How smart technology is redefining the guest experience in contemporary hotels

Hotel chains face a growing challenge in meeting ever-pressing customer demands. And this means automating as much of that customer experience as possible to free up staff for more pressing issues.

Technology continues to assist hotels in these efforts, with smart tech increasingly used in reception, at the door and within the walls of hotel rooms.

But for customers the technology still needs to be accessible, usable and enjoyable for guests of any age. So how are hotels doing in achieving those goals?

Hotels now include business models where a human being is a rare sight, customer service (and food) is non-existent, and garish apps do most of the transactions. But that’s one end of the spectrum, which can then go all the way to the wholly traditional, often serving guests who have visited regularly for decades, and are renowned for their service.

Look a little closer and you can see that neither type (and those that blend the best or worst aspects of both), is using technology to “enhance the customer experience,” as they like to say in their press releases and brochures.

For us visitors, the technology is more visible in some places along the hotel experience, and more subtle in others.

The quest for a seamless check-in

Traditionally, checking into a hotel meant collecting a key and venturing into the maze of corridors. Today, you’re more likely to be given a smart card or key fob for doors, limited to the length of your stay.

In most hotels, gone are the days of waiting in long queues at reception. Many modern hotels offer guests the speed of a mobile check-in via smartphone apps or a kiosk in the lobby.

Some even allow guests to bypass the front desk entirely, using digital key cards stored on their phones to unlock their rooms. And they are only too happy to showcase your loyalty points building up as you stay with them, with tempting offers and other benefits like local events, all visible without struggling with a guide.

That phone app is like a Swiss Army Knife and will guide you to your floor and door, and can even perform tricks like pre-setting the air-conditioning. For older tourists, that might not feel too alien, but inside the room that shift can feel both exciting and unfamiliar. Apps can take over the usual interactive elements, adjusting the lighting to suit your mood, finding your ideal temperature, and accessing the entertainment options.

By mimicking increasingly familiar smart home services, the hotel room becomes more of a playground. This is ideal for tired travellers who don’t want to get out of bed to sort out the basics.

Approaching Star Trek room service at Warp Speed

Okay, we’re not quite at the level where food and drinks can materialise into your hotel room, but the traditions of ordering food have been replaced by a more efficient service. For the hospitality industry that can mean no more printing and replacing menus (and scribbling out the unavailable food options).

The Japanese and their love of robots sees robotic delivery systems delivering guests’ food and beverages, saving poor Manuel from rushing to and from the kitchen all night. Expect these concepts to become more common in Western hotels over time.

Robots can also be used in the cleaning role, maintaining cleanliness and hygiene in rooms in response to air quality and other sensors. And with other smart sensors, energy can be saved by dimming or turning off the lights, and minimising use of water and power when guests are not around.

Your digital concierge lives in your pocket

The concierge is a tradition that lives on among leading high end hotel brands. But this has vanished more widely, leaving us to lug our luggage around and summon a taxi in the pouring rain ourselves. But the modern digital concierge can perform a wide range of other tricks. Primarily summoning that taxi on your behalf while you stay dry.

It can also make dining suggestions, highlight what’s on in town, and make bookings for you. Some have more sass than others. Take Rose for example, the resident “mischief-maker” and digital concierge at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. Perhaps in time hopefully more hotels will follow her lead.

Since many experienced 50+ travellers are used to technology at home, these upgrade will not feel scary in the hotel environment. But if you need that human touch, enjoy them while they last or head to premium hotels where tradition trumps technology.