Luxury Hotelier - June 2008 - (Page 32)

32| Deliver Beyond chocolates At Mina A’ Salam, part of Dubai’s Madinat Jumeirah resort, creative and fanciful amenities raise the bar on traditional turndown ypical turndown service is being turned on its ear, at least at Mina A’ Salam, the luxury boutique property at the Madinat Jumeirah resort in Dubai. LUXURY HOTELIER spoke with executive housekeeper Anne-Lyse Dufour to learn about the property’s turndown amenities that move beyond simple chocolates into a more well-rounded experience. T MADINAT JUMEIRAH Q What is the turndown schedule at the property? A One person is in charge of 10 rooms. Turndown is basically done from 6 to 8 p.m., but early or late service requests are covered any time they are needed. It takes approximately five to 10 minutes, depending on what needs to be done. Q How has turndown service at Mina A’ Salam changed over the past few years? A It previously was a seven-day cycle of chocolates, but we’ve changed it to include more elements. Q Describe the turndown process and amenities you offer at Mina A’ Salam. A We do a classic turndown service where we refresh the room and bathroom, and replenish used linen and items. The bed is turned down with the bedside mat and slippers placed next to the bed, and a daily newsletter is placed on the bed. We have a seven-day cycle of folded towel animals including swans, crabs, elephants, poodles and lobsters. We have introduced a seven-day cycle of amenities instead of the daily chocolate turndown. Upon arrival, guests receive a sweatband and jogging map. The following days guests receive lavender massage oil, coconut lip balm, walnut body scrub, mint foot spray and a chocolate. We also have childrens’ turndown amenities. Instead of sweets, we offer vanilla or strawberry lip balm, bath fizz, bath flowers, four different yellow rubber ducks, yellow or green fun glasses, and magic towels, which are compressed towels that open up in the water with children’s cartoon characters Leyla and Sinbad. For the executive floor and suites, we add a special handmade soap on a seven-day cycle from Savons Gemme (www.savons-gemme.com) and resemble semiprecious stones such as quartz, aquamarine, turquoise and jade. For the royal suite we offer branded La Ric (www.laric-shop.com) products on a seven-day cycle comprising [for her] rose perfume, a hand mask and bath shimmer, and [for him] green tea, hand cream and Turndown amenities at Mina A’Salam range from bath products to jogging trail maps. ocean bath caviar. It also includes cocoa/ vanilla bath salts, foot cream and a special nail file/polisher. We also place Gemme soaps in the royal suite. Q How do you decide what your turndown process and amenities will be? Do you take guest feedback into consideration? A We regularly receive feedback from our quality department, which evaluates the comments and suggestions we receive from our guests. In addition, we look at hospitality trends and health trends and consider what is new on the market. However, if a guest wishes to have the usual chocolates, we do make them available as well. » BY STEPHANIE RICCA Luxury Hotelier | June 2008 | www.LuxuryHotelier.com http://www.savons-gemme.com http://www.laric-shop.com http://www.LuxuryHotelier.com

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Luxury Hotelier - June 2008 Contents Editor's Letter Inform Journal Network Personalities Insight: Smith Travel Research/The Bench Properties Insight: Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne Inspire Deliver Protocols Insight: HotelWorld Innovate Development Indulge Advertisers Index Editorial Index Source Listing Dossier

Luxury Hotelier - June 2008

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