Meliá Hotels International has launched a new take on traditional incentive travel for times of Covid. The Spain-headquartered hotels company has launched a new individual incentive programme instead of the more traditional organised group travel associated with the sector.
The flexible Incentive Travel Programme is linked to the MeliáRewards loyalty scheme and offers companies the chance to give a stay to their customers, employees or partners as a gift, with each recipient able to choose the time, destination, type of hotel and duration of their trip. This is made possible through the purchase of MeliáRewards points to share out among the people the company chooses which can be used whenever they wish.
“Offering individual incentive trips is the best option at a time in which travelling in groups may be subject to certain restrictions. That’s why we are seeing a clear trend for companies to include hotel stays among their Christmas gifts to employees or partners, given that it’s a very flexible incentive for the times we are living in,” said José Miguel Moreno, global B2B sales & marketing senior director at Meliá Hotels International.
The new scheme is one of a number of activities the hotel company is currently carrying out to stimulate the MICE segment, including the Stay Safe with Meliá programme created by the company to reinforce health and safety in its services and facilities, and certified by Bureau Veritas.
The company says incentive trips accounted for 10 per cent of all its MICE revenues in 2019.