The UK government has announced that it will no longer support the national system for classifying hotels. Appropriate funding for the tourism organization would be cut. The government is thus following a trend that has been apparent on the market for years: More and more tourists are searching for and rating hotels and restaurants on social media.
Tourism Minister John Penrose wrote according to a NZZ report In a blog, he considers the official classification by stars to be outdated. Back in January, he had in a position paper On tourism in Great Britain in 2011, it was stated that conventional star systems not only caused problems, they were also outdated. Customer reviews provided better information to help visitors decide what to buy.
Reviews from their guests have been part of the daily routine for hotels around the world for a long time. After initial skepticism, many companies have adapted to this and are even encouraging their guests to rate their services on the Internet.
Should this “TripAdvisor effect” of English politics also draw international attention, star categories for hotels could soon be a thing of the past. And it is already becoming apparent that consumer reviews will change the business of all sectors far beyond the hotel industry.
Further links
- NZZ: Please rate us!
- John Penrose, Minister for Tourism and Heritage: UK Government Tourism Policy 2011
- gartmann.biz: Turn your company into a hotel!