The annual Shanghai Oktoberfest, the best German Beer Festival in Shanghai has been one of the most popular and grand featured events sponsored by Renaissance Shanghai Yangtze Hotel, attracting a lot of local and foreign residents in Shanghai. The 13th Shanghai Oktoberfest from Sep 15th to 25th is drawing near. As the only official beer festival of the Shanghai Tourism Festival, it will bring pure Weizen beer and German bands. Besides, original German cuisine, exciting lucky draw and excellent service guaranteed by the Marriott brand makes our expectation for the beer festival go even higher. Renaissance Shanghai Yangtze Hotel has been an old friend of Grand Hotels Magazine, whom we’ve visited for many times since its opening.

Located in the heart of Hongqiao, Shanghai upscale business district, Renaissance Shanghai Yangtze Hotel is your home away from home. Merely a walk away from top exhibition centers and close to major national and international corporations, it is strictly business blend with pleasure in the most convenient of ways. Be it for business or pleasure, the hotel offers an impressive array of first-class facilities and inventive catering solutions. The Renaissance Shanghai Yangtze Hotel delightfully indulges every business and leisure guest in unparalleled stay experience by combining savvy service with a home away from home feel.

We couldn’t help to notice the festival atmosphere throughout the hotel as we stepped in. All kinds of costumes and decorations are ready to get everyone’s attention. Opened in 1991 and redecorated in 2001, the hotel has already been the benchmark of the entire hotel industry for nearly 20 years. Now it’s under the leadership of Mr. Gary Fung, who has been served in the Marriott Group for 19 years and has held important positions at Marriott hotels in Guangzhou, Hong Kong and other cities. Since Mr. Fung took office in Renaissance Shanghai Yangtze Hotel last year, his rich experience and efficient work style has brought inspiration and dynamite to the hotel, creating new records for the hotel’s marketing and customer source which led to a great success of the 2009 Oktoberfest. Gary planed Oktoberfest of last year, and this is the second year he participates in the Oktoberfest, he’s quite exciting to make something unique with his team.

Just like the beer festival held in Munich, there will be a canopy set up outside the hotel large enough to accommodate up to 1,300 guests. Traditional Bavarian decorated wooden beer kegs will be available, as will event specific beer glasses and other nifty treats. Waitresses will be attired in the spirit of Oktoberfest, serving up the most important part of the festival – free flowing beer. The Munich band which enjoys great popularity among the guests has also been an icon of the beer festival.
 
Talking of the innovations in this year’s beer festival, Gary said with fervor and assurance, “We’ve started the planning and preparations for the festival very early this year, and we took much count of the cooperation with the Travel Bureau. Based on the traditions, we’d also like to bring some creative experience to the guests. The Munich Band, which has become very popular with festival goers, will be performing again this year with two new band members, bringing with them passionate beats and grooves that guaranteed to inspire the guests as they party late into the night. There will also be activities and lucky drawings to help kick the celebration into high gear. This year's Oktoberfest lucky draw grand prize will be a 6-day tour for two to Germany, including round trip airfare for two and 6-nights worth of lodging in deluxe rooms at the Renaissance Munich Hotel. Various kinds of beer festival souvenirs such as beer glasses, hats, inflatable toys, toy bears, t-shirts and fans would be displayed at the box offices. The hotel has made these changes in details to meet the different needs of the guests, and also demonstrates conformity to the service-oriented concept kept by Renaissance Shanghai Yangtze Hotel.
 
When we talked about other beer festivals held by other hotels, Gary said with proud, “The beer festival, as a regular event of our hotel for many years, has won great popularity and enjoys a high reputation. We’ve always focused on the overall performance and service quality of our hotel, and we prefer well experienced staff that can provide better service for our customers. Our Chef and his team spent a lot of effort on food and beverage, and the performance was also elaborated to entertain every guest to our festival. During the Expo period, the hotel has also established a project with the Germany Pavilion to enhance the publicity of the hotel and the event.
 
In our pleasant conversation about the hotel’s traditional event of the beer festival, we felt Renaissance Shanghai Yangtze Hotel is experiencing a renaissance from the changes in details. We found the hotel business card became more delicate and stylish, and the hotel café has been newly decorated. Speaking of, Gary told us this is part of the Renaissance’s rebranding. The design and renovation of the hotel café had lasted for months; the new spa is about to launch, and the guest rooms will also be redecorated after the Expo. In addition, a grand multifunctional ball room near the hotel will be completed soon, promoting the hotel’s ability to host wedding banquets, meetings and other big events. As for the food and beverage, the hotel’s seafood buffet and Chinese restaurant have their menus enriched, and guests can also order in their rooms if they don’t feel like dining at the restaurants since the hotel has also made modifications on the room service.

