North Okanagan motels, hotels, bed-and-breakfasts, lodges and campgrounds are getting inspected.
Over the next six months, the Thompson-Okanagan Tourism Association’s quality assurance manager, Rob Grifone, will visit nearly every community in the region to conduct on-site inspections of tourist accommodations.
“My visits are unannounced and I inspect a random sample of guest rooms, as well as all of the property’s common areas and amenities,” said Grifone.
“It’s interesting to see these properties up close, and the new ones coming on stream each year.”
The inspection includes verification that minimum requirements are in place as well as a stringent review of cleanliness, state of repair, and safety.
In 2011, TOTA won the Tourism B.C. contract to carry out the inspections of all properties in the Thompson-Okanagan that choose to be included in Tourism B.C.’s approved accommodation program.
Each of the Thompson-Okanagan’s 660 participating accommodation properties is visited every second year, so Grifone inspects 330 each year.
His first year of inspections with TOTA was in 2011.
The program gives properties a major marketing boost — putting them in Tourism B.C.’s widely distributed Approved Accommodation Guide as well as in TBC’s HelloBC travel website listings.
They also qualify to have visitor reservations made through TBC’s free reservation service, they can display the TBC approved accommodation sign, they can use the Super, Natural B.C. brand in ads and they become eligible for highway signage.
TOTA CEO Glenn Mandziuk believes Grifone’s extensive inspection tour accomplishes two important goals for the region’s tourism industry.
“It allows TOTA to work closely and constructively with accommodators throughout the Thompson Okanagan to help them comply with best practices and provide high quality facilities for their guests,” said Mandziuk.
“It also allows TOTA to meet face-to-face with hundreds of our stakeholders in all communities for better two-way communication between individual tourism businesses and their regional organization.”
Grifone began his 2012 tour in February and will finish by late August.
In September, he will send final reports to Tourism B.C.
The great majority of properties will successfully become or remain approved accommodations, sometimes after Grifone has pointed out necessary upgrades during his first visit, giving the property a chance to fix any deficiencies.
“The Thompson-Okanagan is a huge, diverse region and I’m really impressed with the diversity of tourist accommodations we have – from big resorts and hotels, to the boutique hotels, to the chalets at ski resorts, the RV parks, houseboats, guest ranches, and the many motels as well as a wide range of bed and breakfasts,” said Grifone.
Grifone is a veteran of the tourism industry.
He has worked as a community tourism co-ordinator for Alberta Tourism, a product development manager for Tourism Kelowna, a B.C. Parks and Parks Canada officer, an international education program director and a visiting researcher at two universities in Australia.
He was also the provincial accommodation advisor for the Thompson-Okanagan.
Grifone joined TOTA a year ago when the regional organization won the inspection contract for the Thompson-Okanagan.
From his vantage point on accommodations, Grifone says he is particularly impressed with the growth and professionalism of bed and breakfasts in the region.
“They have changed in recent years,” he said.
“They’re not just empty-nest rooms. People are building homes or renovating them and including private entrances, ensuite bathrooms, guest lounges, theatre rooms – going the extra mile to be good hosts and offer things the consumer is looking for.”
Grifone also notes the increasing number of high-end resorts being built or upgraded throughout the Thompson and Okanagan regions.
“Consumers’ expectations are rising and they are becoming quite fussy, so we have to continue to raise our level if we are going to continue to compete,” he said.
