Preparing Hotel Peak Season: Tips, Tactics and Tools

Hotel peak season brings exciting opportunities for increased revenue and loyal guests – though it also brings challenges. More guests means more demands and higher chances for missteps—which makes it harder to maintain a flawless guest experience.

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The good news? With the right preparation and technology, you can provide exceptional guest service without overwhelming your staff or increasing turnover rates. Below, you’ll learn staffing management strategies, tech-enabled solutions and guest experience tricks of the trade that will make this peak season your most profitable one yet.

What Is Peak Season in the Hotel Industry?

Peak season refers to the periods when your property experiences its highest occupancy and can command premium room rates. These periods depend on factors like:

 
• Local events and festivals
 
• School terms
 
• Local holidays
 
• Business conference schedules
 
• Weather patterns
 
• Regional tourism trends
 
• Target guests  

For example, beach resorts usually experience peak season during summer, while ski resorts see their highest occupancy during winter.

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Most properties also have a secondary peak season that falls around specific area events or semi-popular times of the year. Understanding your specific peak periods allows you to plan the ideal amount of staff and resources.

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Staff Management

Your hotel staff can make or break your success regardless of the season—after all, they’re the ones who assist guests and keep your hotel running smoothly. Good management goes beyond having the right number of people on shift. It’s also about ensuring they’re scheduled at the right times and always equipped to deliver an outstanding guest experience.

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Here’s how to optimize staffing and maintain high service standards when things get busy.

1. Use Market Intelligence for Strategic Scheduling

Peak season occupancy rates can be up to 50% higher than slow seasons. While this has the potential to significantly increase your revenue, it also places increased pressure on your team. The key is using hotel market intelligence to analyze occupancy rates and guest patterns so you know how many team members to schedule and when.

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Pay special attention to:

 
• Check-in and checkout times: Analyze your property management system (PMS) data to identify your front desk’s highest traffic hours. Staff accordingly to provide a smoother guest experience with shorter wait times.
 
• Busy meal periods: Check your point-of-sale (POS) data to see when your hotel’s F&B venues drive the most traffic. Use this data to schedule additional servers and kitchen staff during peak periods.  
 
• Event overlaps: Use occupancy data from your PMS to predict high-traffic periods and implement staggered shifts to balance coverage without overworking your team.

2. Cross-Train Your Team

A versatile team is critical during peak travel season. Train your staff to help out in other departments as needed.

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For example, when you cross-train your housekeeping team, each staff member could clean guest rooms or common areas like lobbies, hallways and restrooms. This gives you more flexibility to shift resources in real time based on needs.

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Another idea is to cross-train food and beverage staff to support event services. If your hotel hosts weddings, corporate gatherings or banquets, having team members who can seamlessly step into different roles allows for better coverage and faster response times.

3. Hire Temporary Support Staff

Roles like housekeeping, valet, concierge or banquet service are ideal for temporary hires since they typically require minimal onboarding. By providing detailed job descriptions and offering key incentives like digital tipping, you can attract qualified potential hires to these roles. You may also consider offering current staff referral bonuses for these support roles to leverage their network of people who may have prior experience.

4. Keep Your Core Team Engaged

Even if you hire temporary workers, your regular staff is the backbone of your operation. Keep them motivated and reduce turnover with these tips:

 
• Provide incentives: Offer bonuses tied to metrics like guest satisfaction or review generation. Employee engagement platforms make it easy to manage rewards, such as gift cards, extra time off or bonuses.  
 
• Offer flexible scheduling: Allow your core team to communicate their preferred shifts to make sure scheduling is fair, staff feels valued and morale stays high.  
 
• Provide wellness support: Offer complimentary subscriptions to meditation, mental health and fitness apps to encourage wellness and a strong work/life balance.

Tip: Make tipping easy. Implementing Digital Tipping software makes it easier for guests to reward both temporary and regular staff for going the extra mile—and directly increases how much money employees get to take home.

Technology

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We’ve discussed ways to make sure your team is prepared for peak season, but what about making sure your tech stack is prepared? With the right set of software, hotels can drive more revenue and streamline operations, even during the busiest times of the year.

