the search filters on The Hive were created with key details in mind (ie number of rooms, average nightly rates, if they have a pool / beach, if they can offer connecting rooms, etc). As fun as they are, you don’t have to complete in-person site inspections to get all of this information!
Need to find a connecting room for a large family? Search on The Hive. Want to find out if there’s an all-inclusive spa? Find that info on The Hive. Can kids use the pool? Add it to your search.
No more Google rabbit holes, Facebook group scrolling, and dreading that you’ve missed a key detail as you book a hotel for your clients.
Filter + Filter + Filter … hit the “search” button and get results of all the hotels that match the criteria.
Lastly, when you add all the insights you gather during a site inspection to your private notes on The Hive + utilize the filters to search for key details about a property, you have everything you need to curate personal recommendations for clients (with just a few clicks!) and collaborate with colleagues like never before. So…
…have you checked The Hive?
