We all get to travel quite a bit in our industry... As a traveler, we get confronted with a wide range of technologies/platforms both during the booking/pre-arrival phase as well as the actual checkin and stay in a hotel room. This topic is part of our 2019 Technology Sentiment Study which we produce in co-operation with HFTP. Please take 6 minutes of your time to participate... if you have not done so already. In this viewpoint we asked our panel experts a simple question: As a TRAVELER... which hotel-related technology generates your biggest frustration... and why?
This viewpoint is brought to you by HITEC Dallas 2021
Checkout....You have my details, you have my payment method, we both know where I have stayed, what I have eaten and any extras i've added, yet I still need to queue to checkout and get an invoice!!?!?!
It almost feels like its there because thats how it's always been done, there is no benefit to hotel or customer.
Last year I participated in the research and illustration of the last 100 years of hotel technology in our series "The History of Hotel & Travel Technology" (read article). In many cases, we've seen hotel distribution and technology change during or after a global crisis.
While virtual reality can be used to attract travelers to a specific destination, augmented reality has the potential to enhance the experience as it is lived. From the point of view of sales and advertising, AR is a great way to show offers and promotions in real-time: a traveler could point the camera at a restaurant and see the menu-of-the-day come to life, or watch hotel room rates shown over the "real" property.
There is so much data that a hotel has or can have access to... but in most cases, there's no one who understands how to translate these data into actionable insights on a hotel's current and future business.
For obvious reasons, Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®) announced last week that this year's HITEC will pivot to a virtual edition called "Cyber HITEC." I guess most of you have been participating and attending in a variety of online event formats over the past 3 months.
Most hoteliers agree that, at least for the foreseeable future, hotel stays will be different. Guests will be more conscious about hygiene, social distancing and expecting a contactless guest-journey.
