I've spent most of the last week staying at Hyde Park Hotel in Sydney. As a tourist the main function of a hotel is a place to sleep, so providing the basics are done well, the customer is unlikely to notice the service. So after four nights at the hotel I realised I hadn't noticed the hotel service, and given the temperature had got up to 42 degrees then there were things that could have been noticed.
When looking for a hotel to stay in, I was looking for a reasonable location and a reasonable price, but these factors aren't ultimately how i would end up judging the service of the hotel. I hadn't really factored in air conditioning coming from Wellington, but that turned out to be pretty crucial as the temperature was still 39 degrees at midnight. The room was clean, had the things expected even though I've never made a list for myself of what to expect. So I guess it would be relatively trivial things I would notice like lack of an ironing board, lights not working or something overlooked in the set up of the room. Fortunately this was all done well, and the location and price now kick in after the fact as making me think very favourably of the hotel.
However if something had been amiss, it is how the hotel responds to the problem that makes the difference. I'm staying at a motor camp this week and there was a small problem, the host fixed it up very quickly and therefore it will be a positive factor of how I respond to the service. I've learnt in my recent travels that customers don't always know what they want until they don't get it, and the service experience is a combination of how well those expectations are met, and how well those not met are responded to.
