Taking care of business: the bottom line on the travel business in Latin America is service with a smile.One of the truly interesting outcomes of this year's Best of Latin America Latin America, the Spanish-speaking, Portuguese-speaking, and French-speaking countries (except Canada) of North America, South America, Central America, and the West Indies. survey--our fourth in four years--is the degree to which the respondents took it seriously. It's not an easy survey to complete. Most of the questions could be answered only by a legitimate business traveler who knows the region well. And it's long: Even taking the shortest route through the online questionnaire implies a good 20 minutes of thinking and answering, and that's a lot to ask of any executive in an age of Internet, cell phones and constant distraction. Nevertheless, the most common response on the last page, where the editors left open a general space for suggestions, was "Thanks for doing this." Readers often wrote that any effort to improve customer service in the region was well-placed, and that answering a survey for publication was a chance to reward those companies that achieve this level of service and perhaps remind those that don't. "This is a good way to evaluate events and travel services, in order to improve regional offerings," wrote one reader. Another said, simply, "Thanks for considering personal opinion regarding service." We started with airports and airlines. After all, the survey respondents told us, nearly half traveled more than six times a year, many of them more than 15 times (including one very frequent flier frequent flier n. One who travels often by air, especially on one airline. fre  quent-fli who
claimed an astounding a·stound tr.v. a·stound·ed, a·stound·ing, a·stounds To astonish and bewilder. See Synonyms at surprise. [From Middle English astoned, past participle of astonen, 125 separate trips!). In our airport rating, we asked readers to focus on factors including basic services basic services, n.pl frequently insurance companies split dental procedures into basic and major categories. Basic services usually consist of diagnostic, preventive, and routine restorative dental services. like customs and baggage handling, ease of connection, location and parking as well as extras like comfort and food shops. Guayaquil's Simon Bolivar International Airport rated highly in all categories, partly the result of a renovation project tied to an urban renewal plan that focuses on projects along the city's riverfront riv·er·front n. The land or property along a river. . Guayaquil also took best business city, edging slightly over much larger Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, city, Brazil Rio de Janeiro (rē`ō də zhänā`rō, Port. rē`  thĭ zhənĕē`r .Not surprisingly, it helped that a large number of Guayaquil residents took our survey and felt motivated to make the case for their city, Ecuador's largest, and that most who answered about Sao Paulo and Mexico City Mexico City Spanish Ciudad de México City (pop., 2000: city, 8,605,239; 2003 metro. area est., 18,660,000), capital of Mexico. Located at an elevation of 7,350 ft (2,240 m), it is officially coterminous with the Federal District, which occupies 571 sq mi are visitors, not residents. Wrote one reader: "Guayaquil is a lovely city that has made incredible progress. The current mayor has made its citizens proud of the changes in every possible way." Another wrote: "Come to Guayaquil and see how beautiful it is." Second cities. One fascinating trend, nevertheless, was the preponderance pre·pon·der·ance also pre·pon·der·an·cy n. Superiority in weight, force, importance, or influence. Noun 1. preponderance of so-called "second cities" that made our lists. For Brazil, along with Sao Paulo you'll find Bio close behind and Porto Alegre Porto Alegre Port and city(pop., 2005 est.: city, 1,386,900; metro. area, 3,978,263), southern Brazil. Located along the Guaíba River near the Atlantic Ocean coast, it was founded c. 1742 by immigrants from the Azores. It was first known as Porto dos Casais. in the top 10. Guadalajara bested Mexico City in our best business cities list, while Puebla made the top 20. Small cities did well, too. Santo Domingo Santo Domingo, pueblo, United States Santo Domingo (sän'tə dəmĭng`gō), pueblo (1990 pop. 2,866), Sandoval co., N central N.Mex., on the Rio Grande; founded c.1700 after earlier pueblos were destroyed by floods. , San Juan San Juan, city, Argentina San Juan (săn wän, Span. sän hwän), city (1991 pop. 353,476), capital of San Juan prov., W Argentina. It is a commercial and industrial center in an agricultural region. , San Salvador San Salvador, city, El Salvador San Salvador (sän sälväthōr`), city (1993 pop. 402,448), central El Salvador, capital and largest city of the country. It is the center of El Salvador's trade and communications. and