1. Drive More Revenue

Getting the most out of your bookings and ancillary revenue can significantly increase your profitability during peak season. Dynamic pricing and upsells are one of the most intuitive ways to do this—by matching your rates to real-time demand, you can get the most out of every reservation.

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Here’s how it works:

 
• Dynamic pricing software monitors booking trends, competitor rates and local events. When bookings spike, your system immediately adjusts rates to prevent underpricing during high-demand periods.
 
• In addition to dynamic pricing, ancillary revenue is continually becoming a focus for hoteliers. With upselling software, you can target guest segments with personalized offers, such as late checkout or room add-ons.  

2. Streamline Operations With Technology

AI technology and automation software provide peak season support by reducing staff burden and increasing guest satisfaction.

 
• Automate guest communications through AI-powered guest messaging
 
• Use cloud-based task management systems to track requests and provide staff with mobile access for real-time updates
 
• Reduce long wait times through a digital check-in and checkout solution that guests can handle through their phone or an in-lobby kiosk
 
• Utilize a guest messaging system that auto-generates service tickets based on guest requests

3. Improve Sustainability

Energy expenses surge during peak seasons, but implementing green practices can reduce costs without compromising guest comfort.

 
• Replace paper-based operations, such as registration, authorizations, contracts and compendiums, with digital alternatives
 
• Save energy (and reduce your bill) by installing sensors that automatically adjust each room's temperature and lighting when they’re unoccupied.
 
• Regularly inspect HVAC systems and appliances to ensure they operate efficiently during high-demand periods.
 
• Eliminate or reduce plastic card keys with digital hotel keys. This act alone could eliminate 73,000 plastic keys in landfills at a 250-room hotel.  
 
• 43% of travelers are willing to pay more for eco-friendly travel options. Promote your sustainable measures on your website, social media and email marketing by highlighting your initiatives to attract eco-minded guests.  

Guest Experience

While there’s more to juggle than ever during peak season, don’t let the guest experience slide. Now that you have the tech tools in place, here’s how to keep guests happy and coming back for more—no matter how busy your hotel gets.

1. Send Pre-Arrival Communications

Communicating with guests proactively before their stay (aka pre-arrival communication) reduces the need for them to contact your hotel by phone or email. Here are the most impactful things to get ahead of:

 
• Essential details: Send parking information, check-in time, directions, hotel loyalty program rewards and a map so guests arrive prepared and impressed by your hotel’s attention to detail.  
 
• Dining options: Include restaurant hours, popular local spots and reservation links — plus any signature experiences guests should book early.
 
• Relevant upgrades: Whether it’s a romance package for couples, sightseeing activities for families or late checkout for a large group, targeted upsells improve the guest experience and drive more revenue.  
 
• Check-in instructions: Send guests a mobile check-in link and relevant instructions so they know the front desk is optional and they can start their stay right away.  

2. Transform the Arrival Experience

Offer a seamless arrival process, even during peak season, by offering a tech-enabled experience with a personal touch.

 
• Heighten convenience: Implement mobile check-in, digital ID verification and contactless room keys so guests can head straight to their rooms upon arrival.  
 
• Automate basic support: Use AI messaging to handle routine questions about parking, Wi-Fi, amenities and local area recommendations.  
 
• Create gathering zones: Set up a comfortable welcome area with refreshments and available staff members to assist guests during peak check-in times.  
 
• Personalize the experience: Set up dedicated check-in areas for VIPs and groups, with trained staff ready to provide tailored welcomes and give special attention to your most valuable guests.

3. Stay in Touch Throughout

Keeping in regular contact with guests during their stay allows you to quickly address any issues that arise and provides key touchpoints that foster a positive relationship.

 
• Check in after check-in: Once guests have time to settle into their rooms, check in with them to make sure they don’t have any immediate questions about their stay.
 
• Be easy to reach: When guests need to make requests, make doing so easy by offering guest messaging on common communication platforms like SMS and WhatsApp
 
• Have a contingency plan: If a guest alerts you to an issue, be sure to have a plan in place to address it swiftly.

Ready to optimize your peak-season operations? Schedule a demo to learn how Canary's Guest Management System drives ancillary revenue and improves the guest experience.