Resort Rescue

                I will start by saying I am not sure what is going on with this show.  It first aired last fall but then disappeared after not many episodes.  Now it has reappeared again, but I don’t know for how long.  I’m hoping that means Travel Channel is in the midst of making a second season.  Since I don’t know this for sure, I’ll just have to wait and see.

                Resort Rescue is set up very much like Restaurant Stakeout.  Cameras are placed around the establishment and the host brings the owners into the control room to watch the captured footage.  The difference is, this time, host Shane Green puts cameras throughout an entire resort, not just a single restaurant.  With these cameras, Mr. Green takes a look at everything.  He films the check-in desk, hotel rooms, associated restaurants, and any type of amenities the resort happens to offer.  Mr. Green also sends in experts to pose as guests and give him the personal view and feeling of what is going well and what is going not so well at the resort.  He then comes up with solutions for the problems and helps the owners put the solutions into place.  Thirty days later, Mr. Green comes back to check on the resort and see how things are going.  So far, I have yet to see Mr. Green unhappy with the end result.   

                In essence, Resort Rescue is the same as most other save-my-business type shows.  An expert comes in, sees the problems with the business, and then helps the owners fix them.  What I like about this show is how calm Mr. Green always is.  In the episodes I have seen, I have never once seen him get upset or fly of the handle.  When he sees something he doesn’t like, instead of exploding, Mr. Green asks questions about why something may be happening.  Then, based on the owner’s answers, he comes up with a solution and moves onto the next item of concern.  Never does he berate the owners or say the offending employee is incapable of doing their job.  He does not treat any action as a character flaw in the human being, but instead uses it as something to be grown upon and improved.

                Another great thing Mr. Green does is he doesn’t expect all of his recommendations to be perfectly implemented right away.  He understands that some things take time and that taking little steps in certain circumstances will be better in the long run.  I think this is part of the reason why the resorts are able to turn themselves around more quickly than some of the businesses on other shows.  They know that when Mr. Green comes back he is going to see the efforts they have made and not just look at the things that still need to be done.  With this positive motivation, it is easier to implement changes at a much faster pace. 

                    With such a great show, I’m hoping the most recent episodes I have watched will not be the last. It would be sad to see it go the way of On the Rocks and simply vanish. I’m sure there are a lot of resorts out there that feel the same way. Any one of them would be thrilled to have a man like Shane Green walk through their door, whether there is a video camera with him or not.