Guatemala City--all of them capitals but by no means the center of Latin America's business worlds--nonetheless rated well among those who know those cities and do business there. In all cases, we asked about business culture but also about nightlife night·life n. Social activities or entertainment available or pursued in the evening. nightlife Noun , restaurants, shopping and ambience am·bi·ence n. Variant of ambiance. ambience or ambiance Noun the atmosphere of a place Noun 1. . If a city is all stress, it almost doesn't matter how much business gets done there; eventually, people will leave. This is already happening in Mexico, and Brazil will eventually "de-urbanize" as its roads and telecom infrastructure--as well as the sheer cost of office space--come into play. Our top business hotel for Brazil was in Costa do Sauipe, a resort on the northeastern coast known better among vacationers but also popular for business events and conferences. One reader sang the praises of meetings in the sun: "When I have gone to Cancun on business trips, it's a totally different experience from going on a vacation, a relaxing environment with laid-back meetings and conferences that makes the stay very comfortable." The importance of second cities to business travel showed up again in our ranking of airline lounges, where Monterrey figured once and Guadalajara twice. Travelers appreciate a certain level of surroundings when working, and that comes into play here as well. "A critical aspect nowadays in both hotels and airports is availability of wireless Internet (WiFi), and the bandwidth of the actual access" wrote one reader. So important, in fact, that we were criticized for not asking more on this topic: "It seems to me that you guys missed that aspect big time." Point taken. As the impact of the Web on business deepens, and a younger generation of executives assumes its place, the Internet matters more every day. More than a few people complained that airports and hotels seem to think Internet access See how to access the Internet. is a luxury, or that the travelers who want it will fight through any level of bad wiring and lethargic bandwidth. While the various technologies can be confusing for service providers, the bottom line isn't: Connect me to my world. A 24-hour business center, in most major hotels, seems like a minimal effort, but even that is beyond many of the biggest chains, readers complained. Mexican revolution Mexican Revolution (1910–20) Lengthy struggle that began with the overthrow of Porfirio Díaz, whose elitist and oligarchic policies had caused widespread dissatisfaction. . While Mexican offerings came close to dominating in our rating of airport lounges An airport lounge is a lounge owned by a particular airline (or jointly operated by several carriers). Many offer private meeting rooms, phone, fax, wireless and internet access and other business services, along with provisions to enhance comfort such as free drinks and snacks. , it was a real surprise to see how well the top two Mexican airlines did in the airline category itself. We asked travelers to rate business class, cabin comfort and service, food and beverage F&B is a common abbreviation in the United States and Commonwealth countries, including Hong Kong. F&B is typically the widely accepted abbreviation for "Food and Beverage," which is the sector/industry that specializes in the conceptualization, the making of, and delivery of foods. selection, frequent-flier programs and the ticketing and boarding process. Chile's LAN (Local Area Network) A communications network that serves users within a confined geographical area. The "clients" are the user's workstations typically running Windows, although Mac and Linux clients are also used. led slightly in the food and beverage ranking and Continental Airlines led the frequent-flier category, but Aeromexico and Mexicana were close behind and bested them both in every remaining category. Mexican convention centers also led the way. Focus on detail tended to win the day. Even in very competitive areas, like cruise lines
Name Headquarters A'rosa Europe NCL America America AIDA Cruises Europe American Cruise Lines America , smaller companies did very well in our ranking. A good impression is key. The Sheraton Maria Isabel Hotel & Towers did well in our survey--comfortably above a nine on our 10-point scale on a variety of factors, including menu, wine list, service, business ambience and location (hotel and restaurant rankings are on the following pages.) But all that means zero compared to a single reader who took the time to actually say it out loud: "I cannot overstate my high regard for the Sheraton Maria Isabel in Mexico, D.F. The front desk service is superb as is the dining and general ambience," the reader wrote to us. Now that's leaving your mark on the customer. HOW OUR READERS