Holiday Inn Is First Midprice Chain To Offer Checkin Kiosks

Holiday Inn Hotels yesterday announced it had begun testing lobby checkin kiosks in anticipation of a U.S. systemwide rollout beginning in July. The chain, which is part of InterContinental Hotels Group, is the first midprice brand to offer the feature. Hilton Hotels Corp. and Hyatt Hotels Corp. in 2004 took the lead in introducing lobby kiosks, though only in full-service hotels. There are more than 1,500 Holiday Inns worldwide.

In addition to expediting checkin and checkout, the kiosks allow travelers to print airline boarding passes and directions to airports. These value-add features are important to travelers under a lot of time pressure, according to Holiday Inn senior vice president for the Americas Mark Snyder. The features also separate Holiday Inn kiosks from those implemented by competing hotel companies that don't offer such enhancements.

"The kiosks provide point-to-point access that gets to the heart of what matters most to people," Snyder said.

The kiosks are being piloted at a Holiday Inn in Duluth, Ga., near Atlanta, where IHG is based.