Along with the development of the Great Hongqiao region, an increasing number of hotels have joined the fierce competition in the hotel industry, both other hotel brands and other Marriott hotels. Gary told us that Marriott had less than 10 properties in China when he came to work in Shanghai, and now there are a total of 45 hotels under the Marriott Group in China, as alluded to the importance placed on the Chinese market. Facing the competition, Gary said in a modest but confident voice, Renaissance Shanghai Yangtze Hotel is not a new hotel, and new hotels might outshine our hotel in hardware or facilities. But we keep improving ourselves, and we are proud of the experience of our staffs. While new hotels need a long running-in period, most of our employees have worked here for over 10 years, they are good enough to impress our guests. Based on our considerate service and reputation, we’ve been on the top of the list to many regular guests. We value this customer loyalty, and we’d rather say mutual support is prior than the competition between our hotel and other Marriott hotels. Communication with other hotel brands is also vital to us. Marriott Group has set up special fictional division to coordinate and assign public activities to different Marriott hotels, in order to reinforce the overall competitiveness of the group.
 
We felt the loyalty Gary talked about when he spoke on Marriott. As we knew the Marriott way of staff training project, it’s aimed to provide specific training for the employees as well as to give them opportunities and motivation. Gary said he himself has benefited a lot from this tradition. “I’ll have been working with Marriott group for 19 years till this September. I stared from HR leader and have made my way to the general manager, thanks to the opportunities given by the company. Gary offer the space of development to his staffs just like the hotel did to him, “Although I’m the manager, but I never just give orders, and I tell my team not to. We spend as much time as possible on our clients, in the restaurants, ball rooms and lobby, rather than in our own office. Every week I meet our customers with my sales team, listen to their needs directly, and introduce our hotel to them.” In his words, we saw the sense of responsibility and ambition of a hard working general manger, the loyalty of an outstanding employee.
 
After 20 years’ development in Shanghai, the unparalleled solid foundation and pride has become a part of Renaissance Shanghai Yangtze Hotel’s spirit. The top ranking service and consistent self-improvement is also passed by the brilliant leaders and excellent staffs, as Renaissance Shanghai Yangtze Hotel will surely keep wowing us with its surprising new ideas and concepts. Having faith in this vigorous hotel, we’re looking forward to a glorious future of Renaissance Shanghai Yangtze Hotel.
 
 
 
 上海扬子江万丽大酒店独有的上海德国啤酒节深受在上海生活的中外人士喜爱，每一年都盛况空前。9月15日至25日，我们将迎来第十三届上海德国啤酒节。作为上海旅游节唯一认可的官方啤酒节，它将带给我们最原汁原味的维森啤酒以及地道的德国乐队。另外，纯正的德式美味、刺激幸运抽奖及酒店品牌所保证的高端服务更让我们对啤酒节的期待增值。上海扬子江万丽大酒店可算得上《大酒店》的老朋友了，自开业多年来，我们已经数次造访。凭借对扬子江万丽大酒店一贯的信任以及啤酒节的魅力，我们再次来到这里。
 
 上海扬子江万丽大酒店位于上海虹桥高级商业区的中心地带，临近主要的高速公路，堪称真正的“家外之家”。 酒店距离顶级会展中心仅数步之遥，靠近众多国内和跨国大公司，无论是处理商务事宜还是休闲度假均十分方便。酒店提供琳琅满目的顶级设施和新颖的各式餐饮，是举行商务活动或休闲度假的完美选择。
 
 自走进酒店大门，就让人不得不注意到，这里处处洋溢着节日的气氛。各种与啤酒节相关的服装、装饰已经陆续准备好，吸引人们去关注。大酒店自1991年开业，2001年新装修，至今已经走过近20个年头，至今仍在行业中独领风骚。如今，掌管这个富有蓬勃生命力的大酒店的领头人就是已经在万豪酒店集团工作了19年的冯福明先生。冯先生曾在广州、香港等地担任万豪酒店的要职，自去年上任以来，其丰富的工作经验以及高效的工作方式帮助扬子江万丽大酒店有了传承，有了发展，营销及客源方面都有了新的记录。啤酒节的成功举办就是一个很好的反映。冯先生参与策划了去年的啤酒节，今年是他第二次参加，并与经验丰富的团队共同策划。
 
