Do the services for children offered in Helsinki hotels meet the preferences of family travellers?
Fernández, Amelia (2016)
Haaga-Helia ammattikorkeakoulu
2016
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Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-201605036064
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-201605036064
Tiivistelmä
Meeting the needs of family travellers by catering to the children is a way for hotels to attract these profitable guests. The objective of this thesis is to analyse the services offered for children in four Helsinki hotels and evaluate whether they meet the needs and preferences of current domestic and international travellers. The preliminary hypothesis is that the hotels chosen to represent the hotel market in Helsinki offer similar services; that do not meet current traveller preferences. This thesis aims to be a useful tool for hotels in Helsinki to understand the preferences of current family travellers and possibly assist in choosing what services to offer children.
The theoretical framework of the thesis covers segmentation, different motives for family members to travel, and preferences of family travellers. The travel trends of millennials and multigenerational travellers are discussed. Finally, the accommodation market of Helsinki is evaluated. The research is completed with a competitive benchmarking of four Helsinki hotels. These hotels are four different large brands to represent the Helsinki market. They are chosen as a result of having marketed themselves strongly as child-friendly on their brand websites; thus indicating that these brands have the strongest strategies for attracting and serving families. In addition, a questionnaire is completed to better understand the preferences of current family travellers.
Highlights of the results include the benchmarking proving that the hotels target similar segments and offer many similar services. Some of which, proved highly unimportant to families in the questionnaire. The questionnaire showed that there is little difference in the preferences of millennial travellers vs.non-millennials. Improvement suggestions for each hotel are discussed, however the key suggestions are to update the brand websites and find different family segments to target to gain a competitive advantage over the other Helsinki hotels. However, most importantly, many of the services for children need to be updated to meet the preferences of current family travellers.
The theoretical framework of the thesis covers segmentation, different motives for family members to travel, and preferences of family travellers. The travel trends of millennials and multigenerational travellers are discussed. Finally, the accommodation market of Helsinki is evaluated. The research is completed with a competitive benchmarking of four Helsinki hotels. These hotels are four different large brands to represent the Helsinki market. They are chosen as a result of having marketed themselves strongly as child-friendly on their brand websites; thus indicating that these brands have the strongest strategies for attracting and serving families. In addition, a questionnaire is completed to better understand the preferences of current family travellers.
Highlights of the results include the benchmarking proving that the hotels target similar segments and offer many similar services. Some of which, proved highly unimportant to families in the questionnaire. The questionnaire showed that there is little difference in the preferences of millennial travellers vs.non-millennials. Improvement suggestions for each hotel are discussed, however the key suggestions are to update the brand websites and find different family segments to target to gain a competitive advantage over the other Helsinki hotels. However, most importantly, many of the services for children need to be updated to meet the preferences of current family travellers.