The view from abroad by a travel agent from Canada and tourism official
"We've been to Bermuda 53 times, my wife and I. And 45 times we've stayed at Harmony. When it was Harmony Hall and now it is Harmony Club. We just love it.'' Not only is that the sort of personal recommendation any guest accommodation would hunt for, but when it comes from a professional travel agent it must be the sort of publicity that one just cannot buy, that must have been earned -- time and time again.
Running Collins Tours in New Brunswick, it would surely be Mr. Collins who would speak out if Harmony Club's all-inclusive scheme was lacking in some respect or other. Not a bit of it. He uses such superlatives as excellent, the friendliest of staff and a sort of heaven with evident sincerity when he talks of his favourite hotel. "When you stay at Harmony Hall you know you are wanted, you are coming to your second home.'' But when a client asks "What will Harmony Club cost me for a week's stay?'' he never answers directly. "I always tell them about all the hidden assets: the free golf, the breakfast, lunch, tea, and full dinner. They're all included. So is the rented livery cycle and the pass to Elbow Beach. I mean there's just so much that is hidden in the price, even the gratuities.
"Then, when I tell them that for a spring break for a week they pay about $2,000 well, they're very impressed. I tell them that they don't have to bring any money with them at all. None. At Harmony Hall, all-inclusive really means all-inclusive.'' Given his occupation Mr. Collins lays his reputation on the line, every time he recommends the place. If he exaggerates the idea, then he'll probably hear when he and the guests get back home, but says Mr. Collins: "On one trip I had 116 people in the party: not one complaint.'' He scoffs at comparison with some Caribbean resorts. "They're very good at what I would call the `up-front price' -- the price they quote in the travel adverts, but when you arrive down there you never stop paying out. I mean, really paying.'' His final word is for Bermuda, rather than Harmony Club. "Every tourist spot in the world has been feeling the crunch. Bermuda has one thing in common with them. It can't bounce back -- it must climb back.'' Mr. Collins opinions are shared by Toby Dillas, the Regional Manager for the Bermuda Department of Tourism in New England, but Toby wishes it known that he is really speaking as former senior employee of Forte International when he talks to The Royal Gazette about Harmony Club. "When we use the phrase `Bermuda is the complete destination resort' then Harmony Club is a clear example of that. Unlike other destinations to the south, we must try not to nickel-and-dime our guest. Success is built on the ambience and the environment, in both the hotel and the Island.
"I feel proud of the fact that when I was with Forte I played a small part in the creation of this novel concept. The real organiser was Alfonso Giannuzzi and it was a gamble, it had to be, given that no one else on the island was even considering it. It took courage and Alfonso and Forte had that. And the Department of Tourism was right with us, all the way. But when you do something like this, something that is so radical, you have to be certain that you have a marketing strategy in place. I wouldn't recommend that it be tried by a lot of places because it is an `all or nothing' step. Really it needs someone with Billy Griffith's skills and a staff that can be trusted to keep the standards high. Up here we have had a lot of positive feedback about Harmony Hall. They would be silly to change now.'' MR. and Mrs. Carl Collins -- they keep coming back.