 与慕尼黑当地所举办的啤酒节相同，酒店搭建起一个可以容纳1300位宾客的大帐篷，配以传统、纯正的巴伐利亚民间风情装饰和木制的啤酒桶，原装酒杯酒具，还有德式打扮的酒娘热情招待。广受宾客喜爱的“慕尼黑乐队”也已成为啤酒节的传统标志之一。
 谈起这届啤酒节的创新之处，冯先生侃侃而谈：“今年我们很早就对啤酒节的工作进行计划与准备，我们重视与旅游局的合作。在保持传统的基础上，我们更希望带给宾客不一样的感觉。我们的乐队新增了两名成员，在组合上会有让人惊喜的改变，热情的舞者也会带领大家一起狂欢。同时，在抽奖环节我们增加了‘德国6日双人游包机票、酒店’的大奖。在售票亭还将陈列了不少独特的啤酒节纪念品：啤酒杯、帽子头饰、吹气玩具、小熊、T恤和扇子等。”这些细节上的改变，无非是为了满足宾客们不同的需求，也满足了扬子江万丽一贯以来服务至上的理念。
 
 面对其他酒店也陆续推出不同的“啤酒节”活动，冯先生淡然：“扬子江办这个活动已经很多年了，名气与品质是有口皆碑。我们非常注重整体能力与服务品质的提升，会挑选更多经验丰富的员工为大家服务。我们的厨师长和他的团队在餐饮方面花了很多精力，而表演项目的安排也经过精心准备，我们啤酒节的每个部分都会让人尽兴。正逢世博，酒店丰富的人力资源让我们与世博会的德国馆有了合作，这对我们酒店及活动的推广都是有力的。”
 
 饶有兴致地聊完大酒店的传统项目“啤酒节”，酒店内许多细微的变化却也让人感受到扬子江万丽正在经历新生。与冯先生交换名片时我们发现酒店名片做得更精致时尚了，酒店的咖啡厅也有了新的面貌……提到这一些新的改变，冯先生向我们介绍，这些都是万丽品牌重塑的表现。咖啡厅是经过酒店好几个月的时间进行设计与重修的，新的SPA馆即将完工，世博会之后客房也会陆续进行翻修。同时，酒店附近即将落成新的大型多功能宴会厅，这也大大提高了扬子江万丽接收婚宴、会议等大型活动的能力。餐饮的推广也有了可喜的进展，海鲜、自助餐、中餐厅等都有了新的餐单。客房服务有了全新的设计，即使不喜欢餐厅也可以在房间点餐。
 
 随着大虹桥地区的开发，这里新开了许多大酒店，酒店业的竞争日趋激烈，这不仅来自其他品牌酒店也来自同是万豪旗下的其他酒店。冯先生告诉我们，当他2002年刚到上海工作时，万豪在中国仅有不到10 个酒店，现在已经增加到到45个，对中国市场的重视由此可见一斑。面对竞争，冯先生谦虚却又不失骄傲：“扬子江万丽尽管不是新酒店，在一些硬件设施上不一定能跟一些新的酒店相比，但我们也在不断的完善。而我们富有经验的工作团队却是其他很多酒店所无法比拟的。新酒店在各方面的磨合需要时间，而我们很多员工已经在此工作超过10年，在顾客方面，能有很好的发挥。扬子江万丽在上海有很好的基础，许多老客人对此情有独钟。我们非常重视这种‘customer  loyalty’。说到与同在万豪旗下的其他酒店的竞争，我们更多的是互相帮助。不同的品牌间也会有良好的沟通。万豪集团在上海有个专门负责统筹工作的设置，分配各种公关活动到旗下酒店。这也有利于提升我们的整体实力。”
 
 提到万豪，从冯先生的言谈中我们也明确感受到了他刚提到的loyalty。万豪对员工培训的重视我们早已熟知，它会在不同的领域让员工得到专门的训练并提供机会与动力。冯先生表示，自己无疑是这种工作传统中的受益者，“到今年9月，我加入万豪国际集团就19年了，我从人事领域开始一步一步到总经理，这与酒店提供的机会与空间是分不开的。”万豪对员工如此，冯先生对员工亦是如此：“虽然我是经理，但我不会只是发号施令，而是不断提醒团队要自己以身作则。我们尽可能的多花时间在客户身上，在餐厅、宴会厅、大堂，而不是办公室。每个星期我都会跟我的销售队伍出去见客户，直接了解客户的需求，并推广介绍我们酒店。”如此亲力亲为，我们感受到冯先生作为总经理的气度与魄力和他作为员工的尽心尽力。
 
在上海扎根近20年，扬子江万丽大酒店有着后起之秀们不可企及的坚固根基与气魄。正是由于拥有卓越的领导人和优秀的员工，扬子江万丽这种高品质的服务与精神在不断传承，而那些可见的变化也让人惊喜于她的不断新生。上海扬子江万丽大酒店旺盛的生命力让人一如既往地对她充满信任与憧憬。