We would like to wish all of our Zonal Hotel Solutions customers a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year.

We know the festive season is a busy one for the hospitality industry, and we’re sending our warmest wishes to you over the coming weeks. We hope the Christmas period runs smoothly for your team, and you can enjoy some of your own time to relax and recoup after the festive rush!

Thank you for choosing Zonal Hotel Solutions as your PMS provider; we are proud to be providing so many hotels with the tools to streamline their operations, save time, cut costs and deliver the best possible customer service.

It’s been an extremely busy year here at Zonal, with the launch of many new features and the unveiling of our rebrand at the Independent Hotel Show back in October. The transition to Zonal Hotel Solutions reflects our unified vision and mission to provide innovative, comprehensive, and customer-centric technology solutions for the hotel industry.

We would like to take this opportunity to say a huge thank you to all of our customers for your incredible support throughout this journey.

Here’s to a successful 2025!

Have a great one,
The Zonal Team

It’s no surprise that hospitality and tourism in the UK have taken one of the biggest hits in recent years, with the Covid pandemic thwarting travel plans for millions. However, after three years of disruption, VisitBritain predicts that the spending will increase to £32.5bn this year, improving on UK travel-spend for the first time since 2019. The organisation has also predicted a 5% increase in spending from inbound tourism compared to 2023.

Adding to this positive outlook for UK hoteliers, a Confused.com survey found that 57% of UK travellers have chosen or considered a staycation since the cost-of-living crisis began, rather than venturing abroad, again contributing to the growing UK room occupancy rates.

Business travel

The UK is reported to have the fourth highest spend on business travel in the world and this market has seen the most significant improvements this year, with the World Travel & Tourism Council projecting a 6.2% increase, compared to pre-pandemic levels. As in-person meetings and working from the office slowly become the norm again, corporate travel is set to ramp up even further.

What’s more, according to the latest Savills report, there has historically been ‘a close correlation between UK GDP, CFO confidence and regional hotel RevPAR’, meaning the projected economic growth in the UK will have an especially positive impact on corporate travel markets.

Hoteliers can anticipate this growth in business travel by ensuring their technology is up to scratch to maximise potential revenue.

Zonal’s booking software can help hoteliers manage meeting spaces, oversee F&B arrangements and coordinate group room bookings for corporate events. Hoteliers can ensure all bills are processed under a single guest or company, resulting in a slicker experience for businesses looking for excellent customer service.

The boom of ‘bleisure’ travel is set to be a top trend in 2025, with 74% of Brits travelling for business and leisure in one trip. This means that guests are looking for high-quality amenities to help them relax and unwind outside of their working hours. Hoteliers can upsell their spa, restaurant, gym and other facilities through effective and targeted communications using our marketing suite to further maximise profits.

Generation travel

Also leading the charge on the tourism revival is the Baby-Boomer generation. A 2024 report has found that leisure budgets have grown by 9% this year, primarily fuelled by over 50s, who also spend more on average per trip. In fact, Baby-Boomers make up a whooping 80% of all luxury travel and 99% take at least one leisure trip per year.

Hoteliers can capitalise on this with the use of ultra-personalised marketing, offers and packages aimed at the 50-60+ market and retirees. Remember, statistically, this age group are most likely to leave reviews and rely on other guests’ feedback to inform their decisions, so excellent service and guest experience is paramount. Encourage happy customers to leave reviews and book repeat stays with all-important personalised follow-up marketing communications.

Event-led travel

Taylor Swift’s Eras tour boosted London hotel bookings by a huge 173% this year and with Oasis set to pay 19 dates across the UK and Ireland next summer, some cities are already looking at over 73% occupancy for that period.

Yes, it’s clear that the return of huge music events post-covid will have a brilliant knock-on effect on the hotel industry.

With guests travelling from across the globe, it’s essential that hoteliers have easy-to-use booking software in place and full visibility on OTAs. Zonal’s PMS will ensure guests can book rooms easily and quickly for their music events and hoteliers are able to adjust rates based on these periods of high demand to maximise profits.

What’s more, Zonal’s PMS enables guests to upgrade their experience before arrival or at optimum points throughout their stay, with perfectly timed product and service alerts, discounts and offers. By offering guests personalised upsells, tailored to their preferences, hoteliers can boost their RevPAR by as much as 30%.

In summary

As the UK slowly edges its way towards financial recovery in 2025, investment in hotels is expected to grow and demand for travel is expected to strengthen even further. With the right technology in place, hotels can be ready for this period of expected growth and feel benefits of a more positive outlook for the hospitality industry.

2025 is just around the corner, and the hospitality industry is gearing up for a year of big financial changes.

