How This Hotel Group Is Winning (And What Others Can Learn)

Glenn: [00:00:00] Hey, everybody. It’s your hospitality friend Glen here. Thanks for tuning in for another episode of No Vacancy. I got my cohost today, doctor producer Suzanne. But forget the producing. Let’s talk about her doctoring for a second. F I you is one of the top schools in hospitality. And I think you’re some of the reason for that, isn’t it? Suzanne.

Suzanne: [00:00:21] Thank you. From an executive education [00:00:23] standard. [00:00:24]

Glenn: [00:00:24] Yeah. Number seven in the country of all. Yeah, yeah, look at that.

Suzanne: [00:00:30] So that’s for executive education. We debuted and in the state of Florida, we’ll narrow that down. We’re coming into two in that space. So thank you for the shout out. We worked really hard for that. And we’re happy to support our hospitality friends in terms of education, if you want some type of custom program, I am your human. Connect with me.

Glenn: [00:00:50] Excellent. Congratulations. And I am just an AI at this point. I’ve lost all ability to think without typing in buttons first into you know, whatever.

Suzanne: [00:01:00] You’re not typing, you’re voicing now.

Glenn: [00:01:02] Right? That’s true. I was for some reason, the voice feature doesn’t work on the absolutely incredible Microsoft copilot that everybody universally loves. So I don’t know what’s wrong with that. I know it’s tanking the company. I know, but that’s for another show.

Suzanne: [00:01:19] Okay. Yeah.

Glenn: [00:01:20] Because we’re a hospitality podcast. And I will tell you, Suzanne, one of the, one of the places that I’ve never been to, but have been dying to go to is the country of Belize. Have you ever been?

Suzanne: [00:01:32] I have, I’ve had a lot of learners that have come from Belize to take my hospitality leadership development program, and I have some more coming in June from Belize. And I am just enthralled in hearing the stories and the excitement of those managers in that space. So I am thrilled for today’s experience.

Glenn: [00:01:51] Yeah. I’ll tell you, I’ve actually become friend with with an owner of a hotel in Belize, but I’m not going to mention who he is because the show’s not about him. This show is about Julie Kee, director of sales and marketing with the Belize Collection, which has a number of properties in that awesome country. Julie, great to see you today.

Julie: [00:02:09] Hi. Nice to see you too.

Glenn: [00:02:12] So sounds like a pretty crappy job to have selling these these hotels. How do you how do you bear the pain and burden every day?

Julie: [00:02:20] It’s awful. It’s awful being in sunshine all the time.

Glenn: [00:02:24] Yeah. Thanks for rubbing it in. It’s we’re here in the rainy season now in New York, which apparently is every day of the year, so.

Julie: [00:02:31] Well, I don’t know. Your background speaks differently right now.

Glenn: [00:02:35] That’s true. I’m actually pretending to be in Belize right now at your Rainforest Lodge resort, I believe.

Julie: [00:02:43] Lodge? Yeah. Yeah. That’s.

Glenn: [00:02:45] That sounds much nicer than just my rainy backyard over here. So, Julie, tell us a little bit about, just to orient us a little bit about what the collection is and your. Are you a management company? What’s the structure? How’s it all. How’s it all work?

Julie: [00:03:01] Well, so we’re one connected portfolio. And there are a few properties that we do manage, but majority of them we own and manage. Oh, cool. Yeah. And they are, you know, they span from rainforests to reef to coastline. And it’s really just, you know, allowing guests to experience multiple sides of Belize while being able to stay deeply connected to, you know, the Belizeans, the, the locals, the culture and, and all the natural beauty around.

Glenn: [00:03:32] Yeah. Suzanne.

Suzanne: [00:03:33] Yeah. Natural beauty for sure. So are you able to acknowledge maybe what your favorite property is in the collection? Oh.

Julie: [00:03:45] I’m really not allowed to say. I mean, if I’m going to be honest you know, being from here and having the best of both worlds you know, with the, the coastline and then the jungle. It’s, it really is a, a great split equally. But if I’m going to have to lean more towards one, I’m going to say it’s going to be our jungle properties which are both located off the hummingbird highway and they’re about an hour and a half from the international airport. And I don’t know, for me, there’s just something about being immersed in the jungle. It reminds it’s grounding and it reminds you, you know how amazing nature is. And so just being immersed in that is, is, is my favorite part.

