The secret ingredient to the best guest experience

Take a two-hour picturesque journey with a train from Lisbon, and you will find yourself in a Portuguese city, Tomar. This is the home of Hostel 2300 Thomar. 

We’ve asked its owner, Sónia, to shed some light on the story behind her hostel and what makes it so unique.

From this interview, you will find out:

→ what’s the story behind the Hostel 2300 Thomar

→ what’s for her unique about working in the hostel industry

→ what they do at the hostel, so the guests have the best possible stay

→ and finally, what’s their experience with FrontDesk Master.

How did you get into the hostel industry? What were the beginnings of Hostel 2300 Thomar?

– Back in 2013, Portugal was suffering from an international crisis, and, for the first time in my life, I got unemployed. I thought that it was the perfect timing to develop the idea I had a few years before about opening a Hostel in my hometown. I had time to think about it and to develop it.

There were no Hostels in town or the region, so I thought it was an awesome opportunity. I talked about it with my brother, who was living in London at that time, and not only had he thought it was a good idea, as he also asked me if I wanted him to be my business partner. So, a few months after that phone call, Hostel 2300 Thomar opened.

What’s your favorite thing about working in the hostel industry?

– The richest experience I think we get from working in this industry is knowing people from around the world and getting together with different cultures.

In Hostel 2300 Thomar, and because we are very connected with the Caminho de Santiago, we also have the opportunity to know people of different ages, as many of those clients are already retired when they decide to make this journey. People that had a full and rich life and so many things and experiences to share.

It’s an everyday pleasure, and I always feel happy when I have to go to work.   

What’s the story behind your hostel name? Does “2300” have a particular meaning? I’ve also noticed each of your rooms has a name and a theme. Could you share what’s behind it?

– The most difficult thing about opening a business is always finding a good name, and that was not an exception for us. After turning around in circles trying to figure out which could be the best name, we decided that for a marketing purpose, we should name it with our town’s name, Tomar. But decided to add the ancient name instead of the present one. 2300 is nothing more than our postal code J. So the final name came up as Hostel 2300 Thomar.

We also thought that we could have a theme for our decoration. So Portugal is the main theme. Every room has a different decoration related to an icon or a symbol of the Portuguese popular culture like Fado, the Portuguese Taxi, or the Sardines. It is also a way of teaching something about us to our clients while they are staying here. Every room has a written explanation about its theme. People love it, and so do we!

In your opinion, what is the key to the amazing guest experience? How do you make sure your guests have the best stay?

We try to be close to our clients and respond to all their needs, even if those needs can be related to different things than the main touristic experience. We know our own town better than anyone, and we can make them have the best experience they can, visiting the main attractions and experiencing the way of life residents live.

We have the chance to live in a small town where the authenticity is real, and the places tourists attend are the same as residents do.

We also pay the same attention to their needs regarding our Hostel facilities and have been working since we opened back in 2013 to have the best facilities they need.

So, it is always a work in progress, and the main key is being alert and close to them.

How has been an experience with FrontDesk Master and our team so far? And what advice would you give to other hostel owners when it’s time to choose PMS?

– We heard about FrontDesk Master from other colleagues in the industry.

We were working with another PMS that was an everyday struggle. It was not user-friendly and very limited regarding some operations we needed to do. I guess the problem was that it was made for the Hotel industry and not for the Hostel one. So the adaptation was quite rudimentary.

So far, our experience with FrontDesk Master has been great. We manage to do everything we need for our day-to-day work easily, and it is very user-friendly. The reports we can extract from them are also very useful. And since we use it, our work has been significantly simplified, which gives us more time to develop other projects and reduces our stress regarding the basic Hostel work, like managing reservations.

Finally, what’s your favorite hostel memory? 🙂

There is not only one good memory I can recall since I work in this industry. It has been a happy journey, even though this last year has been difficult for everyone.

I met many clients that became good friends, and I think that is the most important and my favorite thing about working and running a Hostel.

I had the opportunity to visit them in their countries, and those experiences are also memories for a lifetime. 

See how easy it is to manage your hostel with FrontDesk Master