Now is the time to upgrade guest comfort with mobile keys and contactless check-in

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Travel is changing. Safety and convenience are now central to guest expectations, especially when choosing accommodation.

An easy, cost-efficient upgrade to digital door security can help almost any hotel or rental property provide both. Keys have been part of hotel management for so long, that it’s easy to miss how much work they create. Check-in and -out have barely changed: They remain manual, resource-hungry and common customer service flashpoints. Nobody wants to begin their holiday in a queue.

In 2019, 78% of travellers responding to a Travel Leaders Group survey wanted to see more self-service check-in*. This desire will only have grown. From a management point of view, switching manual keys for digital locking makes welcoming guests faster and more efficient. The business saves money and reduces workload.

This will soon be the “new normal”**. And guests will notice — which translates to better reviews on search engines and OTA websites, repeat business and more direct bookings.

“This quiet period, before mass travel restarts in earnest, may be the best time to refit and reopen to guests with a safe, contemporary, digital experience,” says Iñigo Aldalur at TESA. “The upgrade is more cost-effective and less invasive than many owners imagine.”

A unified, digitalized door solution improves the guest experience

Designed for accommodation of almost any upgrade which unifies lock hardware and software in one system. A broad hardware range includes robust locks and in-room devices, all with modern aesthetics. Battery powered and wireless, they come in multiple finishes and designs.

Guests use RFID credentials or mobile “keys” on their smartphone instead of mechanical keys. They open their room and common access doors, turn on lights and unlock a safe with one credential. It is simpler and almost cost-free to issue a key to every occupant.

Hotel staff manage everything from one user-friendly interface. With real-time, remote control over all doors, they can react instantly to an incident, keeping guests satisfied during their stay. If any card is lost, a new one is quickly generated within the software, cancelling the missing one. There’s no need to change locks or waste time and money rekeying. System management is intuitive, with minimal training needed. Any staff member who handles a multitude of keys for rooms, common areas and services will find TESA Hotel a breeze. It saves hours of admin time.

No 24-hour desk? No problem

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Leisure and business travellers crave the convenience of round-the-clock check-in and the safety of contactless arrival. TESA Hotel’s Check-In by PIN solution offers both. Guests can enter their room when reception staff are not present — perfect
for small hotels which cannot afford 24/7 staffing.

Management is simple: The system automatically sends an email with a
guest’s PIN to open their room. The
code automatically expires on scheduled check-out. One PIN is valid for opening the guestroom and any authorized common doors.

Compatible locks with incorporated keypad are quick and wire-free to install. Real-time communication between system and locks is encrypted. The guest arrives without delays and settles in immediately.

Affordable smartphone keys for guests

The smartphone is an essential travel companion. Not only a means to communicate, but a boarding pass, payment card, map and more. Why not a room key, too? TESA Hotel offers a mobile key solution via the Openow app. Openow’s road-tested functionality and the chance to personalize it with a hotel brand brings mobile keys within reach for any property — not just global brands with multi-million dollar technology budgets.

Openow manages every access into and around the hotel by smartphone. Beyond just guestroom doors, common areas, parking, the spa or gym may be unlocked by app. Travellers download the app and register via email. Their room assignment and virtual key arrive automatically. Openow speeds up check-in and -out, because there is no need to collect or return a key-card. Staff can amend or cancel key validity anytime — extending check-out time remotely, for example. Hotel owners save the cost of keys, key-cards and 24-hour reception — cutting queues and plastics use.

Reinventing check-in at hotels and holiday rentals

TESA Hotel solutions have upgraded the guest experience at hotels, holiday apartments, campsites and farmstays worldwide including Harpazul, a new holiday apartment complex close to Galicia’s beaches. Stylish, wire-free electronic locks now secure its main access points, recreation areas and individual apartments.

A Check-In by PIN solution makes guest arrival safe and stress-free. Booking confirmation and follow-up messages provide each party with a unique PIN to enter Harpazul; move through common areas; and access their room.

“This way we offer a better service to the customer because they don’t have to queue at reception,” says Harpazul’s Roi Casal. “It is as easy as sending the PIN via email.”

Wireless, PIN-operated escutcheons complement the apartment aesthetics. These are also compatible with card and smartphone unlocking, if Harpazul introduce either option in future. Harpazul’s entire locking system is managed in real time via TESA Hotel software. Every lock can be controlled or monitored remotely. Freed from reception queues, staff focus on service.

For Harpazul guests, the inconvenience of room keys is a distant memory — perhaps one reason these holiday rentals currently rate 4.8/5 on Google and 9.5/10 on Booking.com***.

TESA is the user-friendly access control solution for hotels, tourist apartments, holiday rentals, campsites, farmstays and more.

Learn more at: campaigns.assaabloyopeningsolutions.eu/tesa-hospitality

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To learn more, visit the TESA website:

campaigns.assaabloyopeningsolutions.eu/ tesa-hospitality

*: costar.com/article/1844143891
**: traveldailymedia.com/app-free- contactless-check-in-is-the-new-normal
***: correct at April 2021; see harpazul.com

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