Walking in a Winter Wonderland – ¡Switzerland!

7 diciembre, 2010scotty 7 comentarios

Where do I start?

Switzerland: a land I thought was stuffy, old and full of boring financiers. I also thought that nothing much went on there due to its incredible neutrality (they don’t have an army of their own and a friend told me that all houses have bunkers in case of war!).

So last week, Fernando and I left Madrid for a 6 day trip there thinking that it would be pretty (which it was), interesting (which it was) but not so fun. We were so wrong!

Our first two nights (Thursday and Friday) were in Geneva – the second most expensive city in the world. It was nice and it was exciting to see snow (coming from Sydney, Australia, I haven’t seen much of that magical white stuff in my life so whenever I do, it’s always exciting)! Fernando and I ate really good Chinese food to warm us up (it was about -1 degree Celsius!), walked around the city, found some cute snowmen and got photos with them, went up the bell tower in the cathedral and had chats with many locals along the way, trying to gather as much information about what we should do for our next 4 days in Switzerland as we could! We knew we wanted to try out the famous Glacier Express train (with panoramic carriages!) but didn’t know what else to do, or where to go!

With more information, and suggestions on where to go (almost everybody said Zermatt was a winner destination), we jumped on a tram (using our FREE Geneva transport card – I read everybody gets one when they stay in Geneva which I think is a great tourism initiative by the local government) and went to see the UN headquarters for Europe, which just so happens to be in Geneva! It was 4pm, so we missed the last tour (you need to take a guided tour to see the place) but just being there and seeing all the world flags lining the long driveway was cool enough!

After a very fun dinner with some family friends of mine, and a well earned rest, Fer and I were off! It was Saturday morning: nice and sunny, but still really cold! We lined up at the rail ticket counter at Geneva station, still unsure of where to go, and bought our Swiss Rail Passes (which work all over the network – see here). At 195 CHF (Swiss Franc), or roughly $200 AUD or 150€, it’s not cheap, but for 4 days of unlimited rail (including high speed), bus and ferry transport, plus 50% discounts on mountaintop railways, it is actually really good value! One leg of our journey would have cost at least 150 CHF if we didn’t have our pass. So it paid for itself in half a day!

Our first stop was beautiful Lausanne, on Lac Léman. Although we had my big suitcase (I needed my big jackets for the cold!), we got out and on our way to see the lake, I noticed a café that said “vin chaud” on the board (hot wine in French – we were still in the French speaking part of Switzerland; German, French and Italian (in order of commonness) are the 3 languages of Switzerland)). One of our ‘things’ to do in Switzerland was try hot wine! So we went in and I asked, in my best (read: bad) French accent, for two vin chauds. Well, of course we were served two normal red wines weren’t we! Anyway, it was really nice wine and we enjoyed the atmosphere of the comfy café.

On the road again – with the Samsonite trudging along the snow covered (both melted and frozen) footpath behind me. Then Lac Léman popped out from behind a beautiful castle-like hotel! With the snow-covered alps behind it, and the sunshine beating down upon it, it was like something from a fairytale – a winter wonderland – de verdad!  After a quick stop at the lake (we were hoping to get the ferry across the lake, but we missed it by 1 hour!), and at the grocery store for supplies for lunch on the train (love Coop – a big supermarket chain in Switzerland), it was back to the train station to decide if we were to go to Brig or Visp next…

Next stop: Brig! And lucky we did because from Brig we caught the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn to Zermatt – we didn’t know anything about Zermatt except that we should go there. My expectations of a small mountain village were met and exceeded by Zermatt. It was a full ski resort with all the trimmings: from a full supermarket, restaurants and high end stores (including many that sold the beautiful Swiss watches) to walking trails to the top of the runs and a fun and exciting atmosphere. It was brilliant! We arrived at about 9pm and luckily, the very helpful information centre helped us find a hotel and told us about the village. Did I mention it was about -14 degrees Celsius?

A shot of the Matterhorn from a webcam at Gornergrat –>

The next day, from Zermatt, we took Switzerland’s oldest electrified cogwheel train to the Gornergrat (3089m above sea level) where we were surrounded by an impressive mountain range, with an amazing view of the Matterhorn. And when I say amazing, I mean it! After a very fun 2 hour walk on the snow covered trails back down to Zermatt, and a day of exploring the area, we were all snowed out and couldn’t wait to get back to our great little hotel (with views of the Matterhorn – not from our balcony though  ).

