It isn't easy, running luxury hotels these days. Aside from the general economic malaise and its effects on the travel industry, there's also the need to keep up with the Joneses - Joneses who are getting posher by the minute. For this is the era of the ultraluxe hotel offering - facilities, services, packages and extras that go way beyond what used to be considered five-star service.
They're doing it partly because it has become so hard for high-end hotels to mark themselves out from the crowd, says hotel consultant Ricci Obertelli, former director of the Dorchester Group. 'Clients these days are much more sophisticated. They understand more about how hotels work, and their expectations are a lot greater. So much more thought goes into how we make something different or unique, and adapt the product to clients' needs.'