Glenn: [00:04:36] It’s also a little bit more special not to take away from the awesome beach properties you have or private island type of stuff, but there’s something about that jungle atmosphere because it’s first of all, it’s less common for people to visit than beaches, right? So it’s got some, it’s got extra kind of positive vibes about it and the lushness of it. And I, you know, and just feeling like you’re a part of it, you could really, my guess is create very specific moments for people that you can’t create elsewhere.

Julie: [00:05:08] Yeah, definitely. And especially to like, even if it’s raining and you’re in a jungle, there’s just another a feeling of, of appreciating the rain for what it is.

Glenn: [00:05:20] It’s also a free pass. Not like when you’re at the beach. Everyone complains about the rain, but I mean, you’re literally in the places named rainforest, so you get that great. Like we did it for you guests. Yeah. Sorry.

Suzanne: [00:05:36] Some of whether their amenities or experiences in the jungle, properties that a guest could get excited about, that really makes it a different experience.

Julie: [00:05:48] Yeah, so there is a few You experiences the. The beauty about it is the location because it’s so central to everything. So you’re not very far if you want to do activities off site, but you know, mainly on our properties, the way it’s set up is we have so much activities available from the hiking trails to our biking trails. We have our own horse stables. So there is also an experience around that being able to go out on a ride in the morning or the afternoon. You know, you’re riding through the orchards going through some creeks. It’s a very special experience. And then you’re bonding with your you know, with the, the guys that are taking you out on this tour. And then we are along the Sabine River. So you have, you know, wonderful river views, whether you’re at the restaurant or you’re at, you know, your room you know, there’s just beautiful views around and all the wildlife. I mean, we have, you know, birds. We are bordered by a biological corridor. So you know, we, we work with, with some different organizations like the Belize Wildcats who we’ve worked to do camera shoppings along our property because there are sightings of jaguars and manatees and all this like cool wildlife. And we get to, to be a part of that and contribute to, you know, tracking and data research and all this, this great stuff.

Glenn: [00:07:20] That’s neat. So you have, you’re able to create activities on property that are, you know, more general to the area, but also very specific to your location as well. And I think what I love about that is that’s really a differentiating factor that helps you sell those experiences as well.

Julie: [00:07:39] Yeah. And then also too, I mean, the, the, there’s two properties in the same location, which is the Rainforest Lodge at Sleeping Giant. And then we have the Banks Resort and they’re one mile apart. But sleeping the rainforest at Sleeping Giant is, you know, it’s because the hotel itself or the property itself faces this mountain range that looks like a giant that’s sleeping. So I think that’s like another cool thing for people to experience. And, and it’s fun to see guests around, you know, you hear them talking and they’re trying to figure out, you know you know, where’s the head and the nose and the belly of the giant. And so it’s, it’s, it’s fun to, to really experience.

Suzanne: [00:08:20] Now, speaking of the belly of the giant.

Glenn: [00:08:23] I do not make fun of me. I’ve been trying to lose that.

Suzanne: [00:08:26] Well, Glenn is all about the food and cooking. So what are some of those unique experiences that might be there when food and cooking comes in?

Glenn: [00:08:36] And Julie, I just did, I just did a whole cooking experience at Benihana and now I’m a master teppanyaki chef. So this is some serious stuff. I’m hoping you have something that can beat that.

Julie: [00:08:48] We definitely do. So, you know, apart from the restaurants you know, having farm to table experiences for those dining options, we also work with at, at our company, we believe in community and regenerative travel and making it as authentic and genuine as possible from, you know, all, all the staff, all the teams, they’re all local. And and so what we do is, is we work with my family at a village nearby. And they, you know, come over and we have this setting and, and you’re able to sign up for a cooking class. You’re, you’re really able to, to connect with that family and learn not only about the culture and the history of the Mayas, but, you know, you’re able to do that through food which is pretty amazing. It’s a very engaging and interactive class. And then after the class is finished, you’re able to sit with them and chat more and, and learn more about their, their background and, and history.

Glenn: [00:09:57] I, I think that’s really important to an overall experience. Right. Suzanne.

Suzanne: [00:10:02] It is. And, and as you continue to immerse that local community into your space. Tell us a little bit more about the food truck experience that happens with the locals.

