Na Tanao 1969, a beautifully designed accommodation worth searching for, is located in the old city area of Ayutthaya, near the Sapphasat Crossing Arch and Chao Pho Suea Shrine and many more historical attractions. We recently had the opportunity to speak with the owners, Ms. Chanida Cheungharoenchaisak (Lin) and Mr. Chitraphat Isarangkun Na Ayutthaya (Name), about their journey of starting their small accommodation business.
“Initially, our intention was to renovate this space into a residential home for ourselves. But at the same time, we also wanted to find a better way to make the building more useful. That’s how we came up with the concept of ‘HomeTel’ (a combination of the words “home” and “hotel”). We actually wanted to create a small accommodation where Thai customers and foreigners could feel as if they were ‘staying at a friend’s house’ yet it still ‘feels like home’.”
Despite its narrow frontage, this five-meter-tall building is designed to be unusual and unique yet appropriate.
“From the outside, our building may appear to be an ordinary building. But once you step inside, you’re greeted by a unique spatial experience that emphasises wood, steel, natural light, and ventilation. The result is a comfortable and relaxing environment that feels anything but cramped. They will also be able to experience our identities, preferences, and lifestyles through the carefully chosen furniture from our collection and other items that will evoke fond memories such as our father’s violin and our mother’s sewing machines. Whether young or old, everyone will truly enjoy this space.”
Switching to Little Hotelier’s automation from manual tasks has been crucial to selling rooms
HomeTel Na Tanao 1969 currently offers four rooms, each named after a member of Name’s family: JIRA, JITTA, NAMA, and KITTA. Each room has its own unique character, such as the room at the front of the building with a bathtub, or the room at the back for those who prefer a quiet atmosphere.
The couple opened this hometel with love several months ago. After initially managing it manually, they realised the need for accommodation management technology and were starting to explore their options.
“Neither of us had ever been in the accommodation business before. We thought that since we only had four rooms, we didn’t need any software or back-end system. At first, I tried using a notebook or Excel to track bookings, but this quickly became cumbersome and inefficient. We were spending too much time on many simple things rather than focusing on making sales. We also had difficulty coordinating with each other on guest arrivals and departures. To avoid overbooking and other problems, we decided to switch to a dedicated hotel management system.”
Saving time on back-end sales allows full dedication to service
“We thought of providing a service without any receptionists, but ultimately decided that a service business is a business that must always create great experiences. We know that customers love technology, but they also value good human interaction. That’s why we use technology to streamline and expedite back-office operations”.
As a newly opened accommodation, marketing is essential for Hometel Na Tanao 1969. Selling through multiple channels is one way for small accommodations to gain visibility. This includes listing their rooms on platforms such as Booking.com, Traveloka, Agoda, Expedia, Trip.com, and Airbnb.
“We also use Little Hotelier’s booking engine to promote our direct channels to Thai customers. As a result, we now receive reservations from all channels, and we no longer have any overlapping or double booking problems. Lin also shared that more than 80% of their guests are now foreigners who book through OTAs, and the remaining 20% are Thais who mostly book through social media platforms, especially for long holidays and weekends.”
Powerful data reports enable informed decision making
As a hotelier, strategic room pricing is essential for a steady income. Lin shared with us that “our hotel is now focused on real-time data. At the beginning of our business, we received feedback from guests that our room rates were too low compared to the quality of the experience they received. That’s when we started to study a report comparing sales channels, room types, and prices of nearby accommodations, and made adjustments accordingly. Little Hotelier makes this process so simple and easily accessible” This allows owners and managers to view analytical data and make decisions quickly from anywhere.
In the future, Hometel Na Tanao 1969 plans to create various activities for guests, with the intention of generating income for the local community on Tanao Road and promoting local experiences. This will help the hotel to become more well-known and grow.
At Little Hotelier, we absolutely admire Lin and Name’s attention to every detail. We are honoured to be a part of telling their story and helping Hometel Na Tanao 1969 succeed.
Table of contents
“Using the calendar to look for upcoming and prior bookings is a breeze thanks to the well-designed layout and intuitive navigation.”