CHOSE THE BEST OF LATIN AMERICA The LATIN TRADE Latin Trade is a monthly magazine covering global business in Latin America and the Caribbean. Similar to Forbes and Fortune Magazine in coverage, the magazine was founded in 1993 and now publishes 87,000 copies 1 each month in Spanish, Portuguese, and English. Best of Latin America survey was conducted online during the month of October 2005 and was opened by 3,099 readers, of which 1,113 submitted a final survey, a 36% completion rate. The respondents were asked to rate travel properties, destinations and services on a scale of one to 10, with 10 being the highest-quality rating. Incomplete responses were thrown out, as were properties, destinations and services with less than a minimum number of responses, which differed in each category The categories and quality factors for the entire region of Latin America were: Business city * ambience * business culture * nightlife * restaurants * shopping Airline * business class * cabin comfort, service * food, beverages * frequent-flier program * ticketing, boarding Car rental agency * rates * reliability of fleet * service, courtesy * speed of check-in and check-out * vehicle selection, options Airport * comfort, ambience * customs, baggage * ease of connections * food shops, amenities * location, access * parking Airport lounge * ambience * business support * ease of access * electronics, Internet * food, bar * service, staff Large convention center * facilities * food, beverages * location * staff * technology, services Cruise line A cruise line is a company that operates cruise ships. Cruise lines have a dual character; they are partly in the transportation business, and partly in the leisure entertainment business, a duality that carries down into the ships themselves, which have both a crew headed by the * cabins, design * crews, service * food, dining * itineraries * recreation, activities Hotel * business center * executive suites * frequent-guest program * rooms * service * staff Business restaurant * menu * wine list * service * business ambience * location RELATED ARTICLE: Airport oases. Hidden from the bustle bus·tle 1 intr. & tr.v. bus·tled, bus·tling, bus·tles To move or cause to move energetically and busily. n. Excited and often noisy activity; a stir. and stress of busy airports, VIP lounges are oases for the traveling soul. During my recent marathon of trips across the region flying business class, I spent quite a few hours in these lounges. I showered, slept in comfortable recliners, read a few magazines and popped in for a happy hour or two. In short, a good flight begins on the ground before takeoff. American Airlines American Airlines Major U.S. airline. American was created through a merger of several smaller U.S. airlines and incorporated in 1934. It continued to buy the routes of other airlines, becoming an international carrier in the 1970s; its routes include South America, the Admirals Club in Miami can hold 280 people. It has space set aside for the kids, plenty of room at the bar and a wide view of the runway. There's only one drawback DRAWBACK, com. law. An allowance made by the government to merchants on the reexportation of certain imported goods liable to duties, which, in some cases, consists of the whole; in others, of a part of the duties which had been paid upon the importation. : you get only one complimentary drink. There are six showers available for the weary traveler to freshen up Verb 1. freshen up - make brighter and prettier; "we refurbished the guest wing"; "My wife wants us to renovate" refurbish, renovate gentrify - renovate so as to make it conform to middle-class aspirations; "gentrify a row of old houses"; "gentrify the old . In Sao Paulo, Varig's lounge is well decorated dec·o·rate tr.v. dec·o·rat·ed, dec·o·rat·ing, dec·o·rates 1. To furnish, provide, or adorn with something ornamental; embellish. 2. and comes complete with a business center and computers. For the best happy hour, make your descent into Copa Airlines' VIP lounge in Panama City Panama City, city (1990 pop. 34,378), seat of Bay co., NW Fla., on St. Andrews Bay; inc. 1909. A Gulf Coast resort with amusement parks and excellent fishing, it is also a port of entry. The city's industries produce paper, clothing, and chemicals. . It's like going to an A-list sports bar, as games from across the world race across the bar's several television sets. In San Salvador, in the morning, Taca Airlines' lounge teems with executives flying across Central America Central America, narrow, southernmost region (c.202,200 sq mi/523,698 sq km) of North America, linked to South America at Colombia. It separates the Caribbean from the Pacific. . Waiters scurry about serving coffee, juice and breakfast rolls. In Bogota, I got a peek of Avianca's VIP lounge, which was scheduled for inauguration INAUGURATION. This word was