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The hotel industry as a whole has a ways to go when it comes to making the room-booking process user friendly, says a new study by a U.K.-based travel and hospitality consulting company.

In fact, things are so bad designwise that many customers are confused by the prices displayed, and about half the time they cannot determine whether a displayed price is per room or per person, according to a report from Southampton, England-based Travel UCD, which calls itself a “usability consultancy specializing in front-end design of travel and hospitality Web sites.”

The company said its 50-page report, entitled “Hotel Booking Process Design and Usability,” studied the user interfaces of 87 travel agency, hotel booking agency and hotel chain Web sites.

Only 48 percent of rates displayed on search results pages explain whether the price is for a room - the hotel industry standard — or for a person, which is the holiday/vacation industry standard, Travel UCD said.

However, most of the major U.S. sites — Expedia.com, Travelocity.com, Hotels.com and Priceline.com — made it very clear.

For example, checking for rates on a five-night stay at London’s Le Meridien Grosvenor House in June, the search results at Expedia clearly stated that the price was per room –an average of $408 per day for the Royal Club Executive Class room.

A check at Hotels.com for rooms on the Strip in Las Vegas made it crystal clear what one was paying for. A Travelocity check in Boston also made it clear. Priceline specifies that when you name your own price, it is per room, per night.

Asked how the top U.S. travel sites rated, a spokesman for Travel UCD said only that the study included Expedia, Travelocity and Priceline, “however, the purpose of the report is not to comment on individual sites but to provide a sector overview, with recommendations on where the industry can improve.”

The report says that many hotel Web sites are unable to offer rooms for child occupancy, or, conversely, accept bookings for child occupancy when legal regulations forbid such reservations.

“With online hotel reservations predicted to reach 20 percent of all online travel bookings by 2005, Web sites are striving to achieve maximum user stickiness,” said Alex Bainbridge, Travel UCD senior consultant and author of the study. “Many sites do not meet the usability needs of their customers, despite the keenness of consumers to book on the Web. The majority of problems are simple design errors…”

The report, targeted at hotel groups, online agencies and e-wholesalers, measures each site’s efficiency and error count, and examines the learnability, memorability and user satisfaction of each.

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Purchase a Seedling During the UN Climate Change Conference and Create a Forest on Nusa Penida Island.

(12/1/2007) Visitors to Bali and delegate attending the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) between December 3 – 14, 2007 will have the opportunity to purchase trees saplings that will eventually become part of a “new” forest on the barren island of Nusa Penida, located only a few miles from Bali’s shores.

Seeds for Bali

Seeds for Bali is a non-profit program initiated by Bank Danamon Indonesia and co-sponsored by Bali Tourism Development Corporation (BTDC), in partnership with Friends of the National Parks Foundation (FNPF). The program aims to pilot reforestation efforts on some of the most arid places in Bali, with “seed money” provided by Danamon, BTDC and donations from American Express Card members worldwide.

Through the promotion of Seeds for Bali at 3 tented locations in Bali the organizers hope to help accelerate public awareness on the important role of trees and reforestation in the effort to combat global warming. Via the sale of subsidized trees for eventual planting on Nusa Penida, participants will make a real impact on a specific micro-habitat conservation effort, offset their carbon footprint and make a positive contribution to the economy of Bali.

Working with Friends of the National Park Foundation (FNPF), a ten hectare block of land at Nusa Penida’s Puncak Temu and another plot of equal size at Adegan Village have been chosen to receive the thousands of trees targeted to be sold during the UNFCCC. The project works to ensure an 80% survival rate of the trees through the end of fifth year by working with local communities who help raise seedlings, prepare ground for planting, establishing catchments systems, undertake site maintenance and ongoing plant care. FNPF, the executor of Seeds for Bali program, estimates the cost of caring for a tree for 5 years is around US$3.30 per plant.

The choice of seedlings is based on a wide range of native species deemed suitable for the extreme conditions existing at the planting area, able to benefit local wildlife and birds, provide an economic benefit to the local community and have a firm connection to local cultural traditions.

