I just turned up at my hotel & the lobby was completely empty. No receptionist, no hotel manager, no porter & no concierge. Welcome to the new age of self check-in…
OK to be fair I wasn’t completely alone, as you can see in this pic there was one other guy checking in next to me.
We both had a bit of a chuckle about being the only two people there, then did our own thing.
Overall it all went pretty smoothly. No tech glitches and no complex requests.
I got in early, didn’t have to wait in line and was in my room within five minutes.
But there was one major element that made it all feel a bit weird – there was no human touch.
It kinda felt like I’d turned up to stay at a friend’s place in the middle of the day while they were at work and let myself in with their spare key.
I do like the convenience and efficiency of it all, but you really notice when there isn’t a smiling face to greet you.
A thought also crossed my mind about how tricky this might be for older people like my parents, I just can’t see them being into this.
Overall I think it’s a good solution for young people, business travelers & tech savvy guests, but for older people and leisure tourists (especially at upscale hotels) it’s probably seen as a downgrade in service.
What do you think?