applied by the Romans to the ceremony of dedicating some temple, or raising some man to the priesthood, after the augurs had been consulted. It was afterwards applied to the installation (q.v. at press time. When it's up and running, I'm told it will hold 80 people. United Airlines' Red Carpet Club in Chicago is large and has very comfortable chairs. The bar will give you as many soft drinks as you want but only two complimentary cocktails. Down in Sao Paulo, United's digs are much smaller than in Chicago, but the alcohol tended to flow more freely. Delta Airlines' chief hub in Atlanta is home to seven VIP lounges that take in 8,000 passengers a day. The comfortable Business Elite Room offers a nice view of the runway. Chilean carrier LAN's Pablo Neruda Noun 1. Pablo Neruda - Chilean poet (1904-1973) Neftali Ricardo Reyes, Neruda, Reyes lounge in Santiago is so good that you'll want to arrive early. Two open bars serve Chilean wines Chile has a long history of wine making, going back to the conquistadores who brought grape vines with them in the mid 16th Century and planted vineyards. In the mid 18th century, French varietals such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot were introduced. and French champagnes freely. There's also a meeting room, a rest area and plenty of oversized o·ver·size n. 1. A size that is larger than usual. 2. An oversize article or object. adj. o·ver·size also o·ver·sized Larger in size than usual or necessary. lounge chairs. In Sao Paulo, TAM Airlines' lounge is a very modern affair. Yet the lounge is relatively small, especially for a carrier based A transmission system that generates a fixed frequency (carrier) to contain the data being transmitted. See carrier. out of the hosting airport. It does provide a wide variety of soft drinks and snacks to its patrons as well as computer access and television. In Houston, Continental offers an enormous space that occupies two floors for international passengers. The Presidents Club lounge houses five meeting rooms, a business center and a waiting room for children. BEST AIRPORTS GYE / Guayaquil, Ecuador 8.87 DFW / Dallas / Ft. Worth, Texas 8.50 SCL / Santiago, Chile 8.45 ATL / Atlanta, Georgia 8.35 MTY / Monterrey, Mexico 8.34 ORD / Chicago, Illinois 8.24 JFK / New York, New York 8.17 LAX / Los Angeles, California 7.92 GDL / Guadalajara, Mexico 7.61 MEX / Mexico City, Mexico 7.60 PTY / Panama City, Panama 7.57 GIG / Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 7.56 GRU / Sao Paulo, Brazil 7.44 AEP / Buenos Aires, Argentina 7.42 MIA / Miami, Florida 7.32 BEST AIRPORT LOUNGES GDL / Aeromexico Salon Premier 9.07 JFK / American Airlines Admirals Club 9.03 MIA / TAM 9.02 * MTY / Aeromexico Salon Premier 8.96 SCL / LAN Salon Pablo Neruda 8.89 GDL / Mexicana Salones Executivos 8.85 MEX / Continental Presidents Club 8.85 MEX / Aeromexico Salon Premier 8.82 EZE / Mexicana Salones Executivos 8.78 * GIG / Varig Sala VIP 8.76 SCL / LAN Salon Gabriela Mistral 8.72 PTY / Continental Presidents Club 8.69 * EZE / Varig Sala VIP 8.65 EZE / United Airlines Red Carpet Club 8.65 BOG / American Airlines Admirals Club 8.54 * Shared or operated by contractor BEST CAR RENTAL AGENCIES Alamo 8.46 Avis 8.33 Dollar 8.26 Enterprise 8.14 Hertz 8.12 Budget 8.10 BEST BUSINESS CITIES Guayaquil 9.02 Sao Paulo 9.00 Rio de Janeiro 8.90 Guadalajara 8.82 Buenos Aires 8.78 Mexico City 8.70 Bogota 8.68 Porto Alegre 8.49 Santo Domingo 8.48 Monterrey 8.47 San Jose 8.31 San Salvador 8.31 Panama City 8.29 Santiago 8.25 Guatemala City 8.17 Montevideo 8.15 Quito 8.11 Caracas 8.02 Puebla 8.02 San Juan 7.99 BEST AIRLINES Aeromexico 8.95 Mexicana Airlines 8.86 LAN 8.77 Continental Airlines 8.72 Copa Airlines 8.49 TAM Airlines 8.23 Varig 8.13 American Airlines 7.83 Grupo Taca 7.82 Aerolineas Argentinas 7.77 BEST CONVENTION CENTERS World Trade Center Guadalajara 8.93 Cintermex 8.78 Expoplaza Guayaquil 8.77 Centro Banamex 8.64 World Trade Center Sao Paulo 8.63 World Trade Center Mexico 8.59 World Trade Center Chile 8.50 Foz do Iguaqu Convention & Visitors Bureau 8.49 Centro de Convenciones de Cartagena 8.39 Miami Beach Convention Center 8.27 Centro de Convencoes da Bahia 8.20 La Rural 8.16 World Trade Center Bogota 8.08 Centro de Convenciones Atlapa 7.97 Centro de Convenciones Acapulco 7.70 Riocentro 7.67 Transamerica Expo Center Sao Paulo 7.43 Puerto Rico Convention Center 7.42 Centro de Convenciones del Camino Real 7.40 Parque Anhembi 6.91 BEST CRUISE LINES Metropolitan Touring 9.41 Canodros 8.95 Princess Cruises 8.88 Celebrity Cruises 8.85 Radisson Seven Seas Cruises 8.84 Discovery World Cruises 8.83 Disney Cruise Line 8.70 Royal Caribbean International 8.63 Crystal Cruises 8.62 American Canadian Caribbean Line 8.61 Costa Cruises 8.60 Holland America Line 8.60 Norwegian Cruise Line 8.55 Carnival Cruise Lines 8.52 |
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