What’s New at Sandals Resorts? CEO Gebhard Rainer Shares the Latest

Sandals Resorts CEO Gebhard Rainer spent some time chatting with Travel Market Report about the brands of Sandals and Beaches all-inclusive resorts, what’s new for the company, and how Sandals is investing in Travel Advisors, “the most important partners we have.”

The Austrian-born Rainer has been CEO of the family-owned Sandals Resorts International since 2018. His prior positions included his role as CFO for Hyatt Hotels and as president and COO of the Coach brand. He returned to the hospitality business after Coach, saying “I wanted to follow my passion for the human aspect” of the business. He shared with Travel Market Report some of these people-centric strategies and new initiatives of Sandals.

What are the new and upcoming Destinations and features for Sandals?
“Customers are always asking about new experiences and new destinations,” said Rainer. So Sandals has been focused on steadily expanding its resort portfolio. In addition to the opening of its Curaçao resort (two years ago) and Dunn’s River in Jamaica (last year), Rainer is very excited about the upcoming opening of the new Sandals resort in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines this March 27. And he’s not just excited for the resort opening, but for the new categories of rooms it will have: its 1248 square foot overwater “Vincy Villas” built over the resort’s private cove.  The Curaçao resort also features a new type of villa with infinity pools blended into their ocean views, while Dunn’s River boasts “sky suites” with rooftop pools.

Rainer said Sandals is early in the process of “exploring possibilities” with developers and local governments in Mexico and the Dominican Republic. He said “They’re two very interesting destinations, but we have to make sure a (potential resort) location is just right before taking action.” He said Sandals looks for the best beaches, but “we don’t want to position ourselves in an area that already has thousands of rooms.”

Rainer wouldn’t reveal what Sandals next location would be because “the excitement would get overwhelming and we couldn’t stop the questions coming in…but we have big expansion plans!” 

How Sandals Resorts is innovating the definition of all-Inclusive
Rainer shared how the all-inclusive resort model has evolved over the years, and how Sandals is redefining the experience and positioning itself as a unique luxury destination.   

Make it “truly all-inclusive”
“When you say ‘All-Inclusive, the customer expects it to really be all-inclusive,” Rainer says. “We don’t want to nickel and dime people once they’re at the resort.” Sandals is one of the only “pure play” all-inclusive resort groups in the world, and “knows how to do it right.” The only extra-cost activities at Sandals are souvenir shops, spa services, photo shoots, and PADI SCUBA certification, according to Rainer. He also highlighted the Sandals “no tipping” policy also removes that pressure from the vacation experience. 

In terms of upselling guests additional services at a resort, Rainer says Sandals tries to do it properly. He commented on a recent viral video from a guest complaining about what she said was relentless upselling at a Sandals. “We appreciate and take any comment seriously, our primary goal is to keep everyone happy. If something happens we investigate,” and take corrective action. He says he considers that case “a one-off situation,” something they can address through staff training. He said Sandals wants to strike a balance between letting guests know about additional options and opportunities to customize their trip, but also letting them relax.

Focus on the quality not quantity of products and services
“All-inclusive had a bad reputation 15-20 years ago when it was known for loud music, cheap alcohol, and cheap food,” said Rainer. While those options still exist at some resorts for budget travelers, Rainer said Sandals emphasizes the quality of the experience: “We focus on the luxury segment where you have individual a la carte dining, luxury excursions, luxury accommodations, so that’s a clear distinguishing factor now for Sandals.” 

Add “authenticity” to what’s included at a resort
Sandals has created a new “Island-Inclusive” product at some resorts, where guests’ stay includes meals at selected restaurants in nearby island towns. Some packages may include guest use of a Mini Cooper to explore the island. Many Sandals customers “really want to experience the authenticity and local culture of the island, and that’s where this concept came from,” says Rainer. The Sandals Royal Bahamian Island-Inclusive features a visit to a unique local craft cocktail bar, as well as some high-end local restaurants. 

New resort local-themed features include a “Jamaican Rum Club” and a Jamaican coffee shop for tasting at the Dunn’s River property and hosted arts and crafts presentations at various resorts.  

How Sandals is investing in travel advisors
While Rainer says Travel Advisors are “the most important partners that we have. They are the ones who have helped us to build this brand (of Sandals).” While “a bit more than half” of Sandals bookings are done directly by consumers, this still leaves nearly half the market for travel advisors.  Because of this significant chunk of business coming via the travel advisor market, Rainer highlights why advisors remain important, how the company invests in them.

“We continue to invest heavily in our travel agent and our travel advisor community,” says Ranier.  “We do pay some of the best commissions in the industry, we have specific ongoing training programs and ongoing events like FAM trips and educational visits.” 

Sandals has Business Development Managers “throughout North America who continuously in person are in touch with the travel advisor community to provide updates, and educational materials, and hear out their needs. We’ve developed a travel advisor portal on the web so advisors can book directly.”

Rainer sees the role of travel advisors as important and even growing. “The all-inclusive segment is more difficult (for consumers) to book over the web than a regular hotel room,” according to Rainer because the “web doesn’t give you with the full context of what an all-inclusive like Sandals provides you with in terms of the experience.” Given the personalization and customization of the experience, Rainer sees travel advisors providing value-add services for guests to save them hours of research time.  

For all these reasons Rainer says the travel advisor relationship is “something we cherish and look after.” “We want them to see us as their unwavering partner,” Rainer says, both now and going forward.