A new day (Monday) and a new Swiss city! Chur, watch out, here we come!  Or so we thought…

After a very early wake up and a hasty breakfast (and many, “Scott! Hurry up!”’s), we ran to the Zermatt rail station only to find that the 10am Glacier Express that we had planned on getting to Chur or St. Moritz wasn’t running this week! It started again December 12 for the new season! Oh well. We recouped our thoughts and went back to our trusty Swiss Rail booklet with the network map in it. After talking to the ever helpful Swiss Rail staff, we decided on Lucerne for a night and then an 8am train to Geneva the next day (Tuesday) to make our 1:30pm flight home.

10:39am rolled around, and so did our train back to Brig. The snow covered mountains were breathtaking! We went through a little town called St Niklaus (with a GIANT Santa Claus!), saw horses galloping in the snow and enjoyed the warm atmosphere of the train – both temperature and people-wise – the fellow passengers were very talkative  .

From Brig, we continued on the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn to Andermatt where we could stretch our legs a bit and then get another train to Lucerne (or Luzern in the local German spelling). On both of those legs, we were gobsmacked at the landscapes we saw – from snow capped mountains and valleys, to lake-side towns (again with snow capped mountains behind them) and views that looked like scenes from Christmas movies.

Lucerne = magical, charming and lovely! As soon as we arrived we both said that there was something about it that we liked. This was after asking the lovely Gaby in the tourist information office where we could stay for the night – she spoke FIVE languages: German, Italian, English, French and Spanish! So when Fernando let slip “Sí” instead of “Yes” one time, we all continued the conversation in Spanish  . Anyway, we found a place for just 93 CHF per night (an ETAP, part of the French “Accor group”, so you know it’s going to be ok) and went to explore the city! We visited the traditional Christmas markets where we tried the glühwein (aka mulled wine)  and two types of wurst (German sausages). Not to mention this great cheese and bread dish called raclette!  Anyway, the night was great – exploring the city, trying hot wine (finally  ) and just taking in the sights and sounds of this wonderful city!

The next day, the 8am train to Geneva was used as a second bed: snoozing most of the way to Geneva. The beautiful snow covered fields were not missed however – I will never forget one particular field with so much fog that it looked like you were staring into a white nothingness, until a car’s headlights shone through and brought me back to reality.

Overall, Switzerland now holds a special place in my heart. The experiences I had. The people I met. The food I enjoyed… a lot! It all comes together to create one of my favourite trips, ever. I strongly recommend you include it on your next itinerary – or make it a special trip on its own. It’s worth it.

Have you been to Switzerland before? What did you do? What did you think of it? I would really like to hear your thoughts/experiences! Let me know.

NH Hoteles – ¿Un buen ejemplo de Web 2.0?: Marketing Turístico Nebrija

2 noviembre, 2010scotty3 comentarios

En mi opinión, NH Hoteles tiene buena pinta en el mundo de los hoteles y marketing del turismo. Ellos han hecho campañas buenas de marketing, tanto directo como indirecto, a través de herramientas de Web 2.0 como Twitter, Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/NHHotelescorporate) y su blog (http://www.nh-hotels.com/blog/).

Con sus campañas buenas, NH ha conseguido sitios impresionantes 

Según Peter Drucker, el famoso profesor, “para una compañia, una fórmula ganadora en la década pasada puede no funcionar para la década siguiente”. Esto está en consonancia con la teoría de Kotler y NH Hoteles ha mostrado que con esto en mente, su empresa puede aumentar y crecer muy bien.

Mi pregunta es esta: ¿Por qué no otras empresas utilizan Web 2.0?

Si tienes algo que decir, ¡Debes escribir un comentario más abajo!

Referencias:

Kotler, P. 2003, ‘Marketing para turismo’ Pearson Prentice Hall, 3a Edición, Madrid.

Destination Marketing: Marketing Turístico Nebrija

9 noviembre, 2010 scotty 2 comentarios

Destination marketing uses “a proactive, strategic, visitor-centered approach to the economic  and cultural development of a location, which balances and integrates  the interests of visitors, service providers, and the community.”*  As such, destination marketing is a very important part of tourism; for all stakeholders in the tourism industry.

To organise and conduct this important task of marketing a destination sustainably, there are destination marketing organisations, or “DMOs”. They are stand-alone business entities – governmental, corporate, or nonprofit – that are responsible for leading and coordinating all of the marketing efforts on behalf of a particular destination.  According to the DMAI (Destination Marketing Association  International), there are five main types of destinations, each with their own set of characteristics and therefore, different marketing challenges:

1. Mega-city: a city so large that it has become a unique destination unto itself; people who go there think of it as a primary destination, with the parent country as an associated option.