Among the trees selected for Nusa Penida are sandalwood and mahogany trees with planting scheduled to commence in mid-December. An aerial surveillance program will be employed to track progress and safeguard the new plantings.

Donors and interested parties will be able to monitor the project on line at [Friends Nation Park Website.]

Seed for Bali information and purchase booths will be open from December 3-14 in three separate locations: Nusa Dua next to the Bali Eye, Nusa Dua opposite the entrance to Bali Collection and in Kuta in front of the Hard Rock Café. Trees can also be purchased through the end of December at the Bali Danamon Office (Legian Street) and Rascals (Legian and Kuta Streets).

For more information call American Express Merchant Services – Bali Office at ++62-(0)361- 757510/11 or ask your Hotel Concierge

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Security, Surveillance and Some Delays Expected as Bali Hosts the World for the U.N. Climate Change Conference December 3-14, 2007.

(11/25/2007) On the eve of The U.N. Conference on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Bali is looking forward with anticipation and some trepidation to the largest and most politically charged international conference ever held on the Island. Advance teams are already in place, preparing for the actual event slated for December 3-14, 2007. More than 7,000 Indonesian armed troops complemented by UN Forces will be on duty to protect the estimated 15,000 delegates.

A Truly International Affair

Organizers confirm that 120 ministers of state and high-ranking delegations from 189 countries will attend the important event that is hoped will yield a coordinated world-wide plan to deal with the threat of climate change.

Regular tourist visitors and conference participants should expect to encounter an unprecedented level of security measures at the airport, hotels and public places across the Island.

As the conference dates approach, the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta issued a special warden’s message on November 21, 2007, reminding its citizens of a “continued security threat in Indonesia” posed by terrorists. Underlining the highly politicized nature of the conference, the Embassy warned its citizen coming to Bali during the UNFCCC conference period that “demonstrations in connection with this high profile conference could begin at any time.”

The high level of security in place for the conference and a “full house” situation at most accommodation providers have many worried that traffic jams and long lines will be common occurrences in Bali during the first half of December 2007.

Nusa Dua Complex: A Security Fortress

With the UNFCCC centered at Bali’s Nusa Dua Complex, all land and sea access to that area will be heavily fortified. A security sterilization of the area was introduced starting from mid-November which is expected to intensify as the actual dates of the conference near. Only two of the Complex’s four entrances will be open throughout the period of the conference. Vehicles used by delegates and employees will be “exiled” to satellite parking areas outside the Nusa Dua Complex and suppliers to the 14 hotels within Nusa Dua have been told to deliver their goods between midnight and 6 a.m..

Those with business in Nusa Dua during the conference dates should allocate plenty of extra time in their traveling schedule to facilitate thorough vehicle and identity checks.

Police personnel will be high visibility throughout the event with groups of officers assigned to every traffic intersection across the southern part of Bali.

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U.S. Homeland Security Department and TSA Re-Certify Bali’s Ngurah Rai Airport as Complying with International Safety Standards.

(10/13/2007) On October 7, 2007, The U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) have that Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport is once again considered to be compliant with the strict aviation safety standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

The announcement reverses a December 23, 2005, declaration by the TSA stating the Bali airport fell below minimum safety standards that resulted in cautionary warnings to that effect being prominently posted at major airports across the U.S.A..

In announcing the recertification of Bali’s Ngurah Rai Airport by the TCA, the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta praised efforts by Bali over the past two years to improve security standards at the airport. “I am very happy to inform Mr. Jusman Syafii Djamal, Indonesia’s Minister of Transportation, that our government have acknowledged that Bali’s Ngurah Rai Airport has met international safety standards,” said the Deputy Chief of Mission for the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta, John Hefferen.

“This is very good new for Indonesia as it prepares to host the United Nations COP-13 Climate Change Conference in Bali this December,” he added.

The Department of Homeland Security has now issued instructions to all airports across the U.S. to remove all written notices cautioning against travel to Bali’s airport.

U.S. Law requires safety standards at all international airport offering flights to U.S. cities be regularly reviewed.

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