Great Incentive Travel Planning Means that, Rain or Shine, We Still Dine!

​This is a throwback story of a time my whole incentive travel team as well as the hotel banquet staff worked so in sync together it was almost too smooth.

Picture it – Early December on the beach in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, right in front of the Nao’s restaurant of the Paradisus Palma Real. The sand is still warm from the hot day, the air is crisp, and the moon is shining bright without a cloud in sight. The décor company had just finished setting the beach, and the banquet staff had set the final water glass down on the table. The party was ready to start. This all came together 15 minutes before guests were to set to arrive to an open-air beach party complete with a live band.

As we began to put our final check lists away into our bags, we were all hit with some water. Being close to the beach, we all assumed it was just some sea wash that caught the right gust of wind until, out of nowhere, this little cloud of doom appeared and torrential downpour ensued. My colleague Mattie and I pressed ourselves against a wall with a small awning just big enough to keep us mostly dry while we stared out at the table settings that were just placed so perfectly. If you have ever been to the Caribbean, you are well aware that it may rain even though every meteorologist said you had 0% chance of rain all day. For the 15 minutes before everyone was supposed to be there, it rained so hard that the wine and water glasses had begun to overflow. Sheer panic was the only emotion you could read from the face of the travel and event planning team. As soon as it stopped, we all ran out to assess exactly how bad the rain was.

It was bad.

Without skipping a beat, the banquet manager assures us that it’s no problem and begins giving commands to his team and whistling. We all stood there in awe as we watched our soaking wet party get transformed into a dry again dinner beach party. Within 45 minutes of the last rain drop, the team at the Paradisus Palma Real had flipped everything around as if nothing happened. All while guests enjoyed the bar in the sand.

Morale of the story is that, as corporate event and meeting planners, we think we can prepare for everything. This is not always the case and, instead of getting angry about what’s going or gone wrong, we have to try to find a way to make it a positive. I doubt that team at the hotel would have been very receptive if we all just screamed and blamed them for the rain. Just take a deep breath, analyze what is going on, and move towards the most positive result as efficiently as you can with a smile. You might surprise yourself and I guarantee your client will look beyond the disaster if you handle it with confidence and a grin.

Justin

Justin Rieling

Associate Account Manager at The Incentive Solutions Group of Companies, consisting of:

    Incentive Solutions

    Loyaltyworks

    Travel Solutions

678-514-0213

jrieling@isicorporate.com

http://www.incentivesolutions.com/2015/12/23/great-incentive-travel-planning-means-that-rain-or-shine-we-still-dine/

Studies on How Event Planners Help Negotiate Group Travel Contracts

​Hotel Contract Strategies

1. Everything is negotiable. Not only are room rates and food beverage costs negotiable, but other items that may not be obvious are on the table, as well, including phone/Internet access charges, fax send/receipt feeds, overnight mail surcharges for sending/receiving packages through the hotel, bellhop and housekeeper gratuities, resort fees, established banquet menus/pricing and more.

2. Beware: hotels can cancel your meeting. If a better piece of business comes along, a hotel can cancel your meeting or event.

3. Keep hotel profit margins in mind when negotiating. If agreeing to attrition or cancellation, don’t pay full price for unused rooms or uneaten food. Profit margins for sleeping rooms and group food/beverage are high, so there is plenty of room for negotiation.

4. Require post-event reports. Use historical spend data to leverage better deals for future meetings with hotels and other suppliers.

A Look at Partial Force Majeure Strategies

1. While force majeure clauses are probably raised most often when a meeting has to be entirely canceled, meeting planners should not assume that cancellation of a meeting is the only time the clause can come into play. Instead, given the right circumstances, it is possible for a properly drafted force majeure clause to also save an organization from having to pay attrition and other types of contract damages.The concept is sometimes referred to as “partial force majeure,” and the idea is that a party should be excused from paying damages not only when there is the complete cancellation of the event, but also if any portion of a contract cannot be complied with due to circumstances beyond that party’s control.

5 Tips for Creating a Bulletproof Hotel Contract

1. Last year, the average hotel daily room rate and revenue per available room (RevPAR) was the highest ever recorded by STR, a global provider of competitive benchmarking, information services, and research to the hotel industry. Occupancy for the first quarter of 2015 was also the highest ever recorded by STR for hotels worldwide.

2. According to Freitag, a 66.8 percent occupancy rate in the U.S. is the highest STR has ever recorded for March. The industry also set a record with more than 100 million rooms sold worldwide, and RevPAR increased in the U.S. for the 61st consecutive month.

3. “Hotels are no longer bending over backwards to win your business,” explains Brooklyn, NY-based Roxane Kramer, a global account executive at ConferenceDirect, a full-service meetings solution company. “Plus, they are tightening their contract terms. Distinctly less flexibile, hotels are writing their contracts in their best interests.”

