There is great customer care and then there is great customer care. Service that is delivered by companies and staff that assists not only existing customers but who goes out of their way to help those individuals and businesses who are not but thanks to their four-star treatment could well be in the future and if not them their family, friends, and associates.

Radisson Hotel Vancouver (B.C., Canada) Airport (a.k.a. YVR), which is located in the suburb of Richmond, falls into that category. For service alone I recommend staying there, along with being very convenient for both the airport and the downtown, including the Olympics venues.

And here's why: late yesterday afternoon my wife and I had personal business in downtown Vancouver that required taking TransLink's new Canada Line rapid transit from near YVR that was inaugurated that day (regular service begins Sept.7). Vancouver driving and parking is no fun and there's no reason why it should be so, so any opportunity to deposit the car and take mass transit makes sense. So I drove from my home in the 'burbs (our buses will be routed into the Canada Line on the 7th) and parked the car at the Bridgeport station in Richmond adjacent to the River Rock Casino Resort, which has a huge garage between the Canada Line and the casino.

The train was fast, smooth, comfortable, much more preferable in all aspects to the existing express buses but packed New York-/London style (yes I used to be a straphanger on the E and F trains from Queens, and on the Underground's District and Piccadilly lines).

But when we decided to get back on the crowds were so huge the TransLink staff and Vancouver police were telling people that there was a 2 to 3 hour wait and service would end for that day at 9pm. So I spotted a bus--one of the routes that the Canada Line will replace in less than a month's time--that would take us back roughly where we packed our car, bought transit tickets, and boarded.

After a long if scenic ride we got out adjacent to one of the Canada Line stations in Richmond, at Aberdeen, to ride one stop back to Bridgeport. There was a massive crowd though.

So spotting the Radisson adjacent to the station we hoofed it over to the hotel to get a cab. Once inside I asked the bell desk to call one up. He said it could be a 30 minute or wait so but then he offered to take us to back to Bridgeport/River Rock. We explained that we weren't guests but he took us anyway and then in chatting he told us he told how he arranged a limo tour for a family of guests that included an elderly member who could not easily take mass transit and how they enjoyed the experience.

We tipped this gentleman for the ride and thanked him profusely. And I came away with the impression of if that is how well the Radisson treats non-guests we look forward to becoming guests.

This is how businesses should treat everyone. The ROI is there and in spades. For anyone can be a customer, or recommend to others to become customers.

A tip of the hat to you, Radisson Vancouver Airport. May your business do well. Count on us being at a Radisson in our travels and to give others our recommendation to stay at your hotels.