UNIT 4 GUEST CYCLE

INTRODUCTION

The term guest cycle represents various stages of activities when a hotel
provides services or keeps contact or maintains record during the various stages of its
contact with guest, such as before arrival, at the time of arrival, during stay, at
departure and after departure.

Out of these five stages the first and last stage i.e., during the stages of before
arrival (when the guest shows his intentions to come to the hotel) and after departure
(i.e. when the guest after staying in the hotel has already left) are those where there
is no personal contact with the guest of the hotel and it is only through the effective
record keeping and communication network such as telephone, telex, fax, computer,
letter, telegram and internet etc. the efficient and satisfactory services can be given
to the guest.

The Guest interacts with certain external agencies to make the cycle complete. These
external players include the agencies that make bookings, like the travel agent, tour
operator, etc.; the surface transporters such as taxis, coaches, trains, etc. that bring
the guest to the hotel; and the entertainment centers who give the guest pleasure in
terms of sightseeing, shopping, restaurants, bars etc. A Hotel has to work closely with
the external players to give that value added experience to the guest.

THE GUEST CYCLE

The hotel guests passes through a definite path from reservation to arrival, stay, and
departure. They pass from reservation, arrival, registration, allotment of rooms, stay
and use of hotel facilities, and finally departure from the hotel. These phases remain
the same in case of every guest and constitute the guest cycle. The four stages of the
guest cycle are shown in figure 1

Figure 1.1 Guest Cycle

 UNIT 4 GUEST CYCLE

The fIVE distinct phases of guest cycle are as under:

Pre-arrival

Arrival

Stay

Departure

After departure

Pre-arrival

The activities that are carried out before the arrival of the guest forms the pre- arrival
phase of the guest cycle. This is the first stage of interaction with the guest.
Reservation is the most important pre- arrival activity. The probable guest contacts
hotel for reserving a room for their proposed stay in the town. During this phase guest
chooses a hotel for stay. The guest choice about a particular hotel is affected by
factors like advertisement, recommendations from friends, previous experience with
the hotel, reputation, location etc. The prompt reply and tactful handling of a call for
reservation request by the reservation assistant can create the good first impression
of the hotel in the eye of the future guest. During the reservation process the hotel
may ask for advance deposit from the guest. Following activities are carried out in this
phase:
Processing reservation request of the guest.
Creation of guest folio in case hotel has received any advance payment.
Blocking the room for the guest.
Making special arrangements for the guest (if required).

The data collected during the process of reservation can be utilized in future front
office and sales activities. A well managed reservation system can maximize the room
sales by monitoring room availability and forecasting room revenue.

Arrival

The guest arrival at the front desk is probably the first instant when hotel may have a
face to face interaction with the guest. This is a very critical stage as guests develop
their perception regarding standard and services that the hotel can provide to them.

During this phase the guest is received and registration process begins. The guest is
asked to verify their details already printed in registration card. The registration
activity is an agreement between the hotel and the guest. The hotel offers the
accommodation product and services to the guest. The guest signifies their assent to
pay for the services received. The following activities take place in arrival phase of the
guest cycle:

Reception and welcome of the guest (aarti, tilak and garlanding/ offering
welcome drink as per the policy of the hotel)
 UNIT 4 GUEST CYCLE
Registration of the guest
Room rate and room assignment
Dispensing key to the guest
Luggage handling of the guest by bell desk
Delivering mails if hotel has received mails on behalf of guest.

Stay

This is the stage of the guest cycle during which the guest actually experiences the
facilities and services offered by the hotel. Hotel must take care for safe and
comfortable stay of the guest. The courteous and helpful behavior of the staff may
mask little lack in services. The services and facilities offered during this stage are
critically important in attracting repeat business from the same guest. The activities
that are carried out during the stay of guest are as under:

Creation and maintenance of guest accounts

Message handling
Key handling
Handling guest- mail
Guest paging
Safety deposit locker
Procedures for guest room change
Left Luggage Procedure

