No More Waiting: How Prague’s Charles Bridge Hostel Streamlined Check-Ins with This Box
In winter, hotels in the centre of Prague do not have as many reservations, so it is costly to pay for receptionists 24 hours a day. Under such circumstances, how do you handle late arrivals? At Charles Bridge Hostel Prague, they installed a Keyguru electronic box for guests to check in. The features of the box excited the owners so much that they also installed it at their second operation – the White Swan Apartments. Now fully integrated with the Better Hotel system, check-in is completely automated.
Charles Bridge Hostel Prague — economical accommodation in the heart of the city that attracts tourists from all over the world
Young guests arriving in Prague will not find a more central hostel than Charles Bridge Hostel Prague. It is located right next to the Malostranská Tower of the Charles Bridge. In addition to women-only and mixed dormitories, it also offers accommodation in private rooms and suites.
The excellent location of the hostel attracts guests from all over the world in the high season, the comfort of whom is the responsibility of receptionists 24 hours a day. In winter, however, the situation is different — the hostel is usually not fully booked. Paying receptionists throughout the day was therefore proving costly.
For security reasons the hostel opted for a self-service reception
Room cards at Charles Bridge Hostel Prague are usually issued by the receptionist. During the low season or if staff shortages occurred, the hostel had a replacement solution – handing over the room cards using mailboxes. This posed a big risk.
In the end, they chose to install a Keyguru box and create a self-service reception. Security was the deciding factor. Although the mailboxes are hidden, anyone could access them. In addition, there was the risk that a guest might take a wrong room card and stay in a different room than the one paid for. The hostel then had to address the confusion in its bookings system.
The Keyguru box offers better security and only issues room cards to the person who should get it.
Due to the Keyguru box, there is no longer need for a 24-hour reception in the low season
Another positive? The possibility to cancel the 24-hour reception during the winter months. “In winter, the Keyguru box enables us to save at a time when there are fewer bookings by no longer making it necessary to have a 24-hour reception,” says co-owner Michal Novák.
Receptionists only provide guests with information or arrange bookings for excursions during daytime shifts. Late or nighttime arrivals are handled through having a self-service reception supported by the Keyguru box.
Guests receive a code by email with which to open one of the compartments of the box and pick up their room card. The box is easily accessible directly at the entrance to the hostel.
The Keyguru box provides access to the accommodation 24 hours a day. How could a self-service reception help you?
Satisfaction led to the installation of a second box, where there is no reception
The owners were so satisfied with the operation of the Keyguru box that they decided to install it in their second operation — the White Swan Apartments. This is accommodation without a reception.
How did things work without a Keyguru box? The owners had to call guests and see what time they would be arriving. This was usually not without a wait, as guests inevitably did not keep to their arrival time. This not only wasted valuable time, but also affected people’s mood.
Previously at the apartments, they tried a manual key box. They had to send a code to each guest and manually reprogramme the code every once in a while. “For example, we had the same codes for half a year. The risk was, and this happened to a friend here in Prague, that someone puts the codes on the Internet and people gain access,” says Michal Novák.
The Keyguru box provides secure access to the apartments by generating a unique code for each guest. Due to the connection with the Better Hotel system, codes are sent completely automatically.
Guests have never had trouble picking up their keys or room cards
The owners of Charles Bridge Hostel Prague praise the smooth operation of the Keyguru box. It covers all their self-service reception needs, including access using staff codes. Likewise, there have been no difficulties with the guests. “It’s never been a problem that someone didn’t know how to gain access to their key or room card,” concludes Michal Novák.
