IHG unveils ‘Smart Traveller’ hotel concept based on guest feedback

The new ‘Smart Traveller’ guest experience is designed to create an ‘efficient and uncomplicated’ short stay for increasingly mobile dependent travellers​.

New features include Smart TV’s, allowing guests to stream their own media from personal devices and log in to apps such as Netflix.

IHG Rewards Club members will be able to check in through the IHG App or online prior to arrival.

Mike Greenup, vice president of brand management, Holiday Inn Brand Family, Europe, said: “A hotel room is no longer just a place to sleep and our approach to technology and service starts with understanding our guests and their needs across the entire guest journey. This investment in guest insight and innovation is enabling us to stay ahead of the game.”

Guest rooms will also feature a flexible work/rest corner where the traditional desk has been replaced with a comfortable chair and table with multiple USB ports to charge devices.

An Express café and bar is designed to provide a ‘pit-stop’ for guests on the move, offering a ‘to-go’ breakfast option.

Working from guest feedback​

Holiday Inn worked with global design consultancy IDEO and Forpeople, an environments design agency, to create the new features.

IDEO interviewed a range of ‘Smart Travellers’, including guests staying in IHG’s competitor hotels, and spent time at guests’ homes to observe what and how they packed for a short stay.

The new concept for Holiday Inn Express will be launched in Europe and the UK and adapted for new build hotels and properties undergoing renovation.

Greenup said: “We are aiming for at least one in every four of our European hotels to feature the latest Holiday Inn Express ‘next generation’ guest experience within the next three years, with the first hotel opening towards the end of this year.”