“Guest service is the number one thing. We’re never standing still.” —Martjin Sax
If hotel stays are an indicator of how the economy is doing, then things are certainly looking up. 2014 was the best year ever for the Hyatt Vineyard Creek in Santa Rosa, this year’s winner for Best Hotel for Business in the North Bay. In fact, with business travelers coming in during the week and leisure travelers descending on the county on weekends for reasons ranging from weddings to wine tasting or special events like NASCAR, a film festival or a concert, the hotel no longer has an “off season.”“It used to be that December, January, February and March were low seasons,” says Martijn Sax, general manager of Hyatt Vineyard Creek. “That’s no longer the case. There’s now demand year-round. It might be different business and different price points, but there’s always business. It also definitely helped us having a very mild winter—it gets people out of the mountains and into the wineries.”
In March 2015, the hotel was purchased by Thayer Lodging (it will continue being run under the Hyatt franchise), and business is bound to increase even more with a full renovation being planned. Capital improvements are scheduled to begin later this year.While no new facilities are currently planned, all of the existing infrastructure will be upgraded. Visitors can still look forward to the amenities they’ve become accustomed to, including the 155 guest rooms and suites, the award-winning Brasserie restaurant, Le Carré Spa with its outdoor pool and hot tub, the sculpture garden, a 24-hour gym, private lockers, a steam room, jog and bike trails, 40,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor event space, an 100-foot water wall, ballrooms, an executive boardroom and garden courtyards.
The renovations fall in line with the hotel’s collective mindset of always moving forward, never taking a happy customer for granted but rather continuing to pursue excellence.
“We’re a very energetic group of professionals that absolutely lives and breathes customer service,” says Sax. “Guest service is the number one focus. We’re never standing still. It’s the little, day-to-day things that make a difference. When somebody comes in, he or she may have been traveling, may be tired and may be here for different reasons. You need to get to those touch points and know exactly what the guest wants out of this hotel. We provide customized, personalized service.”
This prevailing approach of going above and beyond for customers has the potential for being at odds with the hotel’s never-ending quest to move forward, when that pursuit entails technological enhancements.
“It’s an ever-evolving business, and technology is becoming more and more important,” explains Sax. “The biggest challenge is to keep the electronic world working with the personalized service. The personal touchpoints still need to be there, but people just expect it in different ways.”
With the Hyatt Vineyard Creek being voted Best Hotel for Business by NorthBay biz readers, the management and staff have clearly balanced the new wave of technology with classic, personalized service.
