Add a dash of luxury to WFH
Star properties are offering a complete office environment for executives and professionals
With work from home, or WFH, due to the Covid pandemic continuing for almost four months, the initial euphoria around it might be waning for many. And premium-to-luxury hotels, such as Mumbai’s JW Marriott and Taj Lands End, Bengaluru’s Conrad and Gurugram’s Hyatt Place, are stepping in with offers of a completely new concept — workcation and staycation packages — in a big way. On offer are lucrative packages that include stay and meals, along with access to office infrastructure, mandatory room upgrades and discounts on spas.
Says Sameer Wadhwa, partner, Deloitte India: “From hotels that range from standalone to budget, high-end properties to homestays, everyone is trying to capture the pent-up demand emanating from Unlock 1.0. They have slashed rates by 15-25 per cent of preCovid levels. While this demand is limited to 'drive to' for now, we see some of the more popular destinations such as Goa, Kerala, Uttarakhand, and Sikkim back in demand once interstate travel restrictions are removed.”
Adds Renu Basu, senior vicepresident–global sales & marketing, Taj brand – IHCL: “These are the key elements. Therefore, hotels provide everything that facilitates working — high-speed internet, a quiet area for a work desk and private spaces for conducting meetings and dining. Since the packages are highly customised, hotels will accommodate additional requests to make the experience seamless for the guest as he conducts business and enjoys the environment and open spaces at our hotels.”
Ditto with Hyatt, which has introduced a new workspace concept across several properties. Says Arif Patel, regional vice-president – sales & marketing, Hyatt India: “In this new world order, Hyatt has started to provide comfortable, luxurious and safe environments for guests to relax and work in.” Whether it is for casual remote working or collaborative team working, the workcation offers elements of both, business and leisure.
JW Marriott in Juhu, Mumbai, has its rooms and suites furnished with work desks. The hotel is selling the idea of work by the poolside, by the room, a tranquil ‘Secret Spot’ — a space designed to help you focus, or take a stroll by the beach during brainstorming sessions. At Conrad Bengaluru, breakfast is included in the staycation package. The hotel provides ~1,500 stay credit for food and beverage or any other hotel services like Conrad Spa. The meeting rooms are equipped with audio-visual facilities and are Clickshare-enabled.
Nurture with nature: Places high on natural beauty are popular for a workcation. According to IHCL’S Basu: “Workcations are popular at our hill destinations like Taj Rishikesh Resort & Spa, beach destinations like Taj Holiday Village & Resort, or our stays and trails with their beautiful bungalows.” The primary takers for this facility are mostly working professionals looking for a change in their routine of working from home. The stay can range from a brief two-day stay to a 6D/5N to even a thirty-day break. Says Hari Ganapathy, co-founder, Pickyourtrail: “Workcation has especially worked for hill stations and places like Coorg, Lonavala, and Bandipur for Chennai, Mumbai and Bengaluru-based professionals.”
People have been looking for a minimum of a week's stay at destinations that are easily accessible according to research by Yatra.com. Even Airbnb says that booking requests have been pouring in since July 1 and that it is booked till December. According to an Airbnb spokesperson, “As WFH and travel restrictions continue, we see a lot working professions from across Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru searching for long-term stay options at our properties in Goa and in the hills up north.”
Safety first: Hospitality brands have institutionalised a set of extensive hygiene and cleanliness protocols to restore confidence in their guests. JW Marriot has appointed a “Cleanliness Champion” who monitors safety and sanitisation processes at all times. It has also introduced QR codes to facilitate contactless services like checkin/check-out, dining and enabling payments. Taj has implemented comprehensive guidelines called ‘Tajness - A Commitment Restrengthened’ by the norms laid down by the World Health Organization (WHO), Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and the Government of India.
While air travel volumes have not returned to pre-lockdown levels, Cleartrip has launched a product called ‘Cleartrip for Work’ under which a person can access unlimited corporate fares on flights with multiple benefits. Says Balu Ramachandran, Global Head for the Air Business at Cleartrip: “As travel revives, we see a preference for hotels providing enabling office infrastructure. Customers would increasingly prefer properties that can provide a high degree of assurance on safety.”