Technology Trends That Are Disrupting Traditional Hotel Experiences
What to keep an eye out for, to stay ahead of the curve.
No matter age, gender, or demographic, people want what they want and they want it now. For travelers staying in a hotel, they want to check in without waiting in line, they want their Wi-Fi to be just as fast as their home or office, and if they need an extra pillow or a late night snack, they expect someone to deliver it immediately upon request. With traveler expectations becoming greater, one can’t help but wonder, how are hotels keeping up with the increasing demands?
With each technology trend on the rise, the focus is entirely on convenience to create a better user experience. The increase of control from mobile devices, using artificial intelligence for personalization, and the use of virtual reality are new concepts that are prominent in hotels today. In the ever-evolving hospitality industry we need to stay ahead of the curve by paying attention to what is becoming popular and what will progress into the new norm. To ensure we don’t fall behind, let’s take a look at recent technology trends that are disrupting traditional hotel experiences, and what it means for us.
There’s an App for that – Mobile capabilities for hotels
Traditionally, a typical hotel experience goes something like this: wait in a long line to check in only to find out that your room won’t be ready for an hour, struggle to get out your hotel key while holding all of your luggage, wait 45 minutes for the extra pillow you called the concierge for, and finally get snuggled into bed just to realize the remote is across the room to turn off the TV. Now, what if there was an app to take care of all of that?
The ability to control your hotel experience from check-in to check-out can now often be managed from the palm of your hand. Hotels are working to up their app game to offer more conveniences for guests such as the ability to check in, open doors, order room service, and control the TV. Hotels that have implemented mobile check-in have found that it not only improves the customer experience, but it also provides more accurate room availability information – ultimately optimizing room revenue.1 The ability to have real-time knowledge of room vacancies can better assist those receiving upgrades, or other hotel requests immediately, improving a previously tedious process with a very lengthy turn-around time.
The ever-increasing Wi-Fi demand – Tech-driven meeting spaces
Not only are travelers’ personal needs changing, but also their business needs. With professionals constantly on the go these days, no longer will it suffice to have a plain, sterile conference room or having to pay for slow Internet access. Having a place where guests can get out of their rooms but still access Wi-Fi to relax or get work done is important. Hotels are finding it necessary to continue increasing their Wi-Fi bandwidth range, and keeping their technology and meeting rooms up-to-date to make working on the road feel a little more like working from your home away from home.
As onPeak’s Kristiana Balac found, having a unique meeting space is number three of the top five most appealing event accommodation amenities, and complimentary Wi-Fi is number one. The Hyatt Regency Chicago meets these demands by introducing 22 new unique, and tech-driven meeting rooms. Besides having a large Wi-Fi bandwidth throughout the entire hotel, their meeting rooms include interactive plasma displays, with rotating digital info to help navigate throughout Chicago’s largest hotel. The Hyatt Regency also comes equipped with Google Maps touchscreens where guests can easily locate specific meeting spaces throughout the hotel.3 These high-tech conveniences of finding necessary meeting rooms at the touch of a finger, then being able to use top-notch equipment for all business needs, creates a unique and memorable experience, encouraging guests to return again.
As Mitchel Hochberg, president of private real estate company Lightstone, said, “Today’s travelers don’t need a newspaper at their door, or a mint on their pillow. They want to be engaged by unique experiences that create a sense of place.”4 Having high-speed internet and an enjoyable environment isn’t limited to meeting spaces, but also, the idea of a “Smart Room” is an important concept being developed.
Alexa, order room service – Smart rooms for smart guests
Personalized experiences don’t just exist in the boutique hotel space – the big box brands are getting on board, too. Amazon has created Alexa for Hospitality, and hotels across the board are starting to adopt this convenience of home. Alexa’s new skills can be customized for each location, and offer the ability to order room service or adjust room controls. Alexa-powered support devices are already being used onsite at events, and hotels are quickly starting to follow suit by using them for similar capabilities. Colin Bunn, VP of Product and Technology at onPeak, says that Alexa, along with other chat-bots, are being used as a first-line of defense for support teams everywhere. Mainly, they’re being used for convenience, to get simple questions (like where is the bathroom) out of the way before you need to talk to a real person. The guest will have the option to ask location-specific questions such as what time the pool closes, or where the fitness center is. Along with that, guests will eventually be able to temporarily link their accounts to Alexa for Hospitality in order to access their music or Amazon orders while they are in their room. 5 This allows guests to experience a quintessential at-home feeling while traveling.