2. Large city: a city large enough to have become a “name” destination, and one of the primary choices when visiting a particular country.

3. Mid-sized city: a city of substantial size which is typically less well-known to foreign visitors; the DMO has to tell and sell its story and continually build a brand.

4. Regional/natural attraction: a geographic area or extended region that attracts visitors for reasons other than the typical urban experience.

5. Unique/boutique destination: typically small and localised destinations that capitalise on a specialised “best known for” appeal.

When marketing a destination, the DMO for that destination must think about the type of visitor they are trying to attract (eg. Ranging from Adventurers to Dependents), identify the selling points of the destination and build on them (by possibly organising a music festival on the beach (for example, the New Years Eve celebrations on Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia – http://www.fuzzy.com.au/look-listen/215/all )) and then to communicate these USPs (unique selling points) to the public or whoever the target market for the DMO may be through channels that this target will respond to (ie. Facebook for teenagers or a television travel channel for parents).

Do you have a destination that you think should be marketed better so the world can enjoy it too?  Why not add it to the comment box below? Go on, share your favourite destination with the world.

*This definition was proposed by business strategist and futurist Dr.  Karl Albrecht, and endorsed by the Destination Marketing Association  International, in the report of the 2008 DMAI Futures Study, conducted  for DMAI by Karl Albrecht International.

Links:
www.fuzzy.com.au
www.destinationmarketing.org

Introducing The Phoenix Hotel, Hakuba, Japan: Marketing Turístico Nebrija

9 noviembre, 2010scotty 8 comentarios

Following on from my last post on destination marketing, I wanted to show you a prime example of how destination marketing can really work!

The Phoenix Hotel is a unique ski lodge located in the heart of one of the world’s finest ski resorts in Hakuba, Japan. Hakuba played host to the 1998 Nagano Winter Olympic Gamesand so it already has some marketing strength behind it. The primary target market for the Phoenix Hotel is people from Australia and other countries who want to experience a Japanese snow experience.

Having participated in the opening of this hotel a few years ago, and knowing the owners and managers, I learned that it is not easy to market a destination, especially a smaller/boutique one.  Much advertising needed to be done, both locally in the ski resort of Happo-one where the hotel is located, and in cities like Tokyo and Sydney, not to mention in other countries. Flyers were used to obtain clientele locally and a website was set up for potential clients from anywhere in the world. Snow Japan, the independent Japan winter sports guide and online ski & snowboard community, along with Ski Japan were used to obtain business from alpine sports enthusiasts as The Phoenix also caters for adventurers.

Starting from nothing and building this hotel to the level it is at today would not have been possible without the proper marketing campaigns and select marketing channels that The Phoenix Hotel has employed.

Have you been on a ski holiday and loved your experience? Or did you hate it? Add your thoughts below and possibly save a fellow traveller from a terrible holiday experience! 

Has Phoenix succeeded in their campaigns?: Marketing Turístico Nebrija

9 noviembre, 2010

When you consider that in 2008 The Phoenix Hotel was not even in existence, and that today it has business almost year-round, I think the answer is yes, they have succeeded.

Take a look at the hotel and surrounding areas. The photos help sell the destination and hotel, but with prices of alpine holidays usually higher than other destinations, it is necessary to coax travellers to these places with special offers or higher quality experiences.

The Phoenix Hotel has used both of these techniques in its campaigns with discounts in off and shoulder seasons and high quality lodgings.

Have you stayed at the Phoenix? What did you think? How did you hear about it? You know what to do… comment below!

La Gastronomía de España y Australia: Marketing Turístico Nebrija

16 noviembre, 2010scotty 5 comentarios

Hoy, voy a compartir algo muy importante… ¡los secretos gastronómicos de España y Australia! (Bueno, si estás leyendo esto, hay muchas posibilidades que ya sepas sobre los secretos gastronómicos de España, ¡pero no de Australia!)

Ok. Una de las cosas que noté cuando llegué a Madrid en Enero pasado era que había una cosa llamada “Tortilla de Patatas” en el menú. ¡EN TODAS PARTES! ¿Qué era este plato tan misterioso? Estaba disponible sóla, con pan (también conocido como bocadillos de tortilla de patata – ¿Por qué alguien quiere tantos carbohidratos de una sola vez se me escapa, pero de todos modos  ), como guarnición, en los bares, en el mercado San Miguel (un mercado de alta clase en Madrid) y en el supermercado, por lo que puedes cocinarla tu mismo y se lo comen en casa! Tenía que probarlo! Así que lo hice … Y estaba delicioso! Tan simple pero… tan sabroso! Aquí está la receta para que pueda probar por sí mismo (si no puede salir al supermercado y comprarla  )

Curiosamente, la tortilla de patata fue el plato más popular en España durante el año 2008, según una encuesta realizada por Coca-Cola.

