On Friday night I traveled to Delhi for a meeting. I had to stay over and a quick search showed me that The Leela Gurgaon was offering a great deal for hotels of that standard. And interstingly of all the websites offering deals, the Leela’s own website offered the best and most transparent deal. Under Rs. 8,000 for a standard room, with breakfast.
Landing in Delhi, I took a prepaid cab to the hotel. Surprisingly it was just a short drive and I arrived in 20 minutes. The VIP treatment started at the gate. The doorman and the security were friendly and cordial and all of them had a traditional Namaste. What differentiate the Namaste was the smile on their faces. That was a new one. And very welcoming.
The reception staff were very efficient. I asked for a change in the assigned room. They checked availability, confirmed and within seconds had the key ready. An executive (Deepshika) was assigned to take me to my room. On the way, she enquired about trivia. I, in turn tried to find out as much as I could about the hotel. She was informative and open. The statistics she offered about the hotel, which I assume to be correct were very impressive. Normal occupancy of 80%+ was one of the interesting data I gathered.
In the room, she quickly started the check-in formalities. Another first. And showed me around. Great start. As she was leaving, she mentioned that the minibar was free. I almost had a stroke. Free minibar in a hotel. Never happened before in any part of the world. I checked again. And her response was cool. “Sir, It’s free. if it appears on your bill, call me and I’ll clear it”.
It was late. And I didn’t feel too hungry. But the fruits and cookies temptingly left on the table were irrestible. Switched on the TV. Good selection of channels and movies. A big working table and a comfortable chair was where I finished some work, whilst watching TV.
The bath was pretty cool. It had a glass partitions and remote controlled shutters. It made the room seem especially large. And the rain shower was another first. I know that these are trivial things, but each one was interesting enough to make it note worthy. After a nice warm shower, I hit the bar, rather mini bar. And surprisingly although it was Free, it was decently stocked. Beer, Soft drinks, Diet drinks, Juices, Snacks. And I had a couple of soft drinks and a couple of snack packets.
And then hit the cool, comfortable, snuggy bed. Before I knew it, I was fast asleep. The next thing I knew was my Alarm going off at 6.30. Made myself a cuppa from a selection of teas and coffees. Checked e-mail, et al, had a shower, repacked in 30 secs and was all set to checkout. But not before breakfast. So headed down with my only bad, my large laptop bag. On the way to the restaurant, I stopped by the reception and requested that my bill be kept ready.
The restaurant was like most of the Leela’s restaurants. Huge and Beautiful. And the service, Awesome. I asked for a cup of Tea, and this was one of the few times that I actually got a Hot cup in a 5 star. The breakfast spread was overwhelming. 100’s of varieties. From fruits, to Continental to Indian. Cold Buffets and Hot Buffets. I forgot my diet for the day, since I did not want to do injustice to the sumptuous offerings. A couple of more cups of hot tea nicely completed the meal.
Walked to the reception and got my bill. Paid and was headed out. An hostess makes sure you have all your bags, et al, and then the final Namaste. The experience would rate amongst the top 3, I’ve had across hotels around the world. For the sake of being critical, I would evaluate just 2 points. The Namaste, especially the physical part might be more meaningful if toned down. A Namste would suffice, without the crisply folded hands. The second is the price of the hotel transfers. At Rs. 2000, not too many are likely to use it. And when you’ve made everything else so cool, making this available at reasonable prices would be awesome.
The Leela serves as an example of smart service. As an example, the MRP of what I consumed in the minibar was Rs. 50. Yet it inspired this blog. Don’t know of any more cost effective advertising.
Thank you Leela. Namaste.
Landing in Delhi, I took a prepaid cab to the hotel. Surprisingly it was just a short drive and I arrived in 20 minutes. The VIP treatment started at the gate. The doorman and the security were friendly and cordial and all of them had a traditional Namaste. What differentiate the Namaste was the smile on their faces. That was a new one. And very welcoming.
The reception staff were very efficient. I asked for a change in the assigned room. They checked availability, confirmed and within seconds had the key ready. An executive (Deepshika) was assigned to take me to my room. On the way, she enquired about trivia. I, in turn tried to find out as much as I could about the hotel. She was informative and open. The statistics she offered about the hotel, which I assume to be correct were very impressive. Normal occupancy of 80%+ was one of the interesting data I gathered.
In the room, she quickly started the check-in formalities. Another first. And showed me around. Great start. As she was leaving, she mentioned that the minibar was free. I almost had a stroke. Free minibar in a hotel. Never happened before in any part of the world. I checked again. And her response was cool. “Sir, It’s free. if it appears on your bill, call me and I’ll clear it”.
It was late. And I didn’t feel too hungry. But the fruits and cookies temptingly left on the table were irrestible. Switched on the TV. Good selection of channels and movies. A big working table and a comfortable chair was where I finished some work, whilst watching TV.
The bath was pretty cool. It had a glass partitions and remote controlled shutters. It made the room seem especially large. And the rain shower was another first. I know that these are trivial things, but each one was interesting enough to make it note worthy. After a nice warm shower, I hit the bar, rather mini bar. And surprisingly although it was Free, it was decently stocked. Beer, Soft drinks, Diet drinks, Juices, Snacks. And I had a couple of soft drinks and a couple of snack packets.
And then hit the cool, comfortable, snuggy bed. Before I knew it, I was fast asleep. The next thing I knew was my Alarm going off at 6.30. Made myself a cuppa from a selection of teas and coffees. Checked e-mail, et al, had a shower, repacked in 30 secs and was all set to checkout. But not before breakfast. So headed down with my only bad, my large laptop bag. On the way to the restaurant, I stopped by the reception and requested that my bill be kept ready.
The restaurant was like most of the Leela’s restaurants. Huge and Beautiful. And the service, Awesome. I asked for a cup of Tea, and this was one of the few times that I actually got a Hot cup in a 5 star. The breakfast spread was overwhelming. 100’s of varieties. From fruits, to Continental to Indian. Cold Buffets and Hot Buffets. I forgot my diet for the day, since I did not want to do injustice to the sumptuous offerings. A couple of more cups of hot tea nicely completed the meal.
Walked to the reception and got my bill. Paid and was headed out. An hostess makes sure you have all your bags, et al, and then the final Namaste. The experience would rate amongst the top 3, I’ve had across hotels around the world. For the sake of being critical, I would evaluate just 2 points. The Namaste, especially the physical part might be more meaningful if toned down. A Namste would suffice, without the crisply folded hands. The second is the price of the hotel transfers. At Rs. 2000, not too many are likely to use it. And when you’ve made everything else so cool, making this available at reasonable prices would be awesome.
The Leela serves as an example of smart service. As an example, the MRP of what I consumed in the minibar was Rs. 50. Yet it inspired this blog. Don’t know of any more cost effective advertising.
Thank you Leela. Namaste.
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