Julie: [00:10:14] So the food truck is a great outreach that we’ve, we’ve started late last year. And what it allows us to do is allow us to bring you know, our, our dining experiences out to the community around and we are, what we’ve done in the past is like we would sign up for whether it’s a night market in, in the town nearby or a, like we recently had the agricultural fest. So we were able to, to set up that food truck and have you know, our options of what we have within the collection for, for restaurants and you know, create a space there where, you know, people who may not necessarily be able to make it to our hotels can have access and can experience you know, the different food that we have to offer at the collection.

Glenn: [00:11:10] I like that. Right?

Suzanne: [00:11:12] Not a lot of hotels really think about taking that on the road with a food truck. So very creative. Go ahead.

Glenn: [00:11:19] Yeah. I like that idea of community gathering. And I would think Julie, that that helps you and your role as director of sales and marketing as well, because it’s great branding and that community connectivity, I think really makes you part of, of that area.

Julie: [00:11:34] Oh, it’s fantastic for, for awareness and branding. And, and it’s great to see people show up and they’re like, you know, enamored by this, this food truck and, and, you know, the setup of it all. And then even, you know, talking to our teams and, and the chef that might be around because, you know, you have people that are, are just interested in the whole culinary experience. Now, and so it’s, it’s fun to see them connect with, with our teams that are on the ground you know, serving for the, the food truck.

Glenn: [00:12:07] So how are you how are you thinking about like the launch of Jaguar Reef and the offerings over there. I want to, I want to visit the beach for a little while. I mean I know I love the jungle, but, you know, every once in a while, you gotta get out of the jungle room and hit the beach.

Julie: [00:12:22] Yeah. So you know, the, the great thing about Belize is it’s, it’s a small country and it’s easy to get around. So like, you know, you’re able to combine the jungle and the beach very easily into one package. So, you know, if you’re once you’re leaving sleeping giant or the banks and you’re heading over to our beach property in Hopkins you know, the larger It is only an hour. And so the fun thing about Hopkins is it’s a, it’s a small Garifuna fishing village. It’s very funky, very laid back very quaint and charming. And the way the, the hotel itself is, is built and the amenities around is to really lean into that and make it as playful as possible as one should be on the beach. Whether you’re jumping in the water or you’re just being a beach bum on, on the, on the, on the pod. That’s, that’s the way the property is set up. And it’s great for families. We have a over-the-water bar that was built and it’s the only one in the area. So it’s a great social experience because we not only have our guests that are there, but we get locals and we get you know, other guests from other hotels that would come to that spot and it’s it’s two layers and at the, at the bottom we’ve got our ceviche bar. So we have a, a person there that’s behind there that you, you know, making fresh ceviche for you. And once you get up top you know, you’re, you’re, you’re either ordering a cocktail and there are these nets that you could just lay out, or we have people that would jump off and, and do these cool backflips into the water and there’s like a rope that you could swing on to and you see guests like, you know, trying to decide who’s going to you know, flunk or who’s going to, to, to do this cool, move into the water. And so it’s, it’s just fun. It’s fun. It’s a fun spot to, to hang out at, especially if you’re looking to, to be social and meet someone while on vacation.

Glenn: [00:14:37] All right. So how are you appealing to all of us beach bum Wannabes out there. How are you cutting through the clutter? Not because you’ve got to cut through the world because Everywhere’s got great locations, and then you’ve got to get people focused on Belize, and then you got to get people focused on your properties in Belize. So how are you thinking about all of this?

Julie: [00:15:02] So for us is, is I love that you said all the clutter because I think that in today, in today’s world with, you know, AI and all these different layers of the digital world, people are looking for just more for connection. And I think that that’s what our properties offer you know, is to, to not only be immersed in nature, but to be immersed in, in whether that’s connecting, reconnecting with yourself or, you know, with other people. It is, it is set up for that. And it’s just a way to be reminded of the the simpler things in life. And so I think that if there was one thing that, that I would say that that is a differentiator for us is just to be deeply connected to the people, the culture and the natural beauty around.

