Choice Hotels International, looking into the preferences and practices of business travelers commissioned a survey recently. Survey was done to find the parameters on the basis of which business travelers book their hotels. A total of 529 travelers participated in the survey.
As per the survey, the location of the hotel was the utmost important thing for business travelers. 73% said that their main criterion of picking a hotel on their business trip is its location. They want their hotel to be centrally located and accessible.
The next on their priority was the room quality. 61% travelers said it is critical for them to check the quality of the hotel they are staying in. Availability of Wi-Fi came third with 55% in favor of it. As per Choice Hotels' senior vice president of global distribution, Robert McDowell, internet connectivity has become a crucial amenity for business travelers. Most of them carry more than one gadget with them and are in dire need to be connected all the time.
The survey also revealed an interesting fact, that most of the travelers prefer working in their own rooms. This is contrary to the fact that most of hotels across the globe are spending millions of dollars in decking up their common and business areas. Nearly 84% said that they would choose to work in their own comfort zone, sitting in their room and not in the business center or the lobby area of the hotel.
The survey also stated that more and more travelers are using their tablets, phablets and smart phones to book their hotels. Nearly 76% hotels are being booked online. Not only this, 60% travelers are even using technology to check-in into the hotels. Understanding the ongoing surge of mobile apps, Choice Hotels has launched an app allowing travelers to book hotels in three simple clicks. Since more and more hotels are booked last minute, hence they have made an easy to use and navigate application, enabling travelers to book their hotel in a jiffy.
