SKYE Hotel Suites in Parramatta will open its doors on August 1st and will become Australia’s first Hotel to offer online check-ins for rooms. This works by having your hotel key uploaded to your smartphone which you use to scan at the door to grant you access to your hotel room. This avoids the 10-15 minutes at reception to check in and could be the writing on the wall for yet another job role set to be disrupted by technology.
Owned by the Crown Group the new 5-star hotel is pitched at the business traveler who is short on time and wants a luxury experience. Which check-in may not seem like the biggest part of the hotel experience that needs a makeover, after getting off a long-haul flight, taking a long taxi trip, its certainly something you’d avoid like the plague if you could and now you can. The Skye Hotel Suites contains 72 apartment-style suites where you can access the ‘virtual concierge’ to access to all hotel services.
A fancy check-in system isn’t the only draw card for this luxury hotel, they tapped the talents of architects Allen Jack + Cottier and Koichi Takada for the design who were tasked with delighting even the most seasoned business traveler or the most demanding holidaymaker. There’s some very nice touches like a state-of-the-art gym, outdoor pool, sundeck, spa, sauna and new restaurant, Husk & Vine Kitchen and Bar (already open). The cherry on top will come later this year a rooftop bar on the 26th floor, overlooking Sydney’s iconic skyline will open.
While all that’s fancy, the geek in me is most impressed by the use of technology. When you think about it, being handed a programmed piece of plastic to grant access to a room they already know you’ve paid for, is kind of an antiquated practice for 2017. When we get in and out of an Uber and don’t transact with the driver, taking virtually the same approach with your Hotel room, makes plenty of sense.
Chairman & Group CEO Iwan Sunito noted,
“Parramatta is a powerhouse for innovation and business and SKYE Hotel Suites will be a stand-out, luxury addition to Sydney’s up-and-coming West.”
“Appealing to a new generation of domestic and international visitors to the city, SKYE Hotel Suites is designed to create a fresh lifestyle standard delivering superior apartment-sized suites for discerning travellers. It will also set the benchmark for future SKYE Hotels Suites openings in Sydney’s CBD in 2018 and Green Square in 2019.”
