A Peek Inside Some of the World’s Most High-Tech Hotels
From the Nintendo Switch, which lets you play Mario Kart at 30,000 feet, to Narita Airport's smartphone toilet paper, technology and travel go hand-in-hand. But few places seem more excited — or willing to embrace new high-tech ideas — as the hotel industry. Like something out of a sci-fi movie, in the past few years we've seen a robot hotel open in Japan, and the debut of the Aloft brand's new "smart room" — a.k.a. Project: Jetson — in Boston. But George (Jetson) and his clan have got nothing on the world's most high-tech hotels.
Travelers Today recently gave a quick rundown of some of the world's most futuristic hotels, which are implementing advanced technologies in all sorts of unique ways to improve the customer experience and create a more memorable stay. Selfie-lovers, for instance, have embraced the photo theme at the Blow Up Hall 5050 in Poznań, Poland, where guests are handed an iPhone at check-in, which acts as both a navigational tool and a room key. Its walls are also covered in artwork created by its guests, whose photos are captured upon check-in, then edited into some very cool-looking displays around the hotel.
Creating memories out of photos and videos is also at the heart of the Abadia Retuerta LeDomaine's decision to offer Google Glass to all of its guests. The hotel, located in Spain's Duero wine region, was the first hotel in Europe to integrate the product into its property's perks. Here, guests can shoot photos and video with the literal blink of the eye, then keep any photos taken on a memory stick they can bring home after their stay.
If The Jetsons really did teach us anything about the future, it's that robots would rule. (We love you, Rosie.) Aloft is hopping aboard the robot train — at least in Silicon Valley, where the brand introduced robot butlers in 2014. And robots are doing much more than running errands at the Henn na Hotel, also known as the Weird Hotel, in Sasebo, Nagaski, Japan, where the hotel is staffed primarily by robots, including the friendly dinosaur pictured at the top of this post. Here, robotic workers will check you in, carry your luggage and see to most of your other needs during your stay — the housekeeping staff, for now, remains human. Check out Motherboard's visit to the hotel in the video.
What's the most high-tech feature you've ever seen at a hotel? Tell us about it in the comments below.
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