Zero check-in lines at hotels which will expect the biggest growth from non-English speaking, developing markets. Photo Credit: Adobe stock/Who is Danny
Hotels of 2030 will be highly efficient and sensitive to traveller
needs. McKinsey’s Travel, Logistics & Infrastructure Practice
experts, Margaux Constantin, Vik Krishnan, Matteo Pacca, Steve Saxon,
and Caroline Tufft, shared what they envision the hotel experience will
embody in the 2030s. Among the top characteristics of future hotels are
convenience and customisation.
Creative data application
It is anticipated that every single pain point will be removed in the
future. Check-in lines will not exist and there will be much better,
more flexible options where guests need not wait until check-in time to
get into their rooms, said Tufft.
Pacca said: “If you think about it, we use data in hospitality very,
very little. We can customise emails, we can customise promotions - but
the customisation of experience, for now, is a rarity. I believe we’re
going to see much more of that going forward: the intensity of the light
in your room, the coffee you will find there, the installations in the
bathroom, the shower, and so on.”
Saxon said the biggest growth in travel will come from developing
markets and these would not be the hotels’ core markets at present. Most
of these travellers will not speak English. Hence, every hotel should
have a mobile app that can automatically translate many languages.
Enhanced programming
Constantin said how hotels think about programming will be quite
critical: “What is appealing to the younger generation is this notion of
a unique experience that is not replicable and that is one moment in
time. For example, there might be a hotel that’s hosting a yoga retreat
with some famous teacher, and it’s only for one week - and so you want
to go there.”
Adding to that point, Krishnan said: “The reality is that younger
generations actually want differences. They want their hotels to reflect
the environment and the location in which they’re physically situated,
as opposed to having a sense of sameness. So, how can hotels integrate
local elements? I think that is going to become pretty important as
well.”
Creative rooms
Whilst hotels have enhanced spas and other wellbeing experiences,
there will be scope for more: everything from how they change their
menus, to how they use light and technology in rooms. With virtual
reality, 3D glasses, and other technologies, guests can test hotel rooms
before they choose a venue. These will be much more immersive than they
are currently.
Hotel rooms will have automation - where furniture moves around and
can be converted to a variety of uses. In the day, it can be for
meetings or parties, and at night, the room can change into a place to
sleep.
Sustainability
It will be imperative that hotels show respect for the environment.
The demand for sustainability will cover everything: the materials from
which hotels are built, how food is processed and served, among others.
Sustainability will be a big segmentation factor for winners and losers.
Gen Z employees
As hotel jobs are tough and not highly desirable, finding creative
ways to sustain young employees’ impatient traits are key. Said
Constantin: “There’s a big thing with Gen Z around exploration of alter
egos - it’s the fundamental belief that ‘I’m more than just one person.’
The younger generation of employees ideally would be, for example, a
concierge on Monday. They would be a waiter on Tuesday. On Wednesday,
they would be working from home, managing the social media community of
the hotel. On Thursday, they would be back doing concierge work. Then
they wouldn’t mind doing Friday evening room service.”
Pacca added: “Hospitality is about experience. Most of the experience
is actually delivered by people - and people can only deliver a
fantastic experience if they’re happy, relaxed, well paid, and well
trained. So, winning will also be about the capability of attracting and
retaining the best talent to give the best experience to guests.”