“While safety and security are always expected from a hotel, protection from COVID becomes the top priority,” says Liping Cai, professor and director of the Purdue Tourism and Hospitality Research Center at Purdue University. If you stay at a hotel, check to see what safety steps it’s taking. A night away could just help the hospitality industry get back on its feet. And while our site doesn’t feature every company or financial product available on the market, we’re proud that the guidance we offer, the information we provide and the tools we create are objective, independent, straightforward — and free. Here are our picks for the best travel credit cards of 2020, including those best for: Airline miles and a large bonus: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, No annual fee: Wells Fargo Propel American Express® card, Flat-rate rewards with no annual fee: Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card, Premium travel rewards: Chase Sapphire Reserve®, Luxury perks: The Platinum Card® from American Express, Business travelers: Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card, Coronavirus Flight Cancellation and Change Policies: What You Need to Know. The hotel industry recognizes that travelers are concerned about the coronavirus and safety. Start your Independent Premium subscription today. Rooms are cleaned and aired out between guests, and the hotel has frequent disinfecting of all high-touch surfaces. These rankings are current as of Aug. 7, 2020, and do not reflect any changes since. If the hotel doesn’t seem to be taking the pandemic seriously, it’s best to take your business elsewhere. If ensuring health and proper social distancing are your primary concerns, consider brands with enforced mask policies like Best Western, Hyatt, Hilton, IHG or Marriott. So if you're on the fence about a hotel booking, maybe you lean toward brands like Hilton and Hyatt that scored well across the board. At Coast Hotels we have developed COVID-19 best practices and processes which are implemented at all of our properties. Explore. Features such as mobile check-in and express checkout, which minimize contact between guests and staff. Guests will notice other differences too – they may find they have to choose their breakfast sitting in advance, are presented with a reduced restaurant menu, are encouraged to order room service, and can’t use the pool and spa without booking ahead. Then came policies allowing free changes and cancellations on new bookings, in an attempt to entice some travelers back into making new plans. The existing Open Comments threads will continue to exist for those who do not subscribe to Independent Premium. Hotel companies’ similar new and heightened health and safety standards don’t leave a lot of room for brand distinction unless the brand is the one lacking a new approach to cleaning. Safety, it would seem, is the new luxury. Note: These rankings are current as of Aug. 7, 2020, and do not reflect any changes since. Health and social distancing policies, over eight criteria including mask enforcement, social distancing in common areas and low-contact check-in procedures. But while some UK hotels are managing to reap the rewards of their location – coastal properties in popular seaside destinations, for instance – others are left twiddling their thumbs, waiting for a summer that feels like it may never come. You want a travel credit card that prioritizes what’s important to you. Those that are reopening need the support of the British public and visitors more than ever.”. Follow the same general COVID-19 safety tips that you practice in your daily life while you’re at the hotel. Don’t relax your guard just because you’re on vacation. Which is good, because other luxuries might not be quite as we remember them from brighter days. This includes everything from hand washing hygiene and cleaning specifications for guest rooms and public areas, as well as safe food practices. Our Policy Details. And during lockdown, they’ve still had costs and overheads without income. But which hotel brands have adapted best? Some 42 per cent of those polled even said they would clean a hotel room themselves before using it. [I stayed at 3 hotels during covid-19. Property and Casualty insurance services offered through NerdWallet Insurance Services, Inc.: Licenses, NerdWallet Compare, Inc. NMLS ID# 1617539, NMLS Consumer AccessLicenses and Disclosures, California: California Finance Lender loans arranged pursuant to Department of Financial Protection and Innovation Finance Lenders License #60DBO-74812, We want to hear from you and encourage a lively discussion among our users. Independent Premium Comments can be posted by members of our membership scheme, Independent Premium. Please be respectful when making a comment and adhere to our Community Guidelines. Here’s your shortcut to 2021’s best travel reward programs and more. Since we are not experts in this area, we did not attempt to compare these policies. Hilton also scored well in this category. Radisson makes a strong showing in this category with its open-ended flexible policy for travel at any future date. Runners-up: Marriott and Radisson (Score: 4.8/5), how airlines have been handling the pandemic. Managing risk. This information may be different than what you see when you visit a financial institution, service provider or specific product’s site. We understand that your travel plans may have been affected by the rapidly changing information on travel restrictions and event cancellations. We rated hotel brands on their health and social distancing policies, along with their flexibility on bookings. Noting that the news is dominated by Coronavirus, we wanted to reach out and let you know that we have asked our hotels to implement increased guest room and hotel common area cleaning protocols and processes. The most insightful comments on all subjects will be published daily in dedicated articles. Are you sure you want to delete this comment? COVID-19 safety precautions: The Langham requires that all guests fill out a health