Ahora por algo más exótico! 

¡EL LAMINGTON!

Ahora, tiempo para una definición de Wikipedia: Un lamington es una torta esponjosa con forma de cuboide, cubierta con una cobertura azucarada a base de chocolate y espolvoreada con coco rallado. Aveces los lamingtons son servidos como dos mitades con una capa de crema o mermelada de frutillas entre ellas, y es común encontralos en cafés, bares, reposterías y supermercados de Australia.

Lo que Wikipedia se olvidó de mencionar es que son deliciosos! Desde niño, siempre me emocioné cuando mi mamá se los hacen.

¡Y aquí tienes la receta!  (en Inglés aquí, o traducido por Google al español aquí)

¡Ahora, lo puedes hacer en casa y tener un pequeño pedazo de Australia en el plato!

¡Buen provecho!

¿Has probado un lamington o algo diferente del otro país? (En una ocasión, yo comí rana con gachas de avena en Singapur. Fue bien, más o menos  ) ¡Cuéntame!

Famous food of Spain and Australia: Marketing Turístico Nebrija

16 noviembre, 2010scotty 10 comentarios

Today I’m going to share something very special with you… a secret from the kitchens of Spain that has been voted the most popular Spanish dish more than once… the Tortilla de Patatas – or Spanish Omelette. I’m also going to share an Australian gastronomical treasure with you (although if you’re reading this and are from Australia, you probably already know it)… the Lamington!

Ok. So one of the things I noticed when I arrived in Madrid last January was that there was this thing called “Tortilla de Patatas” on the menu. EVERYWHERE! What was this mysterious dish? It was available as a dish of its own, on bread rolls (aka bocadillos de tortilla de patata – why you would want that many carbohydrates in one go is beyond me, but anyway), as a side dish, at bars, the San Miguel market (a more upmarket open air market in Madrid) and in the supermarket so you could cook it yourself and eat it at home! I just had to try it! So I did… And it was delicious! So simple, yet so filling and tasty! So here’s the recipe so you can try it yourself (if you can’t go out to the supermarket and buy it  )

And now for something more exotic!

THE LAMINGTON!

Time for a little Wikipedia definition: A Lamington is a sponge cake in the shape of a cuboid, coated in a layer of chocolate icing and then desiccated coconut. Lamingtons are sometimes served as two halves with a layer of cream and/or strawberry jam between them, and are commonly found in Australian outlets such as cafes, lunch bars, bakeries, and supermarkets.

What Wikipedia forgot to mention is that they are DELICIOUS! I would always get excited when my mum said that she was making them!

And here you have the recipe! Now you can make them at home and have a little piece of Australia on your plate! 

Bon appétit!

Have you tried anything weird or wonderful from another country? (I once had frog porridge in Singapore! It was ok.  ) Let me know!

Los Paradores de España: Marketing Turístico Nebrija

23 noviembre, 2010

¡Hola!

Esta semana, voy a compartir otro tesoro de España: ¡los paradores!

Estos son hoteles de alta categoría y operados por Paradores de Turismo de España, S.A. Todo comenzó en 1928, cuando se crea la “Junta de Paradores y Hosterías del Reino”. Comenzó por Alfonso XIII como un medio para promover el turismo en España, la primera apertura fue en Gredos, Ávila, en 1928. Los siguientes en abrir sus puertas fueron los de Oropesa (Toledo) y Úbeda (Jaén) en 1930, Ciudad Rodrigo (Salamanca) en 1931 y Mérida en 1933.

Una empresa rentable estatal (Paradores de Turismo de España, S.A.), los hoteles están a menudo en castillos, palacios, fortalezas, conventos, monasterios y otros edificios históricos. Se extienden desde Galicia en el norte-oeste hasta Cataluña a Andalucía en el sur de España, las Islas Canarias y las ciudades españolas en el norte de África. Los precios variar de acuerdo a la habitación, en la región, y la temporada.

El equivalente portugués, las Pousadas de Portugal, se fundó en 1942, seguir el modelo español.

A partir del parador de Gredos, se quiso también aprovechar y rehabilitar algunos de los numerosos monumentos históricos abandonados. Esto me parece muy importante: preservar los monumentos y obras abandonados para otras generaciones.

