‘Our guests are our ambassadors’

Hailed as a “home away from home” and “a quiet refuge to recharge”, favourable guest reviews have won the University of Cape Town’s (UCT) All Africa House bed-and-breakfast accommodation a service excellence award from international online travel agency Agoda.

The overall 9/10 rating from guest reviews for All Africa House, which reopened in June last year after undergoing renovations, is well-deserved acclamation for its dedicated staff.

The spacious, modern complex, offering 48 rooms, is set against the spectacular backdrop of Table Mountain and conveniently located on UCT’s middle campus. During her tenure as vice-chancellor, Dr Mamphela Ramphele mobilised a donation from the educational charity The Rhodes Trust in Oxford in the United Kingdom to break ground, with the accommodation first opened in 1996.

“Everyone here takes guest service personally.”

“The relaunch last year was a learning opportunity for us, and a chance to introduce new skills. We want All Africa House to be a relevant industry role player and, after opening it to the general market, it has been extremely well received,” said Thobile Dlamini, UCT’s director of Hospitality.

She added that they were witnessing significant growth, with excellent guest reviews.

“We are gaining the right type of momentum, and are looking forward to doing great things. The achievement is 100% due to the management and team here, from receptionists and cleaners, to cooks and maintenance. Everyone here takes guest service personally.”

Constructive critiques

With reviews highlighting both positive and negative experiences, the leadership of All Africa House has taken note of all constructive critiques, using the feedback to make changes and position themselves as a sought-after accommodation choice in the Mother City.

“We are dancing with delight at this [Agoda] recognition and are so excited that the hard work is starting to pay off. It means we are fulfilling our aim of making it easy for people to want to do business with us,” Dlamini said, adding that they had moved from a product-centric to a service-centric approach.

“Now, we’re focused on delivering exceptional experiences. Our guests are at the heart of everything we do, and their satisfaction is crucial to our success. We recognise that our guests are our best brand ambassadors.”

Patrick Rezandt, hospitality manager at All Africa House, explained that the accommodation has transitioned from space aimed at attracting students and other academics, to a commercial enterprise.

Commercial focus

“We’ve aligned ourselves with industry ways of thinking, and that’s been one of the huge shifts. Our services are being evaluated online, which is a very objective mechanism, and now that we have a global presence, we need to be able to meet the associated expectations. Our systems and processes need to be aligned with industry best practices,” he said.

“Now that we have a global presence, we need to be able to meet the associated expectations.”

They also needed to ensure they remain relevant, as well as competitive financially, Rezandt added. This meant not taking negative feedback personally, but rather using it to make improvements.

“I also try to meet and greet as many of the guests as possible, to get a feel about their experiences. By the time the formal feedback arrives, I mostly already have an idea of what to expect,” he said.

Rezandt believes it is consistency that delivered the Agoda rating: “Now it’s up to us to ensure that we maintain that consistency, difficult as it is. It’s a team effort and we’re all dependent on one another to create a conducive working environment for the team too.”

Recently, All Africa House hosted Vice-Chancellor Professor Mosa Moshabela, and the team was thrilled at the potential for further raising their profile. Professor Moshabela described his stay as “enjoyable and pleasant”.

In the spirit of giving back, All Africa House also donated office equipment to Leliebloem House, a home away from home in Woodstock for 60 children from troubled homes. The donation was described by director, Francisco Cornelius, as “a testament to the spirit of community and compassion for the work we do”.

Read some of the reviews for All Africa House.