Robots aren’t taking over the world – But they are making a rise in hotels
With all of these options in high-tech, trendy hotels, how does one choose? Many hotels are diving into virtual reality use to better serve the guest. The Hilton’s “Hilton Innovation Gallery” is designed to test new creative ideas in VR and is located next to their headquarters at Hilton McLean Tysons Corner in Virginia. Currently, the gallery allows visitors to enter the VR stage and put on a headset that will mirror a selection of different room types at different times of the day for the guest to take VR tours.6 For those that enjoy waking with the sun or sleeping in complete darkness, the gallery also allows guests to select their ideal room location. The use of this VR to view different hotel rooms ultimately allows guests to have a better idea of which room type they prefer, to decrease last-minute room change requests. But once you pick the perfect room after using these tools, how will the hotel ensure you have a seamless stay? Robots. Actual robots.
People may picture a small metal Jetsons-looking butler when they hear the word robot, and while the appearance is different, the abilities of these robots do parallel a butler. In Japan, Henn-na hotel is completely staffed by robots, and although this concept seems far from our reality, many hotels are already dipping their toes in the Artificial Intelligence water. The robot you are guaranteed to see hitting the lobby and hallways is Relay, the first U.S. autonomous hotel robot that delivers amenities or food to guest rooms. Relay can use the elevator alone, call guests when it arrives, and identify poor Wi-Fi zones to relay the information to the hotels IT department. The Renaissance Las Vegas Hotel in Las Vegas has two Relay robots and already named them – Elvis and Priscilla. There are about 70 Relay bots in hotels around the world right now. 7 Yet, this is not to say we should worry that robots will begin to take over the world, or human jobs. Hilton CEO Christopher Nassetta says that, although they are experimenting with bots, Hilton will “always [be] in the business of people taking care of people.” Bots are being implemented for the tedious tasks in hotels to free up employees to tend to more exclusive and important human interaction responsibilities, which sure makes for a convenient guest experience.8
My company doesn’t have a robot – How to digest these trends
While onPeak is passionate about our own innovative in-house technology, we also continue to stay up-to-date on the technology trends and developments that our hotel partners offer, to ensure your guests receive the experience that they expect. We know that we don’t need our own personal onPeak robot to keep up with the rising demands of hotel visitors. Having expert knowledge of which hotels provide the best amenities to guests allows onPeak to better serve your attendees. Whether it’s mobile device control, faster Internet, or a robot delivering your morning coffee, onPeak is on board with these exciting new developments and will remain ahead of the curve with our awarenesses of the best hotel technology for your attendees. Now, Alexa, make me a hotel reservation. I need to see these robots for myself.
1 “Hotel technology trends to keep an eye on in 2018,” Hotel News Now, February 2, 2018. http://www.hotelnewsnow.com/Articles/271561/Hotel-technology-trends-to-keep-an-eye-on-in-2018
2 “Top 10 Communication Trends in Hotel Technology for 2018,” Mitel Powering Connections, January 15, 2018. https://www.mitel.com/blog/top-10-communication-trends-in-hotel-technology-for-2018
3 “10 Tech-Savvy Chicago Hotels and Venues” Choose Chicago, 2018. https://www.choosechicago.com/meeting-professionals/hotels-and-venues/hotels-venues/10-tech-savvy-chicago-hotels-venues
4 “Moxy Times Square Reinvents the Traditional Hotel Experience, Encouraging Guests to Play On…” HospitalityNet, September 26, 2017. https://www.hospitalitynet.org/news/4084723.html
5 “Alexa for Hospitality,” Amazon, 2018. https://www.amazon.com/alexaforhospitality
6 “Hilton Introduces Innovation Gallery,” Will Speros, Hospitality Design, February 7, 2018. https://www.hospitalitydesign.com/news/hotels-resorts-wellness/hilton-introduces-innovation-gallery
7 “The Relay hotel delivery robot will soon spot Wi-Fi dead zones and mingle with guests,” The Verge, January 11, 2018. https://www.theverge.com/2018/1/11/16879432/savioke-relay-hotel-delivery-robot-wi-fi-dead-zones-mingle-ces-2018
8 “Hilton Experiments with the hotel room of the future,” USA Today, January 9, 2018. https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/roadwarriorvoices/2018/01/08/hilton-experiments-hotel-room-future/986738001/
