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Newsworthy Clips: Lodging for less 更省荷包的住宿

详细资料: 创建于 2009年5月21日; 最后更新于 2024年5月25日; 发布于 2009年5月21日; 作者：Mike Lee; 点击数：279

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Lodging for less 更省荷包的住宿

As the economy wreaks havoc with hotel revenue, Microtel and other budget chains whose rates average under $70 are picking up customers who used to opt for pricier lodgings. They’re also offering more with updated rooms and increased emphasis on personalized service.

随着经济颓势重创饭店营收，平均房价低于每晚七十美元的「微型旅馆」和其他平价连锁旅馆却反而接收了许多顾客，这些顾客过去往往选择更高价的住宿。这些平价旅馆如今提供全新装潢的房间，也更强调个人化服务。

As at a growing number of economy lodgings, free Wi-Fi and breakfast are offered. Microtel rates also include complimentary calls in the continental United States. But Microtel chief Roy Flora, a veteran hotelier and former franchise consultant, attributes much of the chain’s success to “service and delivery, not just the product.”

如同愈来愈多的经济型旅馆一样，「微型旅馆」也提供免费的无线局域网络上网和早餐。「微型旅馆」房价还附赠任何打到美国大陆本土（译注：不含夏威夷）的电话均免费。不过，老经验的旅馆老板并曾任经销权顾问的「微型旅馆」老板罗伊．弗罗拉，却把该连锁旅馆的成功归功于「服务和传递，而非仅靠产品本身而已。」

So does Microtel deliver? To find out, USA TODAY checked in unannounced at a three-week-old property in Canton, Georgia.

那么「微型旅馆」究竟传递了什么呢？为了找出个中原因，「今日美国报」派人在未事先透露身分的情况下，住进了乔治亚州坎吞成立三周的一处连锁分馆。

Front-desk staffer Jennifer White was helpful on the phone before arrival, giving directions. White’s cheery greeting was worthy of a four-star lodging. She checked that the room and its location were acceptable and suggested spots for dinner.

前往旅馆途中，打电话向柜台服务员珍妮弗．怀特询问路该怎么走，而她的指引相当有用。怀特开心的问候值得封为四星级旅馆等。她又查问了房间和位置是否合适，还建议了吃晚餐的好去处。

Room 412 was small but spotless. A 26-inch flat-panel TV and modern nature print hung on stucco-like walls. A pillow for back support sat on Microtel’s signature window seat. Energy-saving fluorescent bulbs were hidden and softened by a light box over the bed.

第四一二号房虽然不大，却也一尘不染。廿六吋平板电视和现代的大自然版画挂在类似灰泥质材的墙上，而「微型旅馆」正字标记的窗景座位上，摆放了一个靠枕。隐藏式的节能荧光灯泡因着床边的灯箱而变得更加柔和了。

The small bathroom boasted a granite counter and a curved shower rod to make bathing less claustrophobic. Only old-fashioned plastic cups and lack of minibar screamed “budget hotel.”

浴室虽小却堂堂拥有花岗石洗手台，还有弯曲的浴帘杆，好让淋浴不至于引发幽闭恐惧症。唯独只有老式塑料杯和迷你吧台不见踪影的事实，才大声张扬着这里是「平价旅馆」。

There was one truly jarring note: the maddening drip of a leaking bathtub faucet. A minute after that discovery, the phone rang.

整个住宿经验中，只有一个真正令人不快之处（译注：jarring note也有「刺耳的音调」的意思，用于漏水声有双关意）：那就是浴缸水龙头滴答滴答的漏水声，简直令人发狂。发现这个问题的一分钟之后，电话铃声响起。

It was White, asking, “How do you like the room?” Informed of the drip, the fresh-faced brunette raced up to show alternative quarters, all more spacious and none with a feisty faucet. She volunteered that she had called the manager of her favorite restaurant and there would be no problem getting a table.

是怀特打来的，她问说：「您还满意这个房间吗？」这位一脸青春的深色头发女子听说了漏水声的问题后，连忙赶来展示其他房间，这些房间不但空间更宽敞，而且全都没有伤脑筋的水龙头。她自告奋勇说，已经打电话问过她最喜欢光顾的餐厅的经理，定位用餐没问题。