4. “When the hotel issues the contract, it is typically one-sided and missing key cost savings and risk-reduction clauses,” she adds. Clauses that are missing in hotel issued contracts according to Woodin include resell, so in the event of cancellation, the group and the hotel shall negotiate to establish mutually acceptable dates for a subsequent meeting to be held no later than twelve months after the original meeting dates and the hotel shall credit 50 percent of any cancellation paid against the subsequent meeting.

Tags: event planners, Event Planning, incentive travel, research, studies, Travel Incentives​

Negotiate Group Travel Contracts

​One of the major challenges of corporate events and group travel is contract negotiation. With large groups come large responsibilities, so hotels and resorts want to secure their profits and liabilities with contracts.

 If you’re part of an organization that hosts one group travel event a year, you might be able to establish a mutually beneficial relationship with one hotel or resort after patronizing it year after year, building up a reputation as a reliable, safe client. 

Consider another option, though: a group travel service can negotiates thorny contracts on your behalf, because they have experience and deal with travel contracts all the time. They can use their large network of hotels, resorts, agents, and cruise lines to your advantage. 

http://www.incentivesolutions.com/2015/12/15/5883/

How Can an Event Planner Help You Negotiate Group Travel Contracts?

​One of the major challenges of corporate events and group travel is contract negotiation. With large groups come large responsibilities, so hotels and resorts want to secure their profits and liabilities with contracts. If you’re part of an organization that hosts one group travel event a year, you might be able to establish a mutually beneficial relationship with one hotel or resort after patronizing it year after year, building up a reputation as a reliable, safe client. Consider another option, though: a group travel service can negotiates thorny contracts on your behalf, because they have experience and deal with travel contracts all the time. They can use their large network of hotels, resorts, agents, and cruise lines to your advantage. With group travel planners’ expertise, they can be on the lookout for clauses that can be renegotiated in your favor.

Some incentive providers, such as Incentive Solutions in Atlanta, GA, can provide travel planning services along with their travel rewards. Because Incentive Solutions offers hotels the promise of repeat business, they have more influence and can often negotiate much more favorable contracts. Here are just a few of the tricky, group travel contract clauses, listed by the Global Business Travel Association, that event planners can help you with:

• Cancellation Cancellation fees and clauses are in place to protect establishments from losing money should you cancel your trip. That’s understandable—hotels and resorts lose quite a bit of money if you cancel a large block of rooms and they don’t have time to rebook them. Beware of other cancellation policies in your contract, however.Travel and event planning services can help you avoid clauses and policies that could disrupt your trip. If the above example should happen when you’re planning a group outing, experienced travel planners know how to quantify what the hotel will pay you if they cancel your event. They also know it’s best to centralize and automate the room reservation process through an online registration system. That way, you can ensure that wait-listed attendees will fill in any reservations that are cancelled, keeping your room block booked and fulfilling your contract commitment.Cancellation clauses and fees are usually unavoidable, but event management experts can help with registration and contract negotiation so that you can reduce potential losses.
• Attrition Attrition is very closely related to cancellation. Specifically, it’s the term used for the compensation establishments receive for rooms or cabins that are removed from the market when your group reserves them. Attrition clauses, like all things in a group travel contract, are negotiable. Establishments may be open to the idea of removing an attrition clause, especially if they are dealing with a trusted, repeat client such as an incentive travel planner. Even better than no attrition clause, you may be able to include a clause stating there will be no attrition penalty.If you do pay attrition, an event planner can help you make compromises such as paying it on a cumulative basis, rather than per-night. This way, you can avoid paying full price for any rooms you don’t use or food and beverages you don’t consume.
• Force majeure A force majeure (French term meaning “superior force” or “great force”) clause is meant to absolve both parties (hotel and attendee) of liabilities in the event of an emergency beyond their control. Extreme weather, government regulations, and disease threats are all considered force majeure events. If hotels, resorts, cruise lines, etc. are prevented from fulfilling their duties by force majeure events, they rarely offer a refund provision.Force majeure clauses typically come into play when an event or trip has to be cancelled in its entirety. However, an event planner can help you establish policies such as “partial force majeure” in which you can protect yourself from paying extra attrition fees if an event out of your control disrupts—but doesn’t entirely cancel—your trip. For instance, you may be hosting an event in Florida in February, a trip most attendees can make without disruption. A blizzard in the northeastern U.S. may detain attendees from that part of the country, however, forcing you to cancel 25% of your reservations. It may not be sensible to cancel the entire event, so you can rely on a partial force majeure agreement to avoid being penalized with attrition fees.
• IndemnificationIndemnification clauses exist to protect one or both parties from financial loss, and to place responsibility of damage or neglect on the party most capable of preventing it. Most contracts include provisions requiring you to indemnify the hotel for any claims or liabilities they incur as a result of negligence or omission by your organization or people associated with it.Travel planners can help you tweak and negotiate this clause so that, for instance, you can specify whether the hotel will be indemnified for negligence or gross negligence. Event planners can help you push back against strict indemnification clauses as, ultimately, you can’t control your attendees’ actions. You may also be able to require the hotel to indemnify your organization against claims asserted against you that result from the hotel’s acts of omissions or negligence.

