Pooja Patel & Riddhi Doshi
It’s been more than three months since the first pan-India lockdown was implemented. Over time, in several phases of ‘unlock’, businesses are crawling back to life. In Mumbai, the hospitality industry started welcoming guests again from July 8. Several precautions are being taken by the hotels in order to ensure the safety of the guests.
ITC Hotels have created responsible experiences through their ‘WeAssure’ initiative. This enlists many ‘industry firsts’, which redefine the safety and cleanliness protocol. In a first for the hospitality industry, the guests will be reassured by accreditation by National Accreditation Board for Hospitals & Healthcare Providers (NABH), which is the leading standards organisation for sanitation, hygiene, safety and infection control practices.
Amit Kumar, General Manager, ITC Grand Central Mumbai spoke to LuxeBook to give us a lowdown on the new experience of staying in a hotel.
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What are the safety/precautionary measures in place?
Airport pick & drop: As soon as our guests arrive at the airport, a sanitised car will pick them up as part of the ‘Safe Car Promise’. The chauffeur would be wearing a complete PPE kit. A separator has been placed inside the car between the chauffeur and the guest to maintain safe distance.
Security check: Upon reaching the hotel, a kit containing a mask and gloves is offered to guests. The security check is contactless and while it is being done, thermal screening of the guest is done along with luggage sanitisation.
Check-in & check-out: We have a contact lite check-in and check-out service design along with transparent separators at the reception to ensure safe distancing. Guests are encouraged to submit all the details and IDs through online forms before they arrive at the hotel and although there is still a requirement to physically sign the check-in document, the pen used by the guests is kept in a separate tray after each use for sterilisation. The checkout process is designed to be contactless as well as guests are encouraged to make payments digitally.
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Common areas: Public seating and elevators have been designed with arrangements of safe distancing. Further, the room keys are sanitised and luggage assistance is offered while ensuring safe distancing.
Rooms: Upon check-out, we block the room for sanitisation and we do not allot it to anyone for a minimum of 24 hours. The room is sanitised and cleaned to ensure clinical levels of cleanliness.
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Dining: Separators are placed in restaurants between the tables. A minimum of six feet’s gap between two tables is kept. Guests can view the menu by scanning the QR code placed on the table. The cutlery is stored in sealed paper envelopes. The food is pre-plated and is brought to the table under a cloche.
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In-room dining now comes with two options: a ‘knock and drop’ service using takeaway boxes, which are left outside the door of the room, and plated meals on trolleys, which the guest can slide in and out of the room themselves.
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Additionally, we would also like to share that . The use of gloves, face mask and headgear has been made mandatory for all our vendors as well.
How many restaurants/cafes inside the property will be open for the guests?
At ITC Grand Central, Hornby’s Pavilion will be open, while at ITC Maratha Peshwa, Pavalion will be operational. Both the restaurants are open only for resident guests as per government guidelines. For our non-resident guests, we have designed Flavours: responsible dining menu and Gourmet Couch: specially curated menu from our signature award-winning restaurants for takeaways. We have also partnered with Swiggy and Zomato, so that people can continue to enjoy their favourite dishes from popular restaurants of the hotel chain, while staying at home.
Have you received any bookings?
Yes, we have started getting calls for bookings and we are getting a very good response from our regular guests and patrons, through various online and offline channels.
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