Have I ever gone on about how much fun it is to work at Hotel Teatro? The hotel industry in general? I'm constantly reminded of that fact when I read about the woes of the airline industry. I often state that the hotel industry is the ultimate yardstick of service. I can't think of an industry that service matters more. Think about it. Why do guests choose stay at the Waldorf Astoria for $800 per night instead of the Hampton Inn for $129? Because the service is stellar, and the expectation is that it will be. Second place - tie between spas and restaurants. Please, respond to me if any other industry is more than a distant third.
I used to award the airline industry third place. When I was young, the check-in counter agents were joyful (now they point to the self-service machine...even as I write this I am shaking my head), the flight attendants were well-dressed and personable, and the food...man, the food...it was REALLY GOOD. If you don't remember these days, you either didn't fly 25-40 years ago or you simply weren't alive then. I feel badly for you either way, because the rest of us can be nostalgic.
I truly feel for the industry, and all that work in and around commercial aircraft. They're handcuffed by rules, regulations and hardship galore. And it's not getting better...take a recent interview with Southwest Airlines' CEO, Gary Kelly (from Robert Polk's brilliant weekly Industry News:
"The industry is under tremendous stress. There are absolutely no green shoots. [In regards to the economy increasing demand for air travel.] We have to be very prepared for uncertainty and instability, and operate with an abundance of caution.
The question is: What is it going to take to not just survive the recession, but maintain our financial position and take care of our employees? We will have to continue to trim our flight schedule, but at a pace that's not radical, in hopes we can avoid grounding airplanes, furloughing employees and all the bad things that can happen in difficult environments."
Robert adds: "Other predictions also say that the airline industry will not return to passenger levels of 2007 until 2012 or 2013."
Ouch.
That's the country's best carrier, most would say. The rapping flight attendant (click for the You Tube link), the Seven Secrets of Success...I love these guys, and I'm worried about them...and their competition.
Denver is a hub for Frontier Airlines, currently exiting Chapter 11 today, and United (I don't recall if or when they exited Chapter 11, but you get the idea)...we need their partnership to drive tourism to Denver.
I can't control the price per barrel (curious about the barrel breakdown and measurement? Click here) or time spent aggravated on the jetway. What I can do is make your stay at Hotel Teatro the best ever, because I have a passion to serve. I have the privilege of working at the best hotel in Denver, and I get a lot of satisfaction out of the daily comments from our guests. We have the luxury (no pun intended) of calling our own shots - no standard operating procedures, no union limitations or rules - and making each guest experience memorable. I value that every day when I see the price of gas (down 10 cents this week), price of airline tickets ($49 one way to Chicago...are you kidding me?), even the NBA readying themselves for the season opener with replacement officials because they can't get a deal done. I am not throwing stones...just shaking my head.
Enough rambling...I am signing off and heading down to the lobby to tell the first guest I see what a pleasure it is to have them at my hotel.
Thank you for your business! | 