Cancellation, attrition, force majeure, and indemnification are just a few clauses typical in group travel contracts. While many of the basic clauses themselves are unavoidable, there are still ways to protect yourself and avoid being subjected to biased provisions and preventable fees. Incentive group travel and corporate events should be about learning, networking, getting to know colleagues, and having a great time. An event planner’s expertise can help negotiate a contract that works out best for you, in the end, so you can focus on hosting the best event possible.

Savannah Bobo
Copywriter at The Incentive Solutions Group of companies, consisting of:

• Incentive Solutions, Inc.
• Loyaltyworks
• Travel Solutions

Direct Contact: 678-514-0248
Sales Hotline: (800)-844-5000

Tags: corporate events, Event Planning, Group Travel, incentive travel, Travel Incentives

Limited-Time Group Travel Deal to Dreams Los Cabos

When hurricane Odile smashed into Mexico’s Baja California Peninsula back in 2014, it left some of Cabo San Lucas’s luxury hotels with extensive property damage. About a year later, we are now happy to say that Los Cabos is bouncing back from the devastation, having reopened many resorts such as the new and improved Dreams Los Cabos. Bringing your participants to the beautiful Dreams Los Cabos Suites Golf Resort & Spa for a corporate event or as an incentive reward will refresh and inspire them. Book your trip by December 15th to take advantage of this $179 per person, per night rate, which applies to the following travel dates:

• December 1-21, 2015
• June 1-September 30, 2016

Dreams Los Cabos Suites Golf Resort & Spa is officially open and better than ever, with major renovations completed and specials galore. If the tropical, seaside locale isn’t enticing enough, the Dreams resort also has these updated property features and amenities to offer:

• 213 completely renovated suites featuring rain showers and private balconies with breathtaking views of the Sea of Cortez
• Three swimming pools, including a new infinity pool, new children’s pool, an adults-only pool and two swim-up bars
• Unlimited gourmet dining and limitless premium spirits at newly expanded restaurants and lounges
• Newly renovated Dreams Spa by Pevonia®, fitness center, and Explorer’s Club for Kids
• Eight nearby championship golf courses
• Countless area activities and sights, such as the beautiful El Arco rock formation, whale watching and world-class fishing

What are you waiting for? Take your employees or business partners on a dream incentive trip to paradise! Contact us or call us at 1-866-567-7432 today to book your group trip by December 15th.

Mattie Logan
Travel Associate Account Manager at The ISI Group of Companies consisting of:

• Incentive Solutions
• Loyaltyworks
• Travel Solutions

678-514-0219

MLogan@isicorporate.com

Services : All Inclusive , Corporate Travel , Event Planner , Event Planning , Group Travel Packages , Incentive Travel , Incentive trip

Could Reenactment Cruises Become a Hot New Group Travel Trend?

Incentive travel is becoming buoyant again, and it’s going in the direction of cruise lines. Many people are taking advantage of the all-inclusive feel of cruise ships. With food being included and now unlimited drink packages being made more widely available, who wouldn’t want to set sail into the sunset for their next incentive group travel get-away or corporate event? Let’s travel back in time to 1912, when the Titanic set sail from England all ahead full to New York City.

We all know this unsinkable ship did just the opposite, after running into an iceberg. It was a tragedy, as many people lost their lives. Many researchers over the years have picked about the ship, gathering a plethora of information on the vessel. So much so, that Hollywood was able to create a film around the disaster. This may have been where Clive Palmer got the idea to fund a replication of the Titanic.

Australian billionaire Clive Palmer announced that he would be funding the recreation of the Titanic, appropriately naming it Titanic 2. This ship will be as close to the original ship as possible, with all of the latest technology to avoid those pesky icebergs.

The Titanic 2 is just a few inches longer than the original and has a capacity of 2,435 guests and 900 crew. The ship will include a gymnasium, Turkish baths, squash court, swimming pool, theatre and a casino, all based on the original designs. It is set to sail in 2017 across the Atlantic between Southampton, England and New York City. Passengers will have the option to pick a class to live in on their voyage, or they will offer a package that will allow them to stay in each class for 2 nights. The idea is to have every detail designed after the original down to the china patterns. There are no plans to have televisions or Internet services aboard the Titanic 2, making it easier to step into the past and truly live for a few days as a passenger of the Unsinkable Ship. Conditions in the mid-class sections will be deliberately cramped and passengers will even be checked for lice, just like on the original Titanic voyage.

Will the Titanic reenactment voyage sink to the bottom of people’s memories, or will reenactment trips become the hottest new trend in incentive travel?

Justin Rieling
Associate Account Manager at The ISI Group of Companies consisting of:

• Incentive Solutions
• Loyaltyworks
• Travel Solutions

678-514-0213
jrieling@isicorporate.com

Category : All Inclusive , Corporate Travel , Cruises , Group Travel Packages

Tags: All Inclusive, Group Travel, incentive travel