Vacation Ownership Management Group Making a Strong Comeback
Although the pandemic has disrupted travel, the vacation rental market is strong. SunStream Hotels & Resorts, operator of eight condo hotels in Southwest Florida, is seeing high occupancy rates with all properties in Fort Myers Beach, Naples, and The Everglades surpassing budget projections and outpacing revenues from prior years. Helping this condo-hotel and resort management group meet the rising travel demand and streamline guest services safely is Maestro PMS. For several years, SunStream has been relying on the Maestro Cloud property-management system for multi-property front desk operations, condo owner management, as well as mobile tools, housekeeping, sales and catering, work order management, and yield management.
“Condo hotels are in high demand today as they provide more space, privacy, and even safety than hotels,” said SunStream Hotels & Resorts Director of Sales and Marketing Jennifer Ellis. “The biggest challenge we are facing today is the ability to keep up with demand despite the devastating labor shortage. Thanks to Maestro and its housekeeping and work order modules, we are keeping up with guest requests and turning rooms over quickly. Maestro’s Housekeeping module has provided the strongest assistance. It keeps us organized and enables our housekeeping managers to schedule workers as needed and it keeps everyone apprised of which rooms needs to be cleaned and when in real-time. The work order module is equally as important, as we can easily tag rooms that need maintenance and pull them out of inventory until issues are resolved. Maestro has been indispensable throughout the pandemic, and it continues to prove its worth as we are nearing recovery.
“Another critical component of the Maestro PMS is its integration with our third-party booking agent TravelClick, an Amadeus company,” Ellis said. “The strength of the Maestro/TravelClick connection is key to our success as it provides real-time availability to all sales channels without any manual oversight required. This enables us to make sure we are putting the right inventory into the market with real-time rates and the ability to make changes on the fly.”
Customer Service Advocate
As a hotel management company operating resorts, hotels, condominiums, and timeshare properties for 35 years, Ellis said SunStream’s No. 1 goal is to deliver genuine hospitality to guests. To do so, she said it takes the same level of dedication from its PMS provider; something she said Maestro excels in.
“When we began our search for a PMS provider four years ago, we knew we wanted a product that didn’t fit in a box. We were searching for a company with an elevated service platform, not a vendor eager to sell us a product. We found that instantly with Maestro. Throughout my hospitality career, I’ve worked with a number of different operational models. Few, if any, areas of customer service focused as Maestro — even companies known globally for their PMS offering cannot match the support Maestro offers its independent customers. And, because Maestro already had a flexible condo hotel model, it checked off every box on our long list of requirements. Operationally and financially, Maestro PMS just makes sense for us as a multi-property condo hotel operator.”
Coming to the forefront amidst the pandemic is the need for SunStream to offer contactless mobile guest-facing tools. As occupancy demands rise, even more, Ellis said the company will begin leveraging Maestro’s Digital Registration Card with signature capture so guests do not need to touch paper or pen or can opt to complete registration on their personal mobile device as part of the mobile check-in process.
Owner’s Portal a Turn On
“What we did turn on recently is the Maestro Owner’s Portal,” Ellis said. “This gives each individual condo owner remote and real-time access to see all reservations — past, present, and future — on the books, gauge the performance of their investments, and even stay updated on expenses. Owners really appreciate this feature; they often tell us how much they appreciate the transparency. This tool is something very rare in a PMS offering.”
Recognizing that condo and vacation rental properties each have their own specific requirements, Maestro’s Owner Management module is designed to streamline the operation for each specific functional requirement. From owner reservation controls to accounting, this module offers a unique feature set to accommodate the flexibility and needs of those who manage condo and vacation club assets. Features of the Owner Management module include:
- Multi-property single Owner profile
- Owner e-messaging & e-statements
- Online Owner booking, availability & statement portal
- Flexible Owner availability & billing controls
- Commissions payable with check production
- EFT – electronic funds transfer
- Unit availability, intervals, status & rental pool controls
- Equalization of rental revenues or unit booking
- Tracking of charges, payments, receivables & balances
“We are thrilled that SunStream Hotels & Resorts — and all our condo hotel customers — are navigating recovery so efficiently with Maestro,” said Maestro President Warren Dehan. “SunStream has had many accomplishments over the last 35 years, and Maestro is proud to be supporting their condo hotels, restaurants, spas, and conference/banquet services with tools designed to specifically address their unique operator/owner needs.”
“We sincerely value SunStream as a loyal and satisfied Maestro customer and appreciate their recognition of our Diamond Plus Service culture,” he said. “As they continue to navigate recovery, Maestro is standing ready to assist them with turning on even more in-demand tools, such as our web/mobile/kiosk check-in with mobile key integration, online prepayment portal, express mobile check-out, electronic signature capture, and configurable 48-hour room buffer feature that creates gaps in room reservation spacing to allow time for complete room sanitization.”
About Maestro
Maestro is the preferred Web Browser based cloud and on-premises PMS solution for independent hotels, luxury resorts, conference centers, vacation rentals, and multi-property groups. Maestro’s PCI certified and EMV ready enterprise system offers a Web browser version (or Windows) complete with 20+ integrated modules on a single database, including mobile and contactless apps to support a digitalized guest journey as well as staff operations. Maestro’s sophisticated solutions empower operators to increase profitability, drive direct bookings, centralize operations, and engage guests with a personalized experience from booking to check out and everything in between. For over 40 years Maestro’s Diamond Plus Service has provided unparalleled 24/7 North American-based support and education services to keep hospitality groups productive and competitive. Click here for more information on Maestro. Click here to get your free PMS Buying guide.
About SunStream Hotels & Resorts
Founded in 1986, SunStream offers a collection of hotels and resorts in Fort Myers Beach, Naples, and The Everglades, Florida. Although our hotels may all look different, our unifying trait is a place where genuine hospitality is exactly that, and service comes from the heart. We are committed to delivering a truly refreshing, unexpected, and inspiring experience to each guest at every hotel. In addition to the hotel & resort collection, SunStream offers real estate and vacation ownership divisions, as well as sister company design schemes; offering sophisticated commercial design solutions.