Glenn: [00:15:58] All right. So I did, I don’t want to shock Suzanne. I’m glad she’s sitting, but I did do a tiny bit of research for this interview and tiny and I see you’re trying to connect a little more to wellness as well, which I think is extremely important. And it sounds like what we’re talking about here is that differentiating factor, once you get down to it, is that reconnection with things and other spiritually minded, not religious, but getting back to yourself kind of, of stuff that really plays into where we’re going now with wellness and personal fulfillment.

Julie: [00:16:37] Yeah, definitely. I think that, you know, for us, it’s more unstructured wellness. It’s not so rigid. It’s not hard to be you know, it’s, it’s slower pacing rather than, you know, all these rigid programs. And so it’s just more really about restoration through, through nature, whether that’s at the jungle or, you know, at the beach, it’s, it’s yeah, it’s, it’s more into unstructured wellness.

Glenn: [00:17:06] Yeah. Suzanne.

Suzanne: [00:17:06] So how then do you try and give that sense of structured wellness? Do you have retreats that people can look out for or offerings that you put together?

Julie: [00:17:17] Yeah we do. So, so we do host retreats. Whether that’s yoga, Pilates recently we’ve been talking to you know, a few people in terms of taking it to another level where we, we also work with different leaders that are spearheading these programs that are more geared, you know, towards also women and you know, fertility workshops and at menopause workshops. So there’s like a whole nother layer or like a niche market of how these different leaders are, are really leaning into that, that wellness and shifting that space into more awareness and educational purposes as well.

Suzanne: [00:18:02] I’m trying to say I need to go to the menopause workshop right now. But it, it really is an advancement and I’m, I’m gathering that you’re seeing a lot more influx of people in that wellness space, especially after Covid and trying to reshift a lot of the focus that they put onto their personal fulfillment.

Julie: [00:18:24] Yes we do. We are seeing a lot of that in the space right now. We are getting requests and people reaching out. And we are looking at ways to redefine our programs at the hotels as well. I mean, like, for example, we, we have yoga mats now in all the rooms. As, as a space, you know, for you to just stretch and do your, your morning wellness routine. It doesn’t have to, to just be to where you are. If you’re traveling, you could take it with you as well.

Glenn: [00:18:55] Oh, that’s great. Because I was just, I was just hosting an event for a hotel company that had him in the room. It was great. But Julie, I’m going to give you an idea. This is free. All right. We got a lot of. We got a lot of goat yoga going on over here. You guys could should do taper. Taper yoga because that’s the national animal, right. I think that would be that would be a big hit for people. I’d go over with the tapers. But you know.

Speaker 5: [00:19:17] That’s what it’s about to say. I don’t know how it would go over.

Speaker 6: [00:19:22] All right.

Glenn: [00:19:22] How about the howler monkeys. You know, you get you get a great massage. They scream a little bit. Sounds very relaxing.

Julie: [00:19:31] It works for the somatic part of it, right? Yes. Shake it off and and scream and release and let it out. So I think that you’d kind of blend in to the rhythm of their noise, right?

Glenn: [00:19:42] Yeah. All right. So I know I’m joking. I’m joking around with all that, but I want to hear about like the Rhythm Reef Cay private island experiences, Blue Reef Island, that sort of thing, because we all get to go to hotels, but that private island thing really takes it up a notch and creates an experience that’s very hard to replicate elsewhere.

Julie: [00:20:04] It is absolutely. And it is definitely an added value to to what we have at the beach properties. So Rhythm Reef, it used to be owned by Ringo Starr of the Beatles. And never.

Glenn: [00:20:17] Never, never heard of them. Yeah.

Julie: [00:20:19] Years and years ago.

Glenn: [00:20:22] And mind you, I just watched the Ringo Starr interview like literally last week. Sorry. Go on.

Julie: [00:20:29] And it’s a 14 acre private island. The, the, the future plan for it is to be able to build an off grid hotel out there, making it sustainable. But for now, we’re offering private island experience for the day from Jaguar Reef. And it’s a 45 minute boat ride out to the private island.

Glenn: [00:20:52] You.

Julie: [00:20:53] Know, there’s a chef that goes out with you.

Glenn: [00:20:56] I’m already picturing having a nice welcome cocktail while riding out.