October’s Budget will no doubt have an impact on hoteliers over the coming months; with both minimum wage and employer’s national insurance costs set to rise in April and business rate relief due to be reduced from 75% to 40%.

Alongside the usual winter dry spell as consumers penny pinch after Christmas and the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, hotels will have to be savvier than ever to entice customers and keep rising costs down.

Fortunately, there are a plethora of ways to manage this uncertain economic climate, in particular, using technology to streamline your hotel’s operations and make significant time and cost savings.

Here, we explain how.

Boost direct bookings

2024 saw a huge change in the way people book their staycations, with mobile bookings overtaking desktop for the first time ever. With 51% of guests now booking hotels with their mobile phones, a fully optimised and responsive online booking system is essential for hoteliers to snap up those all-important direct bookings alongside OTAs to boost profits.

Zonal’s mobile-friendly, fully intuitive and customisable booking system is tailored to fit a hotel’s unique style and branding whilst working seamlessly regardless of the device a guest is making their booking from . Our portal allows guests to access all of their booking information including pre-orders and added extras to maximise profits even further, without taking commission.

Hotel revenue management

Staying ahead of the competition is key to maximising profits, so being able to anticipate demand for rooms and adjust rates accordingly will be essential for hoteliers in 2025.

Whether it’s a summer heatwave, a highly anticipated music event or a festival in the local area, with Zonal’s revenue management tools, hoteliers can ensure rooms and rates are adjusted appropriately to boost RevPAR.

For in-depth analysis of costs, our real-time reporting software can efficiently analyse past years’ performances to help accurately forecast sales, enabling hotel management to spend or cut costs accordingly throughout the year.

Reduce F&B costs

It’s well-known that food waste is a persistent problem within the hospitality industry, with restaurants and hotels reportedly spending a whopping £2.6 billion on food waste each year.

To enable hoteliers to tackle this, Zonal’s Purchase-to-Pay system alerts kitchen staff when stock is running low and gives real-time recommendations for re-ordering based on individual requirements, saving chefs precious time and streamlining kitchen operations. This process significantly reduces food waste and over-ordering, cutting costs and with an added bonus point for sustainability.

With costs rising across the board, our menu management tool can help you develop accurately costed menus and identify where potential savings could be made – whether it’s tweaking a recipe or exploring alternative suppliers.

Marketing

Getting the word out there to new and existing customers is essential for hoteliers to attract new trade and encourage repeat bookings. However, marketing collateral such as flyers and brochures can be costly and overlooked by large proportions of your target market – no one wants to receive a ‘one-size-fits-all’ marketing email anymore.

It’s been found that customers are 80% more likely to buy from businesses that offer personalised experiences. With this in mind, hyper-personalised emails, tailored to each individual’s experiences and interests, will help hotels develop deeper connections with customers past and present.

Using Zonal’s PMS, hoteliers can send targeted communications to guests to upsell services and extras pre-stay, gain valuable reviews and promote offers to encourage instant bookings.

In summary, despite the rocky forecast that has been predicted for the hospitality industry over the coming months, there is hope for a successful year ahead. Hotel occupancy has reached pre-covid levels for the first time this year and with a little help from a reliable, affordable and powerful PMS, hoteliers can make cuts where necessary, whilst still providing the best possible experience for their guests.

The nights are drawing in which can only mean one thing; the festive season is almost upon us and hotels are heading into one of the busiest periods of the year.

By escaping the cooking, hosting, tidying and washing up at home, guests look to hotels as havens of relaxation, allowing them to escape the stresses that Christmas can bring. Of course, this expectation comes with many pressures for the hospitality industry, with professionals striving to provide the best possible service whilst creating a magical experience that guests will remember.

Here, we give our top tips on how to prepare your staff for this busy period, ease some of the pressure by streamlining your services and deliver a wonderful stay for your guests.

1. Speed up your check-in / check-out

With more guests than usual, and most arriving and departing at the same time, front desk operations need to be slick to keep guests happy over Christmas.  Arrival at your hotel should mean instant relaxation for your guests as they begin their Christmas break, and many will want to get to their rooms swiftly, giving them more time to soak up the festivities!

Zonal Hotel Solutions’ convenient online check-in / out uses smartphones to enable guests to register and pay, which is especially important during peak arrival and departure times. This, together with access to digital room keys, frees up more time for staff to spread the festive cheer and provide an excellent service.

Encouraging guests to make the most of these digital functions, will enhance their stay and reduce queues at your front desk. Additionally, you can use our PMS to keep on top of any specific Christmas requests such as gifts, food or drinks in rooms and any special guest requirements, to make ordering and payment processing as quick as possible.

2. Get your marketing in check

Build excitement and anticipation for guests with engaging and attractive emails in the run-up to their stay; a great opportunity to upsell table reservations, special drinks or gift packages for their Christmas or New Year’s trip.