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lodging [ˋlɑdʒɪŋ] n. 寄宿舍；租住的房间; 寄宿，借宿

budget [ˋbʌdʒɪt] adj. 低廉的，收费公道的 inexpensive

complimentary [͵kɑmpləˋmɛntərɪ] adj.【美】赠送的

hotelier [ hoˈtelɪər ] n. 旅馆老板 a person who manages or owns a hotel

franchise [ˋfræn͵tʃaɪz] n. 特许经营权; 专卖权; 经销权 the right to sell a company’s products or services in a particular area using the company’s name

unannounced [ˋʌnəˋnaʊnst] adv. 未通知地

cheery [ˋtʃɪrɪ] adj. 令人愉快的; 兴高采烈的

acceptable [əkˋsɛptəb!] adj. 令人满意的 satisfactory

stucco [ˋstʌko] n. 灰泥，灰墁

signature [ˋsɪgnətʃɚ] adj. 为(某人)所特有的; 体现个体特征的 a distinctive mark, characteristic, or sound indicating identity

fluorescent [fluəˋrɛsnt] adj. 日光灯荧光的

granite [ˋgrænɪt] n. 花岗岩，花岗石

scream [skrim] v. 高声喊出 to utter or say in or as if in a screaming voice

faucet [ˋfɔsɪt] n. 水龙头

fresh-faced [ˋfrɛʃ͵fest] adj. 气色好的，显得年轻健康的 healthy and with a face that looks young

brunette [bruˋnɛt] adj. 深褐色的

race up 连忙赶来 to run to someone or something

quarter [ˋkwɔrtɚ] n. 住处

feisty [ˋfaɪstɪ] adj. 烦躁不安的

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Such staff behavior is no surprise to Roy Flora. New employees get his “Recipes for Success” pamphlet containing such mantras as “we are only as strong as the reputation our customers remember from their experience with us.”

对罗伊．弗罗拉而言，上述的员工举止也没什么好意外的。新进员工都会拿到弗罗拉出的《成功之道》小册子，里头包含了如「住宿过的顾客记忆中对我们的评价有多高，我们就有多强」等朗朗上口的真言。

Flora, 64, ticks off other reasons for the two decade-old chain’s popularity with consumers. New construction is a hallmark, he says. Thirty Microtels are under construction.

六十四岁的弗罗拉列举出这家二十年连锁旅馆广受顾客欢迎的其他原因：新建工程是一大特色，他说道。目前共有三十家「微型旅馆」分馆正兴建中。

Competitors, including Motel 6 and Red Roof Inn, also are renovating. It’s a “boutique approach to economy lodging,” says Red Roof CEO Joe Wheeling. Guests like fresh and modern rooms, hospitality experts agree.

包括「第六汽车旅馆」和「红屋顶饭店」等竞争对手也都正大事修缮。「红屋顶」执行长乔．惠林表示，这是「经济型旅馆采取的精品路线。」餐旅专家也持相同意见，认为顾客喜欢新颖又摩登的房间。

Meanwhile, travelers are increasingly seeking bargains, which bodes well for economy lodgings.

在上同时，旅客也愈来愈精打细算，而这对经济型旅馆来说是好兆头。

2009 looks to be “tough all around,” says lodging specialist David Leob. “But economy properties are prepared to weather the storm a little better.”

二００九年看来「到处都会是相当难熬的一年，」旅馆专家戴维．莱伯指出，「不过，经济型旅馆业界的表现应该会比较好，足以渡过难关。」

Back in the cocoon of Room 402 at the Canton Microtel, sleep comes easily on a comfortable mattress and 200-thread-count cotton/polyester sheets that are smooth.

再回到坎吞「微型旅馆」四０二室的茧居，躺在舒适的床垫和平滑的两百针棉／聚酯床单上，很容易就进入梦乡。

In the morning, after the included spread of cereal, bagels, waffles, juice, yogurt and coffee in a modern breakfast room, general manager Adrienne DeMarco leads this reporter on a tour of Microtel’s room for guests with disabilities. They include roll-in showers with handrails and seats.

次日早上，在现代化的早餐室中吃了包含早餐谷片、贝果、松饼、果汁、优格和咖啡的丰盛餐点后，总经理雅德丽安．德马可领着记者参观该旅馆专为残障人士准备的客房，设置了残障人士专用淋浴室，配备了手扶杆和座椅。

As budget-minded travelers trade down when booking – 81.6 percent are downscaling in 2009, says a just-released Travel Leaders survey of 547 travel agents –Microtel and other chains look to benefit.

随着精打细算的旅客纷纷改订更便宜的客房之际──「旅游领导家」针对五百四十七家旅行社进行调查，并于最近发布结果显示，二００九年有百分之八十一点六的旅客会缩减订房间支──这代表「微型旅馆」和其他类似连锁旅馆应能渔翁得利。

“I challenge everyone in the economy segment to raise the bar,” Flora says, “Let’s make the segment a more attractive proposition” to travelers of all sorts. “That helps us all.”

