THE MUST-HAVE AMENITIES OF A MODERN HOTEL ROOM
THE MUST-HAVE AMENITIES OF A MODERN HOTEL ROOM
The most up-to-date and upgraded hotel room facilities &
amenities, that will enhance your guests’ experience and increase your hotel’s
additional sales
13 mins read
The global hospitality industry is constantly affected by new
trends and developments. Nowadays, the “classic” room facilities have turned
into a more modern, customer-friendly, personalized, and smart environment. But
which are these comforts and amenities, that manage to distinguish the old and
classic hotels from modern and up-to-date properties?
In addition to the classic hotel room amenities, such as room
air conditioning, soundproofing, safe box, hair dryer, refrigerator/mini bar,
clean towels & linens, free self-care products & toiletries, slippers,
ironing services, kettle, telephone and TV, a modern hotel room, needs to
incorporate the following amenities that are now necessary for a modern
traveler, in order to be competitive and follow the latest trends of
the tourism industry:
1.Fast Wireless Connectivity (Wi-Fi)
Photo by Emmanuel Kontokalos on Unsplash
It is a given that every hotel should provide free and fast internet
access for all of its guests, either they are on a business trip or on
holidays. There are several wifi-related issues that can affect customer
reviews, such as:
- The
Wi-Fi has to be fast and able to work perfectly even at maximum hotel
capacity when almost every single customer is connected to the network.
- The
signal must be strong in all public areas, as well as in all rooms,
whether they are located on the ground floor or on the top floor of the
hotel
The last thing you want is to have disappointed customers who
will write bad reviews about your hotel and discourage other potential
customers from visiting your hotel, because of something as simple as a bad
Wi-Fi connection!
If your hotel lies within an older building with thick walls
or if it has other architectural features that make it difficult for the
central Internet connection to reach all areas, make sure to contact
specialized companies that provide solutions for signal enhancement, even in
each room separately.
2. Smart Rooms & Smart Technology
Olive Green Hotel
Smart Homes are already a big
part of our lives and they are the forerunner of how our future houses will be.
Following this trend, the hotel industry will soon realize the major role that
personalized services combined with a modern smart room play in the overall travel
behavior.
The term “Smart Room” refers to all the
services that can be controlled and adjusted to each guest’s requirements
through a mobile application (App) or a device that controls
all of these services. More specifically, the guests can control the
intensity and shade of lighting, set the preferred room temperature, schedule
what and when will watch on their Smart TV, draw or close the curtains etc.
Smart options open a new road that promises fresh & useful amenities for
the customer!
The use of modern technology within the rooms creates an
additional set of other options that are linked to the guest’s stay as well as
to the hotel’s additional service sales (upselling). For example, the guests
can make a reservation at the hotel’s restaurant, arrange a spa appointment,
contact the reception 24/7 without having to call, order in-room service, and
enjoy several other benefits that aim to satisfy their personal requirements in
the most easy and direct way.
3. USB charger ports & universal plug in
power
One of the most important amenities that travelers need
nowadays, is USB ports for charging their various electronic
devices.
The gadgets and devices we bring with us on our trips are
sometimes even more than our clothes (especially when we are on a short trip)!
This means that a modern hotel room can no longer have just a couple of
centrally located power plugs, but, given the increased demands of technology,
many sockets and USB ports for instant charging in several
places — and most importantly next to the bed!
If you want your property to stand out, even more, a good
idea would be to equip your rooms with universal sockets (in addition to USB
ports), that will satisfy all travelers, regardless of where they come from
(either from a close-by destination or from the other side of the world).
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4. Smart TV with Complimentary Movie Library or
Netflix
Photo by Roberto Nickson on Unsplash
From time to time, we have all stayed in hotels where the
only thing we could watch on TV were local channels in local languages —
something that automatically canceled even this very simple and classic room
service.
Nowadays, Netflix and other digital platforms have
become a daily habit for a big part of the world. In a few simple steps, the
guests can log in their account on their room’s Smart TV and watch the rest of
the movie they began watching during their flight or catch the latest episode
from their favorite series before going to sleep.
Alternatively, you can provide your customers with a digital
library with various categories of movies and programs, through which
they can choose what they want to watch. This is a trend that gains more and
more ground in hotels, and it is something that you should immediately start
looking at for your property.
Make sure that the Smart TV devices you choose for your hotel
will quickly and easily connect to both Android and Apple devices. By ensuring
a smooth and direct connection with all types of devices, you strengthen this
service even more. On the other hand, if the customer has difficulties to
connect (or is not able to connect at all), then the impact will be worse than
not having at all this particular service.
5. In-room coffee machine
Nespresso
It does not matter whether your hotel offers breakfast or
not. In any case, offering your guests the possibility to quickly and easily
enjoy a cup of quality coffee from the comfort of
their room and without having to order it via room service, is something that
greatly enhances their overall experience. Just by inserting a coffee capsule
and pressing a button, the guests can enjoy the coffee they desire in their
room, whenever they want to.
Depending on your hotel category, you should decide the
number of complimentary daily coffee capsules you will provide to your
customers. The most common tactic, especially in higher-end and luxury properties,
defines one or two capsules per customer per day (which are supplemented daily
by the housekeeping). If the customer requests more, then there is an extra
charge per capsule (which, again, should not exceed a reasonable pricing
policy).