Why not create some extra magic by theming your hotel’s festive offering? Glitz and glam, traditional Christmas, ski chalet chic or winter wonderland for example – and tie it in across marketing emails, collateral, menus and decorations for a targeted and coherent approach.

Use emails to follow up with guests’ post-stay, to gain valuable reviews, whilst offering deals and discounts for 2025 to encourage those all-important repeat bookings.

3. Seasonal staffing

Avoid staff burnout and manage your team’s workload by hiring additional seasonal staff for housekeeping, waiting, bar and front of house, to accommodate guests during the busiest periods.

Create a staff rota well in advance and manage expectations of the quality of work expected from your team throughout December. Remember your staff members may be stretched more than usual and missing out on family gatherings to work, so make them feel appreciated and ensure support is available – a personal thank you can go a long way!

Boost morale with staff perks and discounts, create a fun and friendly working environment and organise a team Christmas party for after the festive rush – a happy team will deliver the best possible customer service.

4. Festive feasting

Food is undoubtedly one of the most highly anticipated things about Christmas, so preparation is key when it comes to delivering the most special meals of the year.

Zonal Hotel Solutions’ PMS easily integrates with Zonal’s technology ecosystem helping front- and back-of-house operations save time and money to maximise profits.

Our kitchen management system helps staff to keep on top of their food inventory and our recipe management tool will ensure that reviews and customer feedback can be used to tweak dishes and make constant improvements to your F&B offering.

Our real-time restaurant availability and table reservations module will further boost F&B revenue, by allowing guests to instantly view and reserve tables, streamlining their experience to make their stay even easier and more relaxing. What’s more, it remembers guests’ dietary requirements and specialist needs for every meal throughout their stay, creating a personalised experience for every person.

5. Offer Gift Vouchers

The festive season is the perfect time to boost bookings and create memorable experiences at your hotel. By offering gift vouchers, it’s a smart way to attract new guest bookings while showcasing your hotel.

Don’t miss your opportunity to turn Christmas shoppers into future guests!

While Christmas packages are a brilliant way to fill rooms and boost profits, guests expect the very best when it comes to the most wonderful time of the year, putting pressure on your hotel’s staff and resources. But with creativity, teamwork and some excellent software, your hotel can deliver on its promises, create magical experiences and keep guests coming back to stay year-on-year.

As part of our ongoing commitment to delivering the best-integrated technology solutions for hoteliers, High Level Software rebranded to Zonal Hotel Solutions on Monday, 14th October.

Launched at the Independent Hotel Show, customers can expect the exact same robust features and customer service they already rely on, but with more integrated functionalities, all under one cohesive brand.

Why the rebrand?

High Level joined the Zonal family in 2016 and since then the team has been working diligently to integrate our systems and enhance our offerings. The rebranding to Zonal Hotel Solutions reflects our unified vision and mission to provide innovative, comprehensive, and customer-centric technology solutions for the hotel industry.

What to expect from Zonal Hotel Solutions

With Zonal Hotel Solutions, customers will receive the same high-level service through its impressive cloud-based hotel property management system and will continue to feature its real-time booking engine, channel manager, and vital reporting and revenue management tools.

Please note that your PMS login URL remains unchanged.

Enhanced technology and innovation

The rebrand of High Level to Zonal Hotel Solutions allows customers to benefit from Zonal’s cutting-edge ecosystem of hospitality technology, keeping you ahead in the competitive hotel industry. By leveraging enhanced food and beverage operations and streamlining marketing solutions to boost direct bookings, customers will greatly benefit from Zonal’s integrated technology

Dedicated support and training

Our commitment to providing excellent customer support and training remains unchanged and we will continue to offer the same onboarding, ongoing support and comprehensive training programmes to ensure that our customers fully leverage Zonal’s connected technology and maximise its benefits for their businesses.

Transparent pricing and zero commission fees

We will continue to operate under the same pricing structure, ensuring there are no unpleasant surprises when the rebrand occurs. Our commitment to straightforward and fair pricing will stay consistent, providing you with peace of mind as we transition to Zonal Hotel Solutions.

Seamless transition

We understand that changes can be unnerving, but rest assured, this transition will be seamless. The only changes you’ll notice are the branding of our communications and billing. All your existing data and configurations will remain intact, and our support team is here to assist you every step of the way.

Looking ahead

The rebrand to Zonal Hotel Solutions is just the beginning of many exciting developments. We are dedicated to continuously improving our services and offerings to better serve your needs. Stay tuned for updates on new features, enhancements, and opportunities to maximise the benefits of our PMS.

Thank you for your continued trust and partnership. We look forward to this new chapter and are excited about the future possibilities it brings.