「我呼吁所有经济型旅馆业界都一同来提升水平，」弗罗拉表示，对各式各样的旅客而言，「让我们大家齐心协力把这个业界变成更有吸引力的选项」，而「这对我们大家都有帮助。」

−by Kitty Bean Yancey

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pamphlet [ˋpæmflɪt] n. 小册子

mantra [ˋmʌntrə] n. （尤指认为并不正确或只是部分正确的）准则，原则，圭臬

tick off 列举; 简略地描述 to mark with a tick

renovate [ˋrɛnə͵vet] v. 翻新; 修复

boutique [buˋtik] n. 精品店

approach [əˋprotʃ] n. 方法，门径；态度 the way or means of entering or leaving; access

hospitality [͵hɑspɪˋtælətɪ] n. (提供给客人的)食宿招待

cocoon [kəˋkun] n. 给人安全感的环境; 保护层; 茧

mattress [ˋmætrɪs] n. 褥垫，床垫

polyester [͵pɑlɪˋɛstɚ] n. 聚酯纤维

waffle [ˋwɑf!] n. 松饼；奶蛋格子饼；华夫饼

budget-minded [ ˈbʌdʒɪt ˈmaɪndɪd ] adj. 计较旅行开支的

downscale [͵daʊnˋskel] v. 降级；缩减（规模）to reduce in scale; scale down

challenge [ˋtʃælɪndʒ] v. 要求；需要；鞭策 to summon to action, effort, or use; stimulate

proposition [͵prɑpəˋzɪʃən] n.【口】企业；事业；生意 venture

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Videoconferencing a growth area 视频会议前途看涨

Videoconferencing has come of age, says Ryan Davies, a senior analyst at Cortina Asset Management Inc. in Wisconsin. For the $15,000 that a handful of cross-country business trips might cost, a company can buy a high-definition videoconferencing system. Unlike the systems of even just five years ago, state-of-the-art video systems have good all-around quality and are much easier to set up, he said.

威斯康星州「科提纳资产管理公司」资深分析师莱恩．戴维斯指出，视频会议已臻成熟。一家公司只要花美金一万五千元，相当于几趟横跨美国东西两岸的商务旅行费用，就能买到一套高画质视频会议系统。他表示，即使是和才五年前的系统相比，现今的先进视讯系统不但整体质量更好，而且也更易于安装。

Cisco Systems’ TelePresence videoconferencing system costs as much as $600,000 and is marketed to top-level executives. For that price, they get a room designed specifically for videoconferencing that includes furniture and gives the impression the people on the other end are sitting across the table. This high-end product has just a slice of the videoconferencing market, though, Davies said.

「思科」的「网真」视频会议系统要价高达六十万美元，营销对象是高阶主管，他们付出这个价钱后，就能拥有特殊设计的视频会议室，所有家具设备都包括在内，而他们会感觉视讯另一端的人彷佛近在呎尺。不过，戴维斯指出，这款高档产品只占了视频会议市场的一小部份而已。

One of the biggest players in this space, Ploycom Inc. has about a 40 percent share of the market. With two-thirds of its business in videoconferencing, an area that could grow as much as 20 percent a year, this company has good opportunities ahead. Concerns about carbon emissions could help propel growth too, and the company is anticipating that, for instance, by giving customers the ability to calculate the amount of fuel they would use on a plane trip they’re replacing with a videoconference, Davies said.

这个产业的龙头之一是「宝利通」公司，市占率约百分之四十。「宝利通」的视频会议产品占了总业绩的三分之二，而每年视讯产品成长率可达百分之二十，该公司前景相当看好。而各界对二氧化碳排放量的关切也可能刺激成长，而「宝利通」本身的预期也是如此──戴维斯指出，举例来说，该公司让客户能计算出搭机出差旅行会消耗的燃料量，换言之，以视频会议取代差旅就能减少等量的碳排放。

Because Polycom also sells conference room equipment, wireless phone systems used primarily by hospitals and retailers, and traditional phones, it has a well-developed distribution network. Several big companies like Lucent, IBM and Nortel also help distribute Polycom products.

由于「宝利通」也销售会议室设备、主要由医院和零售商使用的无线电话系统，以及传统电话，因此配销通路相当完善。此外，包括「朗讯」、IBM和「北电」等大企业也都协助配销「宝利通」的产品。

Generally, technology prices drop by about 10 percent to 15 percent a year, but Polycom has been increasing the price on its videoconferencing systems. “What that tells you is the benefit they’re providing to customers must be significant,” said Davies, “because they have confidence to charge more for what they’re doing.”

一般而言，科技产品问世后，价格往往每年会下滑约百分之十至十五之间，但「宝利通」视频会议系统价格却连连上涨。戴维斯表示，「这代表的意义是，他们为客户带来的利益一定相当顾着，才会使他们的信心大到把收费提高。」

−by Kathleen Gallagher

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