The hospitality industry is constantly innovating to better serve its customers. Here are the top 10 recent customer experience innovations in the hospitality and the brands that are leading the charge.

Facial Recognition

Instead of having to wait in line at the front desk to check-in, some hotels are moving to facial recognition scans to get guests in their rooms. Marriott is testing the technology at its hotels in China, which shortern check-in time from three minutes or more to less than one minute

Voice-Controlled Rooms

InterContinental Hotels Group is creating AI smart rooms in its hotels in China. The rooms allow guests to use voice control technology and speak naturally to get personalized assistance for both business and personal travel.

Robots

It can play a number of roles in hotels, from cleaning rooms to staffing the front desk robots aren’t entirely replacing humans, however—a lesson learned by the Henn-na Hotel in Japan, which fired half of its all-robot staff to employ more humans

RFID Wristbands

More hotels are moving away from traditional room keys to leveraging RFID technology through guest wristbands. The technology is popular at resorts like Disney World and Great Wolf Lodge

Chatbots

Chatbots give guests instant access to information without having to wait for the front desk. 

Mobile Room Keys

Combining the ideas in self-check-in and simpler room keys, a number of hotels are moving to mobile room keys. Guests simply check-in using the hotel’s app and are notified when their room is ready. Instead of waiting in line at the front desk, guests can go straight to their rooms and use their smartphones or smartwatches to unlock the door

Smart Amenities

Throughout the room allow guests to completely customize their experience and make the room as comfortable as possible. Each room at the CitizenM Hotel in Amsterdam comes equipped with a MoodPad tablet, which allows guests to change the temperature, TV, window blinds, alarm, and lighting in one place

Virtual Reality

It allows guests to tour a hotel, choose a room and book it seamlessly online. They can also experience local attractions and feel confident in their travel choices before they arrive Radisson and Omni and few other hotels offer the service and have seen improved customer satisfaction and online booking rates.

Located-Based Services

Modern hotels can locate guests and employees, which allows them to offer more personalized service. If a guest is in the hotel bar, they could receive a push notification about a deal on drinks. The hotel staff could be alerted to guests’ preferences based on where they spend their time. Hilton uses location-based services at some of its resorts to alert guests to events and activities that might interest them based on where they are on the property.

Augmented Reality

It can be used to take guests on a tour of the hotel, showcasing the property’s amenities and share information about the area. The wall of each room at Hub by Premier Inn in the U.K. includes an AR map of the local area. When guests point a smartphone at the map, they can learn about local attractions and get recommendations for the best things to do and see.