Julie: [00:21:00] Yeah. And so, you know, you’re being served with either a cocktail of your choice or fresh coconut water. The guys going up the coconut tree to, to grab a coconut for you and, you know, getting that chopped up while the chef is preparing your meal, which is he’s using fresh ingredients. So whatever is caught there and it’s prepared right there over the, the, the fire grill for you. And then, you know, you have your kayaks and paddle boards that you can use. We take out snorkel gear because you can snorkel snorkel right around the island as well. And then there are hammocks under the coconut trees. So if you just wanted to take a nap because life is so hard you’re able to do that as well. So the island is yours for the day naps. What’s that?

Suzanne: [00:21:50] How did you know that Glenn likes naps?

Glenn: [00:21:53] I love it. I love a good nap. Yeah. I keep, I try, I’m only about 30% success rate when I, when I, when I go for it. But it’s great. It’s the best. And I’m already imagining you know, passing out and then calm breeze going, just swaying a little tiny bit in the hammock. And I wake up and instantly someone’s there with a coconut ready to give me something, and I’ll forget that I have to work, which sounds really nice.

Julie: [00:22:21] And then we’ll have to you know, peel you away from from the island as well too, because you might never want to leave.

Glenn: [00:22:27] Oh, I know that that’s inevitable. That is definitely inevitable. I will cause trouble on the way out.

Julie: [00:22:34] I think, as most guests do, because there’s like a set time to return and always like, can we just get a few more minutes, please?

Speaker 7: [00:22:40] Right. Oh. I love that.

Glenn: [00:22:45] Feeling. So how do you translate all of this energy and emotion into campaigns that connect with the guests, that gets them to want to stay with your collection?

Julie: [00:22:59] That’s a great question. It’s honestly a challenge at times because there’s, there’s so many different layers of, of experiences. And there’s only so much you could say or do, whether that’s via video or photos. And so we, we try our best to kind of you know, focus on, on whether it’s wellness and curating it for something like that. Whether it’s focusing on the trails or focusing on the beach. We just try to, to make sure that we paint that picture of, of natural beauty for sure. Because people tend to gravitate more towards that. And, and as I mentioned earlier, I think that, you know, people are just looking for, for connection and relaxation at the end of the day. And so that’s, that’s really, really, if we had to, to, you know, break it down is what we tried to get across all our channels as well is that, you know, if you’re coming to Belize and you’re coming to our properties, it’s really not hard to to be it’s not pretentious. It’s, it’s just easy. It’s, it’s easy to, to, to do your own thing.

Suzanne: [00:24:12] Now with the increase in the, the focus for wellness, are you seeing that people are in terms of length of stay, are they extending and going longer or are they trying to do an extended weekend? What is the mix of the business that, that you’re seeing?

Julie: [00:24:29] It’s a little bit of both honestly. And if they’re extending, they’re extending because they’re, they’re joining the two properties. And they want to experience both. And if it’s for a short weekend, it’s either over a long weekend that they’re coming for. And the good thing is, is that we have a good enough amount of airlift coming in and out of Belize. So if you’re coming from like Florida or from Texas, it’s, it’s like a, a short flight to, to get here to us to kind of just do a weekend thing if you really wanted to.

Suzanne: [00:25:02] Fantastic. I think, Glen, we might need to, you know, put something on the schedule.

Glenn: [00:25:06] Yeah, maybe that maybe that weekend in between in between the My Place conference and the red roof.

Suzanne: [00:25:14] Oh, there we go. Sure. Add it to the agenda.

Glenn: [00:25:16] I’m already. Yeah, I mean, I, I, Julie, I don’t travel enough, so I’m always looking for an excuse to get away. Right.

Julie: [00:25:24] I guess it’s a good thing you know someone now there’s a Second person in Belize, I should say.

Speaker 7: [00:25:29] Yeah.

Glenn: [00:25:30] I just like literally just got back from a 20 day trip and I was home for two days before that. I was gone for ten days. So it’s been, it’s been, it’s been kind of wild. But I do want to see Belize. And you.

Suzanne: [00:25:43] Know what I would like to see? I would really like to check out the Blue Reef beach in Marina. So what are some of the things that become a great highlight of that particular location?

Julie: [00:25:53] So the Blue Reef beach is the newest hotel added to our collection. It was added in January of this year. And it opened last year, I think November. And that property is the one, one property that we don’t own, but we do manage. And it’s it’s a unique property in terms of location. It’s the smallest one within our collection. It’s only 19 rooms.

