Hilton’s new partnership will help visually impaired travelers better experience hotels
Over the years, Hilton has doubled down on its commitment to making hotel stays more accessible for guests with various physical needs or limitations that can make traveling difficult.
Now, the company is unveiling a new partnership with Be My Eyes, a free mobile app that connects blind and low-vision users with volunteers, companies and artificial intelligence tools to navigate the world around them.
With this partnership, travelers who use Be My Eyes can be connected to AI-powered assistance and dedicated Hilton Reservations and Customer Care support teams specifically trained to help users during a hotel stay.
Using a smartphone, Be My Eyes users can select "Hotels" from the "Service Directory" within the app, find participating Hilton brands and be connected to a dedicated team member who can offer assistance with everything from changing the temperature in their room and using the coffee maker to navigating a hotel conference area and pursuing the menu at the lobby bar.
"Our mission at Be My Eyes is to break down accessibility barriers in everyday life," Mike Buckley, the CEO of Be My Eyes, said in a statement, "and this partnership with Hilton is a significant step along that path, helping travel and hospitality to be much more inclusive."
Last year, Hilton started working with Be My Eyes to help train the assistance company's "Be My AI" language model to "enhance its ability to recognize objects and navigate the furniture and fixtures found in Hilton brand hotel rooms," according to a statement. The partnership extended this year to develop and train Hilton Reservations and Customer Care agents to assist Be My Eyes users.
For Hilton, this partnership is just one of many ways the hotel experience can be adapted for guests with specific needs. Another tool Hilton says guests can take advantage of is the Hilton Honors app's "straight-to-room" self-service feature. It allows people with reservations at participating hotels the chance to choose a specific room, check in and out on the app and use the phone as a digital key.
"We believe that every guest — regardless of ability or any other factor — deserves a reliable and friendly travel experience," said Mike Gathright, Hilton's senior vice president of customer excellence and innovation, "and we are proud to partner with Be My Eyes to make that more of a reality for thousands of Be My Eyes users."
The Be My Eyes app can be downloaded via the App Store on iOS or Android.
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