NEW
YORK, June 27, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The mad
dash to take a summer vacation is underway, with three out of four
travelers agreeing that Americans are prioritizing travel more in
2024. And when they travel, they are opting more for a highly
digital, self-service experience when it comes to their hotel
stays.
A recent survey commissioned by Mews, the industry-leading
hospitality cloud, and conducted by OnePoll found that nearly 80%
of travelers would be willing to stay at a hotel with a completely
automated front desk or self-service kiosk, with more than 40% of
them preferring to check in via a hotel's website, app or digital
kiosk.
The poll of 2,000 – split evenly among travelers and hotel
workers – also found that hotel workers anticipate guests to use
technology more during their travels, with a fourth expecting them
to check in more frequently via a hotel website, app or digital
kiosk compared to previous years.
Other key findings:
- Travelers stated what a perfect hotel should include: in-room
smart home devices (43%), keyless room entry (34%), mobile room
entry (27%), and digital ordering (24%).
- A third (36%) admitted they have turned to AI for
recommendations while booking travel.
The study also found that nearly a third (29%) of employed
Americans admitted they've worked remotely on vacation without
telling their bosses:
- 52% said they would use their vacations as a chance to work
remotely.
- Close to four in ten (39%) explained it was simply because they
like what they do for work.
- Others noted they would work on vacation to hit an important
work deadline that overlapped with their vacation time (28%) or to
save on their PTO (26%).
- Four in five working Americans would be willing to work
remotely from their hotel.
- While working from the comfort of one's hotel room is the top
preference (69%), a quarter of respondents said they would prefer
to work remotely from the hotel pool or spa, and nearly 25% chose a
hotel bar or restaurant.
On the other hand, those traveling for work admit business trips
open the door to other opportunities. According to the survey
results:
- Nearly half (48%) of respondents have extended their work trips
into vacations.
- Hotel workers claimed guests traveling for work or blending
work with vacations are the easiest to cater to (83% and 76%,
respectively).
- Hotel workers also anticipate guests will tip more (39%),
extend their stay more frequently (38%), and use hotel amenities
more (31%), and 79% said guests "always" or "often" ask for local
recommendations.
"Trends in hospitality are ever-changing but we're seeing
indicators that people are prioritizing travel again. While we're
seeing some softness in mid-market and select service hotels, the
luxury sector seems resilient. Guests visiting luxury properties
are spending more on bucket list trips and staying for longer,"
said Richard Valtr, Founder of Mews.
"We're also seeing a continuous rise in people extending work trips
for some added leisure time and blending work with vacations. The
most forward-thinking hotels are tapping into this trend by
embracing personalized guest experiences and offering a variety of
amenities that appeal to differing guest needs. More and more
hotels are adopting technology that creates seamless experiences
for their guests, no matter the reason for their trip."
"Technology enables our teams to gather robust guest information
before they
arrive at one of our locations, which empowers our customer service
teams to create unique 'excite and delight' opportunities for
guests, resulting in powerful moments and lifelong memories for our
guests," commented Ryan Krukar, VP
Sales & Marketing at Gravity Haus. "Identifying and
understanding a guest's needs before they arrive at one of our
locations and going above and beyond for guests is key in
delivering authentic hospitality and provides additional value and
comfort while simultaneously immersing a guest in the unique
culture of the destination they are visiting."
"Anticipating guests' needs is a crucial component to providing
exceptional customer service throughout their stay," said
Andrew Gauthier, General Manager at
The Incline Lodge. "By tracking individual attributes and
preferences of new and returning guests, we can provide a truly
curated experience for every guest that comes through our door.
Technology also enables us to provide an easy and efficient
contactless and self check-in process, so our staff can spend more
of their time interacting with guests."
Survey methodology:
This random double-opt-in survey
of 1,000 American travelers and 1,000 American hotel workers
was commissioned by Mews Systems, Inc. between January
30 and February 8, 2024. It was conducted by
market research company OnePoll, whose team members are members of
the Market Research Society and have corporate membership to
the American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) and
the European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research
(ESOMAR).
About Mews
Mews is the leading platform for the new
era of hospitality. Powering over 5,000 customers across more than
85 countries, Mews Hospitality Cloud is designed to streamline
operations for modern hoteliers, transform the guest experience and
create more profitable businesses. Customers include
Generator-Freehand, The Strawberry Group, The Social Hub and
Airelles. Mews was named Best PMS (2024) and listed among the Best
Place to Work in Hotel Tech (2021, 2022, 2024) by Hotel Tech
Report, as well as World's Best Hotel PMS Provider (2023) and
World's Best Independent Hotel PMS Provider (2022, 2023) by World
Travel Tech Awards. The company has offices in Europe, the United
States and Australia.
For more information, please contact Katie Halfhead (Senior
Communications Manager) at Mews – katie.halfhead@mews.com.
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SOURCE Mews