Speaker 7: [00:26:20] Nice.

Julie: [00:26:21] So very boutique.

Glenn: [00:26:22] That is a selling point at this point in my life.

Julie: [00:26:24] Yeah. If you’re, if you’re getting away from people, it’s.

Glenn: [00:26:27] Right.

Julie: [00:26:28] Yeah. It’s right on the beach. It’s got a nice pool as well and restaurant, indoor and outdoor dining. So if you’re looking to, you know, have a cool outdoor dining experience you know, and then also to we have a, a dock that we host pilates and yoga. And it’s, it’s one of the properties actually that we’re, we’re kind of shifting more into the wellness. So that’s where we hosted our menopause workshop with this great woman that’s based there in Placentia. That’s where the, the hotel is located. And so she’s really been a, a strong partner for us in terms of, of doing more of these, these workshops and you know, offerings for, for people to access not only for guests, but for, for the people that are in that community as well.

Glenn: [00:27:21] I love that idea because it really plays into, you know, getting in touch with yourself and nature. And you know, and wellness and good positive energy and stuff. I think that’s a really interesting angle and selling point over there. So is there anything else that you want to ask our incredible guests?

Suzanne: [00:27:39] I think what I want to know because I have never been to Belize before. What would someone that has never thought about this particular location find as being something different in that space? Like, why should I go for a long weekend or for a wellness escape to that area?

Julie: [00:28:03] I would say it’s, there’s, there’s multiple reasons. You get the best of both worlds. You get beach and jungle, which, you know, if you are an active traveler and, and don’t mind moving around, it’s easy to, to squeeze into one location because I did mention earlier that the country is small, so it’s easy to, to get around. And, you know, Belize in, in general, it’s got the Maya culture. It’s like a melting pot of cultures. It’s got you know, the second largest barrier reef in the world.

Glenn: [00:28:41] You’ve got whale sharks out there somewhere. That’s incredible.

Julie: [00:28:44] Yeah. It’s, it’s, that’s, that’s seasonal as well too. So, you know, it’s, it’s a great place for diving and snorkeling as well. So, and, and cave tubing and, and you know, exploring the, the Maya sites as well is another reason to, to visit Belize and our, our properties really just are in great locations to be able to experience everything around.

Glenn: [00:29:14] Well, I’m jealous of you and now I feel like I’ve got to make you jealous of us. We’ve got really great strip malls here on Long Island. I can get my dry cleaning, get Chinese food in the same shopping center so.

Julie: [00:29:28] We don’t have any franchises here or chains as well. When it comes to restaurants.

Glenn: [00:29:34] Oh, now you got, now you got me really jealous. So over there also Belize is a is recommended by nine out of ten Jaguars. I don’t know what the other Jaguars got a problem with you guys, but I love it. Julie, how can we learn more about your collection of, of hotels?

Julie: [00:29:55] I would say, you know, you could visit our website at the Belize collection.com to learn about all the properties and what we have to offer. And it’s a, it’s a great resource for information not only on our properties, but information on Belize itself.

Glenn: [00:30:09] Beautiful, I love it. Julie, thank you so much for being here. I really appreciate you spending time with us today.

Julie: [00:30:14] Thank you to. This is wonderful.

Glenn: [00:30:16] Yeah. It’s awesome. Well, please hang out. And Suzanne, what’s your big observation from today’s conversation.

Suzanne: [00:30:23] Well, I think the piece on the wellness, this has been another area that I’m looking at in terms of what’s out there and what should we do for education. And I love hearing what they’re doing in that space and giving guests a unique opportunity, that insights, that opportunity to connect with the local community and return to find that moment for peace. And I kind of like that island idea. I kind of like leaving you on the island. Oh, okay. Sorry.

Glenn: [00:30:54] No. Hey, listen, with with the quality of my jokes today, I understand where you’re where you’re coming from. All right. One also, hey, you’re going to want to relive this moment, I’m sure. And all the other great moments here on No Vacancy. Watch, listen, subscribe wherever you get your shows. We are here. Thanks so much for watching. We’ll be back next time. And remember, you’ve got one life, so blaze on and.

Suzanne: [00:31:16] Follow your passion.

Glenn: [00:31:18] Y’all. Later. Bye, everybody.