Cairns Plaza Hotel: Preferred Destination for Leisure and Business Travellers

Located in Tropical North Queensland, the Cairns Plaza is an independently-owned hotel offering a 5-star setting at 3 ½ -star prices. The property has 60 rooms catering to leisure travellers, families and business people.

Strategically positioned on Cairns’ prestigious Esplanade, residents are close to Trinity Bay and the CBD. The hotel is a short distance from the city’s shopping and restaurant district and is ideally positioned for both the business and leisure traveller.

The Cairns Plaza’s offerings include spacious water view suites with a queen-size bedroom, lounge, twin balconies, kitchenette and bathroom. The hotel is an excellent option for families with its specially designed rooms that can cater for up to four guests and which include a balcony, kitchenette and a bathroom.

The ownership of the hotel changed recently and the new proprietors have initiated major renovation of the infrastructure. In addition to this, greater emphasis is being placed on staff training and the range of facilities that are available for guests.

Shannon Jansz, the new general manager of Cairns Plaza Hotel describes the changes that have taken place, “When the current owners purchased the Cairns Plaza it was in need of refurbishment as the previous owners were not prepared to spend any money on the hotel.

“A lot of changes were made in the running of the hotel and the refurbishment was started one floor at a time. Once two floors were completed the hotel started advertising overseas, hired a new chef, new staff and a general manager. We have retained a number of the original staff.

“All the purchases for the refurbishment were made locally in Cairns. A conscious decision was made to support local businesses rather than outsource from down south.

“The growth of Cairns Plaza Hotel started when we demonstrated that the place was actually worth staying at. That came about when an investment of $3 million had been made to make the hotel the best place to stay in Cairns.”

Facilities at the Cairns Plaza

Guests of the hotel staying in the premium suites can see Trinity Bay, where dolphins, turtles and migrating whales are regularly spotted. Family rooms contain either one double bed and two single beds or four single beds, making them a good choice for families or group travellers.

The property’s standard rooms are extremely well laid out, with a balcony with a view of the city, mountains or a partial water view. They include a double and a single bed, an ensuite bathroom, as well as tea and coffee making facilities.

Cairns Plaza has a poolside breakfast room that is highly popular with guests. Every morning it is crowded with families and business travellers enjoying the freshly made items cooked using produce bought from local suppliers.

Next year it is planned to implement further refurbishment when the hotel’s reception area and its restaurant will be redone. A greater focus on business customers is on the cards with the internet facilities and the computers being upgraded. Guests are also provided the facility of an air-conditioned lounge where they can order a drink while they wait. These too will be renovated.

Cairns can be hot and humid in summers and it is essential to provide air-conditioned facilities for the guests. The hotel also gets many early check-in requests. When the hotel has 100% occupancy they have to wait.

On completion of the refurbishments these guests will be able to be seated at the lounges while their rooms are being made ready. During this time, they can watch TV, read the newspaper or use the free internet facilities. Complimentary internet WiFi facilities are available in the entire hotel.

Cairns Plaza has a 24-hour reception and a restaurant that offers breakfast to all its guests. Business travellers are pleasantly surprised to find that the hotel has very prompt check-in facilities. They are also offered complimentary continental breakfast.
The hotel has gained tremendous popularity and as a result, its occupancy rate in the current year for the period 1st July onwards is in excess of 95%. Cairns is enjoying increased popularity as a business and leisure destination for travellers from within the country and overseas. Currently, about 70% of Cairns Plaza Hotel’s guests are leisure traveller and the remaining are business people.

Family holidays at the Cairns Plaza

An increasing number of families are showing a marked preference for the Cairns Plaza Hotel as it offers a value-for-money option while being the perfect place for a holiday. The inground swimming pool is a favourite with children, especially in the hot summer months.

Muddy’s Playground, an award-winning children’s attraction is right across the road from the Cairns Plaza Hotel. It has a mix of wet and dry equipment and is rated as one of the finest play facilities in the country.

The Cairns swimming lagoon, a five-hectare man-made pool, is within walking distance from the hotel. Both Muddy’s Playground and the Cairns swimming lagoon can be used without paying any charges.
Older children find the Cairns Skate Park to be a major attraction. It is very well-equipped and has innovative ramps, bowls and street-style obstacles. The Cairns Skate Park has featured in magazines, skate videos and websites.

Suppliers

Shannon Jansz has made a conscious decision to use local suppliers and companies for all its needs. He says that during the recent refurbishment the hotel used local builders and electricians and continues to use them for its ongoing needs.

Among the companies that Cairns Plaza has developed close relationships with are Blackly Plumbing, Harvey Norman and Cairns Hardware.

Focus on customer service

The principal reason that Cairns Plaza Hotel has seen a jump in its occupancy rates is that it has revamped its customer service policies. Shannon Jansz says, “We provide friendly service and our staff are trained to ensure this. We take online comments from guests from sites like TripAdvisor.

“I send daily emails to all my guests that provide me with email addresses, asking them that if they have the time can they please comment on TripAdvisor. When I get comments and feedback face to face I look at negatives as a positive. For me, a negative comment is a way on how I can improve customer services and my business.

“I don’t look at any comment as negative. There are many comments praising the staff and telling them that they have done a good job. When I see a comment with a specific staff member’s name I actually print that comment out and put it on our staff memo board.

“It gives the staff extra confidence because they made someone’s day with their service and that motivates them to go over and beyond for the next one.”

Staff are encouraged to undergo online customer service courses to keep them updated on how to cater to the need of the hotel’s guests. The Cairns Plaza management pays for these courses but employees are required to complete them on their own time.

The hotel management organises weekly meetings where staff are free to bring up any issues or thoughts they have regarding their work. They are encouraged to relate any customer service issues that arose and how they handled them.

Other staff members can contribute by saying how they would have handled the situation. From a management perspective, employees are provided guidance and advised on how the guest’s request could have been fulfilled.

As a result of the renewed focus on guest service, the Cairns Plaza Hotel received the TripAdvisor Award in 2015 and achieved a rating of 4/5. Booking.com, another hotel rating website, has given Cairns Plaza a score of 8.2/10. HolidayCheck rated the hotel at 5.5/6 for July 2105.

Training of hotel staff

Shannon Jansz has adopted the Fish! Philosophy for training hotel staff. This methodology encourages employees to enjoy their work and continually learn from it. Employees are also taught to make that extra effort to smile and make the hotel’s guests’ stay as pleasant and possible.

The Fish! Philosophy’s central ideas also require staff to be fully present and focussed on the task at hand. And above all, employees are required to maintain a positive attitude at work.

The management of the hotel has taken a conscious decision to consider its employees for internal vacancies that arise. This has resulted in the staff becoming motivated as they have the opportunity to rise within the organisation.

Cairns – the gateway to Queensland’s tropical north

Cairns is rapidly becoming a preferred tourist location as it is close to the Great Barrier Reef and the Daintree Rainforest. Travellers are increasingly attracted to the outdoor activities available, including sailing, diving and snorkelling. The weather is pleasant all year round, although it gets warm at the peak of summer.

The Cairns Plaza Hotel has rapidly become a destination of choice for many visitors to Cairns. The recent renovation has added to making it an extremely attractive option for both business and leisure travellers.

Speaking about his goals for the hotel, Shannon Jansz says, “At the moment it is to take Cairns Plaza to that next level and make it the number one place to stay in Cairns being your home away from home. Looking at our guest comments and our occupancy figures, I believe we are already doing that.”