1. Reservation

2. RESERVATION Reservations
A reservation in the context of the front office of a hotel means the booking or reserving of a bedroom(accommodation) by a guest, and involves a particular type of guest-room being reserved for a particular person or persons for a certain period of time

3. Good Customer Service Skills Personal Hygiene Loyalty to employer Good Communication Skills Product Knowledge Cultural Awareness
ATTRIBUTES

4. A contract of booking is an agreement which is entered into every time a reservations clerk offers a prospective guest a room and that guest accepts the room.
However , the guest must be informed of all relevant details relating to the booking i.e. type of room, the cost, dates, VAT and service charges involved.
Contract of booking

5. The contract of booking means
The hotel ensures there will be a room as specified, available for the guest upon their arrival
The guest will arrive to use the room which they have booked, on the specified day
The contract of booking means

6. A ‘release time clause’ may be added to an agreement
A ‘release time clause’ may be added to an agreement. (Non Guaranteed Reservation)
Release Time Clause

7. It must be remembered that a contract of booking is legally binding between both parties, regardless of whether it is made in writing or verbally. If either a hotel or a guest wishes to alter or cancel the reservation, they can do so only by mutual agreement (i.e when both parties agree to the amendment or cancellation)
If either the hotel or the guest does not agree to the change, then the injured party can sue for compensation.
Legal binding

8. If a guest does not notify a hotel of a cancellation the hotel is entitled to charge the guest for the loss of accommodation revenue, or may retain any deposit paid.
If a hotel cancels the accommodation without prior notice to the guest, the hotel should provide alternative accommodation of similar standard in another hotel, and pay for any differences in room rates and additional expenses the guest may have to incur (e.g taxi fares)

9. The Accommodation Product & The Hotel Guest
The accommodation product consists of more than a room with a bed. A guest purchasing accommodation also receives other facilities & benefits, such as ambience, décor, and security.
The accommodation product does not just consist of a guest room – single or double but also the additional facilities and services which are applicable to that room:e.g. Does the room have a sea view? Is there a mini bar? Are there in house movies? Can a guest dial direct from the room? Is there room service? Can the guest have access to internet? All these services, facilities and amenities may be included in the accommodation product of a hotel.
Since the accommodation product cannot be examined before purchase, guests are reliant upon the front office staff to be able to describe the product to them accurately. It is therefore particularly important for the front office staff to have full knowledge of what is included in the Accommodation package of a hotel.

10. Pricing Options Terminologies Explanation UK Rate US Rate French Rate
Room Only
European Plan
The rate quoted is for room only
Room & Breakfast
Continental Plan
This rate includes b/fast & accommodation
Half Board
Modified American Plan
Demi Pension
The rate includes room b/fast & one meal usually dinner
Full Board
American Plan
En Pension
All meals are included with accommodation

11. Bed & Breakfast

12. Phonetic Alphabets A ALPHA N NOVEMBER B BRAVO O OSCAR C CHARLIE P PAPAD
DELTA Q
QUEBEC E
ECHO R
ROMEO F
FOXTROT S
SIERRA G
GOLF T
TANGO H
HOTEL U
UNIFORM I
INDIA V
VICTOR J
JULIET W
WHISKY K
KIL X
X-RAY L
LIMA Y
YANKEE M
MIKE Z
ZULU
~ This is used to spell out Guests’ Name

13. 12 & 24 Hour Language 12 Hour (AM/PM) 24 Hour (000 hrs.)

14. Reservations System & Documents
Outlining of Reservation Particulars
Designing of Reservation Slip
Role Play - Telephone Communication

15. Telephone Etiquette Speech On The Telephone Telephone Communication:
To the caller your voice is the hotel, and is the main indication of what the staff is like, and what the company is like. Your voice needs to be clear and friendly.
One way to do this is to put a smile on your face as you talk. Your pleasantness communicates itself to the caller as if by magic.
Telephone Communication:
Have a pencil & a paper handy
Posture & Deportment
Answer the phone promptly within 3 rings

16. Telephone Etiquette For External Calls For Internal Calls
Greetings Bula Vinaka!
Identify Department Reservations Department
Identify Self This is Lora
Offer Assistance How may I help you???
For Internal Calls
Follow the four procedures above but amendments on Bula Vinaka instead use Greetings of the day [Good Morning, Good Afternoon or Good Evening] & identify departments instead of Hotel Name.
Please note the last phase [how may I help you] determines to you as a receiver where will the caller be transferred to.

17. Telephone Etiquette
Always advice the caller if their calls is on HOLD or TRANSFER and return to reassure that the call has not been forgotten or give information where the call is going.
When you have found out the caller’s name, use it.
Let the caller ring off first – in case there’s an after –thought.
“FOR CLARITY OF SPEECH ALWAYS PLACE YOUR TELEPHONE MOUTH – PIECE 4cm AWAY”

18. Telephone Etiquette

19. Sources of Reservation
Requests for reservation may come from a number of sources.
The most common are:
Direct Reservation
Are reservations which are handled directly by a hotel. These requests may come to the hotel in a number of ways.
In writing directly to the reservation department
By telephone directly to a hotel
/Fax & Internet
Desk booking

20. Sources of Reservation
2. Reservation Network System
These reservation network systems basically discuss the Affiliate & Non Affiliate reservation system. [Please refer reservations terminologies]
3. Agencies
Guests may make reservations through a travel agent. The agent will normally take a prepayment from the guest, send the confirmation to the hotel, and issue an accommodation voucher on its behalf.

21. Determining Room Availability From Availability Charts
Before accepting a reservation, it is essential that the reservations clerk checks the room availability to see whether accommodation is available to meet the request.
Room availability is usually shown on an availability chart, which can be in a form of:
A Forecast Board
Is similar in appearance to a calendar

22. Forecast Board

23. Reservation Charts 1. Conventional Charts
Reservation charts can be of two [2] different types:
1. Conventional Charts
Display the availability of each room in the hotel by room number.
Room #

24. Reservation Charts 2. Density Charts
Show and record the total number of reservations held for each type of room on a specific date.

25. Computerized Reservations System
A computerized reservation system controls not only room availability but also the whole process of reservations.
In this way, it is possible to keep a record of all reservation details, as well as maintain the tight control of the number of rooms available.
In some cases, the computer can be programmed to refuse any further bookings when a hotel is fully booked, and create a waiting list for any subsequent reservations. It is also possible to program systems to make reservations available to many reservation clerks at the same time.

26. Computerized Reservations System
In a computerized system, rooms available will appear on the visual display unit [VDU] of the computer terminal.
A computerized system has the advantage that it is capable of generating reports in a short period of time. These may include:
Daily arrivals
Stay over & departure list
Projected estimated revenue
Summary reports on booking by room type or sleeper forecast
These reports are essential to the hotel management in the planning of their operations