Departure

As the maxim goes that all well that ends well. Same is the case with the guest
departure. All the drawbacks can be marks by efficient and hassle free check- out
procedure. During the departure stage the guest settles their account by making
payment to throughpre established mode for the services received from the hotel. A
great care should be taken during the departure stage, as it is the last point of guest
contact to receive any unpaid bills and to develop loyalty in the guest to patronize the
property over and over again. Following transactions take place in departure stage:

Preparation and presentation of guest bills

Settlement of guest account
Luggage handling by the bell desk
Left luggage handling in case guest wishes to keep their luggage with the hotel
for a short duration of time
Sales and marketing activity (future reservation)
Bon voyage to guest

After Departure

This stage of guest cycle is a real challenge to the hotel.

It is during this stage that the activities of the hotel will bring back the guest to
the hotel.
 UNIT 4 GUEST CYCLE
For this it is important that the hotel management creates occasions of
contacting guests and keep reminding him about the hotel from time to time.
This can be done by sending letters, mailers, and feelers to the guest on his
Birthday, His marriage anniversary and other such occasions which may be
important for him and his family.

FORMS USED DURING GUEST CYCLE:

1. DURING PRE ARRIVAL STAGE:

Reservation Record File: In Manual System, a reservation record is prepared
before guest arrival while in automated a reservation file is maintained in main
front office computer system.
Letter of Confirmation: Whether reservation is taken manually or
mechanically, a confirmation letter may be sent via email or post..
Reservation Rack Slip: A slip represents only a portion of a complete
reservation record. Sometimes, color code is used to indicate characteristics
reservation.

2. During Arrival Stage:

Registartion Card: In manual Front office, a Registaretion card is prepared
while in computer based registration file is opened.

Room Rack Slip: In Manual FO, Room Rack is used to keep the room rack
slips, these slips are kept in respective slots. It conatins the information about
the guest and kept in room rack slot.

3. During Occupancy Stage:

Maintenance of Guest Folio: It contains the record of guests room, name,
billing, availed services(transactions).
Vouchers: These are the supportive documents which detailing the facts of a
transaction, but does not replace the source document.
Information rack Slips: Also known as Guest Location Slip. It is used to locate
a guest in the hotel.

4. During Departure Stage:

Credit Card and Cash Voucher: Credit card Voucher takes the imprint of
guests credit card and then take guests signature. Cash Voucher is used to
document a cash settlement and to support cash transactions.
Transfer Voucher: It is needed when guest account is directly billed;
transferred from a guest receivable to a non guest receivable account.

5. During after Departure Stage:

Guest History Record: Hotel keeps a track of guest profile in the form of
guest preferences and his likes & dislikes. It usually contains the details of
guests personal & financial information.

GUEST CYCLE UNDER DIFFERENT OPERATING

SYSTEMS
 UNIT 4 GUEST CYCLE
1. Manual or Non Automated Systems:
In the manual front office, entire paper work is done like record keeping
relied on handwrittenforms & cards.
a. Pre Arrival Stage: Guest Reservation Requests should be written in a loose
leaf notebook, density chart, reservation diary- these records also assist in
determining future room availabilities and high & low demand periods. In
manual system there should be sufficient manpower to perform all these
tasks.
b. Arrival Stage: Guest has to perform few formalities like filling up of
GRC(Guest Registartion Card), either sign a page in the registration book or
manually fill a registration card. After taking the guest signature, the
registration card and other related documents are inserted in room rack or
Whitney rack slot and deal as a room rack slips.
c. Occupancy Stage/ During the Stay: FO needs to prepare registration records
with multi copies. These copies are transferred to various relevant sections to
telephone, cashier, housekeeping, F&B service, room rack slot. Revenue
outlets like restaurant, gift shop, etc send documentation of charges to the
front desk for posting into the respective guest folios.
d. Departure and After Departure Stage: FO Cashiers need to settle the guest
bill/folio. He has to transfer all the outstanding balance to the respective
guest accounts and prepare the final bill for the guest. After departure, these
room rack slips shall be filled in a cardboard box to serve as a guest history
record.
2. Semi-automated systems:

This very system is less common in small and middle size hotels. For, these
very hotels, financially wise, might not afford the huge investments associated
with the installation of different hardware and software.The main advantage of
this very system over manual system is that various reports can automatically
be generated. However, the major disadvantages associated with this system
are various complexities of operating and controlling devices due to the fact
that this equipment are not integrated with other systems and are subject to
frequent maintenance problems.