questionnaire at check-in verifying they are healthy. Consisting of in-house and outside experts in food and water safety, hygiene and infection prevention, and hotel operations, our Marriott Cleanliness Council is redefining our cleaning and safety standards. Read our full mailing list consent terms here. So if you're on the fence about a hotel booking, maybe you lean toward brands like Hilton and Hyatt that scored well across the board. Sharing your risk assessment. And, there’s no two ways about it: the UK tourism industry desperately needs our help right now. Guest temperatures are taken at the Michelin-starred Ai Fiori restaurant as well. The COVID-19 outbreak is no exception. This August update saw a huge shake-up in the rankings, after health and safety policies (specifically regarding masks) changed for many brands in late July. You want a travel credit card that prioritizes what’s important to you. For instance, Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts offers Lead with Care, which includes a consulting agreement with Johns Hopkins Medicine International; Montage International has partnered with One Medical to deliver 24/7 digital health services to guests; and Preferred Hotels & Resorts, Accor Hotels, Las Vegas Sands Corp and Melia International have all partnered with Bureau Veritas, which offers a Safe Guard Hygiene Excellence Label programme affiliated with Cleveland Clinic, to help hotels reopen safely. Here are our picks for the, Wells Fargo Propel American Express® card, Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card. Also, the top brands have continued offering flexible booking policies on new reservations, while those that have begun rolling back these policies got dinged. Rooms blocked: Policies that ensure that guest rooms are not accessed for a specific number of days between reservations or after cleaning by staff. Hilton and Hyatt take the top spot thanks to consistently flexible booking policies, and clear and comprehensive safety measures. Similar to our analysis of how airlines have been handling the pandemic, we have done our best to boil this extraordinarily complex topic into a simple rating system and provide help for travelers in choosing which hotel to trust with bookings for the remainder of 2020 and beyond. Which have offered the most customer-friendly policies and been willing to sacrifice bottom-line concerns for the sake of guest safety? Yes, due to the current situation with COVID-19, our hotels are implementing new processes to help protect the safety of guests and team members. Our opinions are our own. In case a short-term rental is more your speed: Which country has the best 'enhanced clean' rating from Airbnb? As the world slowly opens up again in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, our hotel stays are set to be organised differently. Policies that ensure that guest rooms are not accessed for a specific number of days between reservations or after cleaning by staff. Specific policies (not recommendations) that require staff to wear masks. Our journalists will try to respond by joining the threads when they can to create a true meeting of independent Premium. And therein lies the issue. It allows our most engaged readers to debate the big issues, share their own experiences, discuss real-world solutions, and more. Thinking about risk. Below we've summarized our Post Covid-19 Health & Safety Plan, with all the key points and information you need for a sweet and safe stay. All financial products, shopping products and services are presented without warranty. “If you’re nervous about staying at a hotel, just ring them up and ask them what extra measures they’re taking,” recommends Jane. “Those extra five-star luxuries won’t be able to continue in quite same way,” warns Jane, citing a lack of valet parking and bellboys to help with the luggage. All financial products, shopping products and services are presented without warranty. Learn More. We compared each program across eight criteria, based on the official policies stated on the hotel websites: Social distancing: Specific policies that ensure appropriate social distance between guests in common areas. Hotel health and safety protocols are an important consideration when traveling during the pandemic. Low contact check-in/out: Features such as mobile check-in and express checkout, which minimize contact between guests and staff. Each hotel to receive AAA's Inspector's Best of Housekeeping Award has to pass a rigorous on-site inspection that looks for evidence of dirt, dust, pests, equipment performance and more. To deliver on this promise every day, each hotel’s General Manager and Health & Hygiene Ambassador will lead a Safety Committee program responsible for training, implementation and compliance. “It is crucial that we return,” stresses Jane. Check any major chain's website for information about how it's protecting guests and staff. These comprehensive plans should reassure even the most anxious of travellers – and checking if the place you’re planning on staying is signed up to one of them is one of the easiest ways to give yourself a confidence boost. “They understand guests’ confidence is key to their success.”. These hotel brands have introduced new cleaning and sterilization policies, often in partnership with health care providers. Which, as it turns out, are awfully extensive. Yes, but in the COVID-19 era, I appreciated the commitment to safety. , we have done our best to boil this extraordinarily complex topic into a simple rating system and provide help for travelers in choosing which hotel to trust with bookings for the remainder of 2020 and beyond. So how do we make money? If, on the other hand, maintaining flexibility amid coronavirus uncertainty is paramount, check out the brands like Radisson, Hilton, Marriott and Hyatt, which rated the highest here. Half of British travellers don’t trust hotel hygiene after lockdown, according to a survey of 1,894 respondents conducted by End of Tenancy Cleaning Company. Keep Following Best Practices. We'll update these procedures as things change and evolve, so be sure to check back here before you check in. Out of 2,000 Brits surveyed, more than a third (36 per cent) said they would avoid all international travel for the next 12 months, according to research from personal finance comparison website finder.com. Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Many aren’t reopening till September; some may not ever reopen. As we prepare for the potential spread of the COVID-19 virus, there are some precautions hotel managers and staff can take to improve guest and employee health and safety… If you find discrepancies with your credit score or information from your credit report, please contact TransUnion® directly. She is talking, somewhat frustratedly, about UK hotels and the measures they’re taking to keep guests safe in the post-Covid era. Ask a Points Nerd: What Positive Travel Trends Could Come From Coronavirus? However, this does not influence our evaluations. For instance, Marriott Bonvoy hotels rolled out the Marriott Global Cleanliness Council in April. A huge number of properties have signed up to one of two new schemes designed to outline best practice for hotels here in the UK. safety measurements at meininger hotels We adopted the WHO's official recommendations and are following the local authority's regulations to reduce exposure to and transmission of the Covid-19 virus. Please continue to respect all commenters and create constructive debates. We've updated a comprehensive look at eight major hotel brands, switching from “grades” to a more detailed rating on a five-point scale. Cleanliness. If you have to travel during this summer of COVID, a road trip staying in hotels is a relatively safe option, provided you keep some precautions in mind. As we welcome you back to our hotels around the world, we are committed to providing you with a safe environment that aligns with expert protocols for working to defeat COVID-19. Since we are not experts in this area, we did not attempt to compare these policies. Want an ad-free experience?Subscribe to Independent Premium. Best Western GB has partnered with Quality in Tourism (QT) to adopt a new gold standard for anti-Covid-19 across all its hotels which we believe makes them the safest hotels in Great Britain. Are you sure you want to mark this comment as inappropriate? Flexible change and cancellation policies. , major hotel brands have scrambled to adapt to the new reality. Throughout the pandemic we have not had a single outbreak of Covid in any of our hotels and many have achieved the highest standards of Covid safety and cleanliness according to Quality in Tourism. With the holidays approaching, an influx of people will be hopping on planes and staying in hotels despite the threat of COVID lurking.No matter what precautions you take, it's impossible to travel right now and avoid exposure completely. In this section. Some best practices include: Enhanced cleaning procedures; Social distancing measures ; Masking of staff and guests; Contactless payment How Much Are Your Airline Miles and Hotel Points Worth in 2021. Important Update: Our Response to Coronavirus (COVID-19) Your health, welfare and safety are paramount when you stay at a Best Western hotel. As thousands of Britons contemplate staycations this summer, accommodation providers are stepping up to keep them safe, finds Helen Coffey, Find your bookmarks in your Independent Premium section, under my profile. We instead focused on policies such as mask enforcement that can be compared directly. Sam Kemmis is a travel rewards expert at NerdWallet specializing in airline and hotel loyalty programs. When evaluating offers, please review the financial institution’s Terms and Conditions. Both the AA’s Covid Confident programme and Visit Britain’s We’re Good To Go industry standard give accommodation providers a detailed guide on how to change the way they operate to protect both staff and guests. This information may be different than what you see when you visit a financial institution, service provider or specific product’s site. Forget Eat Out to Help Out – what about Sleep Out to Help Out? “I keep telling them to shout about what they’re doing, because lots of them aren’t right now,” says Jane Pendlebury, CEO of the Hospitality Professionals Association (Hospa), in exasperation. If you have any questions regarding your stay, please contact the hotel you are staying at direct, as they will be better placed to advise on any specifics regarding the hotel. It’s a particular blow given that 2020 was due to be a bumper year for the capital, with the highest number of openings – nearly 8,000 rooms across 65 new hotels – ever recorded set to take place. Breakfast buffets are pretty much a thing of the past, as is early check-in and late check-out. Many or all of the products featured here are from our partners who compensate us. Premium Terrace with sunbeds, Balinese Beds and Jacuzzi. This may influence which products we review and write about (and where those products appear on the site), but it in no way affects our recommendations or advice, which are grounded in thousands of hours of research. “Hotels are taking this incredibly seriously,” she says. Your health and safety is #1. So each hotel brand received three individual scores (two for April, one for August), summarized in one flexibility rating below. Pre-qualified offers are not binding. Spa & Health Club - Covid Health & Safety Latest Information Government regulations in relation to Covid-19 differ in England, Scotland and the Channel Islands, so please see below for more information on what you can expect and advice to note before you travel. Published policies that require hotel guests to wear masks even in states where it is not required. It is important, in my opinion, that we hold hotels and other businesses accountable for the actions they take at times like these. If you find discrepancies with your credit score or information from your credit report, please contact TransUnion® directly.

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