6. Modern Desk with a Laptop or Tablet
You might think “why would I
need a desk during my holidays?” However, in addition to business trips (where
a desk is a requirement), it is a fact that modern travelers need a desk even
during their trips for leisure. A desk has multiple uses for
the guests, such as placing their personal items or devices, supporting their
laptop or tablet while browsing the web, or even going through the Room
Directory for finding out what they can do in the hotel or in the surrounding
area.
Moreover, with so many electronic devices and photo equipment
(after all, we do live in the age of image and Instagram), there is a great
number of customers who need to charge all of their equipment and upload their
images to their laptops. So, the guests can leave their laptop on the desk
during the uploading process, while they enjoy the hotel’s swimming pool.
A smart idea is to provide your clients with a laptop or
tablet for free use, through which you can pass information about the
surrounding area, such as nearby restaurants, attractions etc., as well as
efficiently promote your property’s additional departments and services.
7. Music Player with wireless connection for
tablets/smartphones
Marshall
A modern music player should not be absent
from a contemporary hotel room. Easily connecting to this bluetooth device, the
guests can choose and control the music they want to listen to according to
their mood, just like they do with their room’s lighting and temperature.
Make sure to choose high-quality and stylish speakers that
produce great sound (setting a limit to the maximum volume level, for ensuring
your other guests’ comfort). In collaboration with your Interior Designer,
place the speaker in a visible spot in the room, and turn this simple service
into a truly luxurious experience. After all, luxury is all about comfort!
8. Create magic with cove lighting
1864 The Sea Captain’s House Hotel
Apart from Smart Lights, the study of your room
lighting should definitely include cove lighting in various
spots, as well as under-bed lights. This contemporary
approach, in addition to the more atmospheric and relaxing mood it creates, it
also gives the room a very modern and unique character, regardless of its furniture
and design style.
Under-bed lights cover the need of your guests who do not
sleep in complete darkness. In order to provide the maximum comfort for your
clients, make sure that they can easily adjust the intensity and shade of their
under-bed light, so that they feel comfortable if they need to get out of bed
during the evening.
9. Keyless entry system with RFID (Radio
Frequency Identification)
Hilton – Digital Key
Hotel key cards, after several years of global use, are
finally passing to the next level. Today, classic cards are being gradually
replaced by mobile phones through RFID.
In this way, the guests’ entry into their rooms becomes easier
and safer, and they no longer need to be stressed about losing or
deactivating their cards.
If you have specific places in your property where the
entrance is allowed only to the hotel residents or only during certain times of
the day (e.g. gyms, spa, etc.), then the RFID technology allows your guests to
move around your hotel easier, without having to inform the reception or use
multiple key cards.
10. Welcome Gift & Local flavor Gifts
The first impression in a hotel, just like most occurrences
in our daily life, is of great importance. So, when your guests enter their
room for the first time, you need to ensure that their first impression will be
perfect, giving special attention on improving basic features such as
cleanliness, smell, light, and room temperature.
A welcome gift wrapped in a nice package or
served in a special way will excite your customers and make
them feel special. You do not have to offer something expensive or big — for
example, you can offer a cereal bar made of local products or a bottle of wine
from a local vineyard.
Also, a nice welcome gift, especially when it is made
of local products, can bring additional revenue to your hotel, for
three reasons:
It introduces your customers to the level of your hotel’s
gastronomy, convincing them to try your restaurant.
1. It makes
it more possible for the guests to ask to try again what you offered them on
their arrival, or even buy it to bring it back home.
2. A
particularly nice welcome gift is very likely to be photographed and uploaded
on your guests’ social media, enhancing your reputation and attracting new
customers.
In addition to the welcome gift, give to your guests a
handwritten welcome note, signed by the hotel manager. The personal tone and
handwriting will enhance the guests’ mood, since it will make them feel that
the hotel offers them a personal welcome and not a cold and distant printed
message.
Additional amenities that are expected to
dynamically evolve the industry
Apart from all of the above,
there is a range of extra amenities that many hotels have already incorporated
into their operation:
- Providing Mobile
Phones to customers during their stay, with free MB & phone
calls to the hotel
- Personalized
in-room breakfast at any time of the day, evolving
the hotel’s classic service into a more specialized experience, that
allows guests to enjoy their breakfast in their room, without time
restrictions.
- Complimentary
water on arrival, but also throughout the stay.
- Custom
Mini-Bar service, with daily products that the customer has
requested via a special app.
- Robots
Room Service for the delivery of products or for
procedures that are able to be completed by Robots.
- Mirror
TVs that combine a mirror with a special type of TV,
and manage to decorate more spots within the rooms, such as the bathroom.
This technology offers touch screens with internet access, for direct use
by your guests.
Conclusion
It is a fact that within a modern and competitive
environment, in order to achieve high levels of guest satisfaction, you need to
focus on each guest’s personal needs and requirements. By offering personalized
services and facilities within a modern and user-friendly technological room
environment, your customers will feel completely satisfied, while you will
manage to win their trust!
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