A- Pre-arrival activities:

At this very stage, guests can either call a national reservation network or directly
contact the hotel. Moreover, reservation clerks can prepare pre-registration records,
guest folios, and information rack slips.

B- Arrival activities:

At this very stage, already reserved guests shall verify their pre-registration forms
and have only to sign it. On the other hand, walk-ins shall complete a multiple copy
registration record from the beginning.

C- Occupancy activities:
 UNIT 4 GUEST CYCLE
At the occupancy stage, in order to track the different guest charge expenditures
and all other possible guest transactions, hotels get an intensive use of various kinds
of vouchers. Moreover, the most widely used equipment, under this very stage, is the
mechanical cash registers and front office posting machines. Lastly, under this very
stage, night auditor shall continuously resolve any discrepancy in guest accounts and
efficiently reconcile guest folios.

D- Departure activities:

At this very stage, cashiers shall relay room status information to the housekeeping
department. Moreover, they should place registration records of departed guests in
propertys guest history files.

4. Fully automated systems:

A- Pre-arrival activities:

Under this stage, the reservation department is equipped with a software package,
which is interfaced and connected with one or more central reservation office(s).
Moreover, the reservation department can automatically generate letters of
confirmation, produce requests for guest deposits and handle pre-registration
activities for all types of guests and generate daily expected arrival lists, occupancy
and revenue forecast lists

B- Arrival activities:

At this stage, various reservation records can be transferred to front office

department. Moreover, hotels might be equipped with an on-line credit authorization
terminals for timely Credit Card Approval, self check-in / check-out terminals. Lastly,
all guest charges and payments are saved in electronic guest folios.

As far as walk-ins are concerned, all registration activities should be initiated from
the very beginning.

C- Occupancy activities:

Under this very stage, guest purchases at different revenue outlets are electronically
transferred and posted to appropriate guest accounts. Moreover, the front office
department can run and process continuous trial balances and, therefore, eliminate
the tedious work for the Night Auditor.

D- Departure activities:
 UNIT 4 GUEST CYCLE
At this very stage, cashiers can automatically produce bills to be sent to various
guests with direct billing privileges and create electronic guest history records.

Front Office Terminology

1. Lead Time: A time period from when a booking was made to the time a guest
check in into the hotel.
2. Express Check Out: It is an activity which involves compilation and early
morning distribution of guest accounts to all those guests who are expected to
departure that morning.
3. Blocking: The process of holding or reserving a specific room for specific guest,
based on room preferences and other factors.
4. Due In: It means expected check in of today. On the other hand, due out means
expected check out of today.
5. Guest History: Records shoeing the details of guests previous visits to our hotel.
For instance, address length of stay, credit cards used and room preferences.
6. Guest Folio: It contains all the guests detail like guest name, no. of pax, room
number, room type, detail of consumed products & services and made
payments. It may also cal as guest account.
7. VPO/ Visitors Paid Out/ Paid Out Voucher: A form filled up in order to cash paid
out expenses. It happened when any staffs pays on behalf of guest for arranging
requested services or items.
8. Complimentary: It means free of Charge.
9. Day Rate: It is a type of room rate which is based on day use of room or rate
offered to guest who stays only during day time.
10. Pre Registration: RegistartionFormalities before guest arrival. It is done
generally for VIPs, Group, Regular Guest.
11. Walk Ins: A guest seeking a room who arrives at the hotel without an
advance reservation.
12. C Form: It is filled or used when registering any foreign national in our
hotel. Afterwards, its original copy will sent to nearest FRRO.
UNIT 4 GUEST CYCLE
UNIT 4 GUEST CYCLE
UNIT 4 GUEST CYCLE
UNIT 4 GUEST CYCLE