TRENDING

Outdoor space at the first Kayak branded hotel in Miami Beach

According to Kayak CEO Steve Hafner , Kayak is looking for other properties , from Los Angeles to Berlin , for future hotel locations . The company , part of online travel giant Booking Holdings , is also exploring a location in the Boston area to offer short-term rental accommodation .

Kayak will use the Miami Beach property as a design lab to test and refine software innovations in the accommodation space .

“ We design and develop in a fraction of the time and cost and the brand is responsive to the real estate ,” said Rami Zeidan , founder and CEO of Life House . “ The locally rooted authentic branding works perfectly to respond to what the real estate needs – we ’ re not just forcing a brand onto properties for the sake of a brand . We designed a brand that is optimal for real estate owners and for travelers , which naturally lends itself well to historic hotels .”

For starters , the Kayak app will provide 24 / 7 access to hotel staff and support , notifications of on-property events , room-ready alerts , housekeeping requests and more . The tech amenities are designed to make stays ultra-personalized and with as much ( or as little ) human interaction as

guests prefer . Kiosks in the lobby , for example , will provide an expedited check-in experience ( with a goal of a 60 second check-in ) or guests can use their Kayak app .

In-room connected TVs will offer unique on-demand content , including yoga classes by local favorite Green Monkey Yoga , in addition to access to streaming services for movies , TV shows , and music . Scannable QR codes will allow guests to contact house managers as well as view a digital guestbook with hotel details and recommendations of things to do during their stay .

Meanwhile , the hotel ’ s backend software being developed in partnership with Life House can also help independent hotels leverage the Kayak app and capitalize on the latest advances to help make property management seamless , such as cloud-based property management systems , wireless lock and access

controls and sophisticated distribution channel management .

“ Collaborating with Kayak accelerates our mission to make travel more meaningful and accessible for a wide array of discerning travelers ,” Zeidan said . “ Together with Kayak we ’ re able to create a perfect hotel experience for modern travelers who are seeking locally-rooted , intuitive hotel experiences at accessible prices .”

Zeidan added , “ The fundamental goal of our partnership is to find ways to better help hotel owners and operators , specifically in the independent space . We ’ re focused in the short term on supporting hotels with brand and management services in markets where Kayak customers already want to go and as we develop more conviction in our software and distribution advantages we ’ ll begin selling software products around the world .”

12 hotelsmag . com May / June 2021