Although it’s known for its affordable hotels dotted around the UK, Premier Inn has taken a high-tech approach to its latest site.
The new hotel will open in Covent garden next month and will allow customers to book a room via the firm’s new dedicated app.
Additionally, customers can also use the Premier Inn app to control various aspects of their room, much like the functionality home automation devices (such as Samsung SmartThings) offer.
Consequently, once you’ve booked your stay you can then use the app to change the temperature of your room, control the television, order food or dim the lights. The app will also provide customers with entertainment and leisure suggestions for the surrounding area.
The Covent Garden location is just one of eleven new high-tech ‘hub’ sites Premier Inn plans to open over the next three years. Other sites include eight additional hotels in London – Tottenham Court Road, Tower hill, Kings Cross, Spitalfields, Bank, Shoreditch, Farringdon and Westminster – and two in Edinburgh – Carltongate and Rose Street.
The first ‘hub’ hotel opens next month. The use of smartphone automation is increasing in the hospitality industry. Recently, the Starwood Hotels group (which owns Sheraton, W Hotels and Westin) announced that customers in the US will be able to unlock their hotel rooms via an iPhone by the end of the year. The company later announced that it was developing ann app that will allow customers to unlock hotel rooms via an Apple Watch too.
