Hotel Unplugged is the self-proclaimed ‘Hotel for the next generation of travellers’ which has recently celebrated its first birthday. Substituting hotel staff for seamless technology, this Rotterdam-based hotel is run entirely on digital processes.
A fast and friendly online check-in, doors that unlock with a personal link and in-room technology controlled by your phone means visitors can solely self-serve.
As a truly modern establishment with cutting edge technology, Hotel Unplugged is of course, aimed at the modern traveler. It's efficient, minimal and suited to customers with a hunger for discovery who come and go, explore the city and eat in local restaurants. Hotel Unplugged focuses on one core element: providing the perfect place to sleep in a new city.
We caught up with Joanne Uland, Hotel Manager, about how the automated establishment is run and how Bouncepad helps them do this.
“There is just me and one other girl who work here because the hotel is totally automated – we are on site from 9am till 3pm. Customers receive a link before they arrive so they can open the front door and then when they come in, they check-in using a Bouncepad with a Samsung tablet. They can make their own cards to let themselves into their room.”
As an automated hotel is still a new concept, Hotel Unplugged thinks it’s important there’s still some friendly faces around the hotel. “We are there in the morning to make coffee and chat with the guests because we know they feel more comforted when we are around. I think that’s really important – we are here to answer any burning questions, check the house keeping or if anything goes wrong because sometimes a fully automated hotel doesn’t work! We are also available 24/7 by phone.”
“We have audio systems in the room, Netflix, everything that you can connect and control with your phone. We don’t have any reception or food and beverage services because we want the people to live like locals, enjoy the city and not waste their time inside! We have a partnership with a restaurant around the corner so our guests can get breakfast there.”
“The Bouncepad Counter suits our interior design and looks really pretty. Security was also extremely important to us because the Bouncepad is totally unsupervised. We needed an enclosure that made us feel confident it would protect the tablet from theft. The customer service was really great too, I asked 1000 questions and the Bouncepad customer service team helped with everything. We’ve been using it for six months and it still looks like it’s brand new and works perfectly!”
“We had an agency who designed our hotel and they recommended Bouncepad to us – they know where to find beautiful things! The design of the enclosure was really important to us. It really suits our interior design and looks really pretty. Security was also extremely important to us because the Bouncepad is totally unsupervised. We needed an enclosure that made us feel confident it would protect the tablet from theft. The customer service was really great too, I asked 1000 questions and the Bouncepad customer service team helped with everything. We’ve been using it for six months and it still looks like it’s brand new and works perfectly!”