Ahora, algunos datos divertidos (gracias a Wikipedia):

 

• La provincia española que más Paradores tiene es Cáceres, con cinco: Cáceres, Guadalupe, Plasencia, Trujillo y Jarandilla de la Vera.
• Actualmente, la Red de Paradores está formada por 93 establecimientos.
• Paradores de Turismo de España, S.A. tienen como objetivo expandirse internacionalmente.

¿Has estado en un parador? ¡Cuéntame!
Último fin de semana, yo estaba en Sigüenza, aproximadamente una hora y media desde Madrid. El parador allí es un castillo y es muy agradable.

 

The Paradores of Spain: Marketing Turístico Nebrija

23 noviembre, 2010scotty 2 comentarios

Hey again!

Parador Don Gaspar de Portola 

After much interest towards last week’s post on tortilla de patatas, this week I’m going to share another of Spain’s many treasures with you: its paradores!

“What are they?” I hear you asking from your desk/lounge/wherever you may be reading this. Well, they are the wonderfully transformed and renovated castles, monasteries, palaces and forts that are now luxury hotels dotted across Spain’s beautiful and very unique landscape.

These paradores are operated by Paradores de Turismo de España, S.A., a profitable state-run enterprise. They are often renovated castles, fortresses, palaces, convents, monasteries and other historic buildings and can be found all over Spain: from Galicia in the northwest across to Cataluña on the Mediterranean coast and down to Andalucia in the south of Spain. They are even found on the Canary Islands and in the Spanish cities in northern Africa. Prices usually vary according to room, region, and season, like most hotels.

The Pousadas de Portugal, (the Portuguese equivalent) were founded in 1942, after the Spanish model.

After the first parador (which, by the way, in Spanish means ‘inn or stopping place’) was opened, the idea of the parador was embraced and other abandoned historical monuments were renovated into paradores. To me, this is a great way to show off Spain’s amazing structures and towns, both large and small. The reuse of space is also a great thing in a world where land is becoming scarcer every day. The preservation of these structures is also, in my opinion, a very important thing so that future generations can see and learn from what was done in the past.

And now for some fun facts (thanks to Wikipedia!):

One of the modern Paradors, the “Aigua Blava” Parador, overlooking Aigua Blava Bay in the Costa Brava.

· The Spanish province with the most paradores is Cáceres, with five properties: Cáceres, Guadalupe, Plasencia, Trujillo and Jarandilla de la Vera.

· Right now there are 93 paradores in the network in Spain.

· Paradores de Turismo de España, S.A. wants to expand internationally (so watch your nearest castle – you might be able to sleep there one day!)

Have you ever been to a parador? What do you think about the use of these old and important buildings as paradores? Let me know!
I went to Sigüenza on the weekend (an hour and a half out of Madrid) and saw the parador there – it was great! It was a really well preserved castle with beautiful internal garden and great view of the Castilla-La Mancha landscape.

Customer Loyalty Programs: Marketing Turístico Nebrija

29 noviembre, 2010scotty 4 comentarios

What are they exactly?

Put simply, loyalty programs are based on making each sale lead to another. Their aim is to create a stable and long lasting relationship with the consumer, as this is more cost effective and time efficient for the business than finding new customers each time.

The most well known form of customer loyalty program is the point based rewards system. You can find these attached to credit cards, frequent flyer programs, hotels, department stores – almost anything could have a point system attached to it.

Loyalty programs are used, primarily, by businesses with client satisfaction as their main goal. For example, the tourism sector which normally sells experiences rather than tangible products, places a large emphasis on client satisfaction as this is their ‘product’: You don’t fly on an aeroplane, get off at the other end, and take the seat home with you – you take the experience!

How can businesses improve their customer loyalty?

Customer Loyalty starts from a young age… think McDonald’s! 

Listening! It’s as simple as listening to your clients! That and responding to what your clients have to say in a direct, helpful and timely manner.

How can loyal customers help your business?

Normally, loyal customers:

• Are less sensitive to price changes
• Are more likely to stay with your brand longer
• Will buy additional products, so you can increase your cross-selling
• Will buy more items or more expensive items, so you can up-sell
• Will speak highly of you to other consumers (and who doesn’t want free advertising?)

According to Riechheld & Sasser, a 5% increase in your number of loyal customers will result in an average increase of benefits between 25 and 125%!

So be nice to your clients (and they’ll be nice to you)!

How many loyalty or membership cards do you have in your wallet? Do you ever use them? Have you ever struck gold with a loyalty program and really benefited from it (either as a consumer or a business)? Let me know!