Unlocking the hotel room door is about to get a whole lot easier for members of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide's Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) loyalty program.
The Stamford, Connecticut-based company announced this week that SPG Keyless - which is already offered at select Aloft, Element, and W properties - will be extended to a handful of other Starwood brands, including select Le Meridien, Westin, Sheraton, and Four Points properties around the world.
What's more, Starwood has expanded SPG Keyless in a move allowing multiple guests who are staying in the same room to utilize the feature so long as they have an SPG account and have downloaded the SPG app. That means SPG members with the keyless feature won't have to track down their spouse or friend if they need to get into the hotel room by themsevles.
Starwood also said it will expand mobile check-in capabilities on the SPG app in the next product update.
"Innovation and personalization are at the center of everything we do, and we're committed to making travel better for every SPG member by creating solutions for pain points that are custom-made for their mobile lifestyles," said Starwood's vice president of mobile Alyssa Waxenberg in a statement. "SPG Keyless is literally opening doors for SPG members. It is also transformative for Starwood's hotel associates, allowing them to better-engage with guests."
"Rather than the first interaction being the swipe of a credit card, hotel associates can now focus on ways to better-personalize guests' stays."
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Among the notable Starwood properties set to roll out SPG Keyless in the coming months are Le Meridien Parkhotel Frankfurt, Le Meridien Hamburg, Le Meridien Columbus, The Westin Westminster, Westin Palo Alto, Westin Camino Real Guatemala, Sheraton Bloomington, Sheraton Mirage Port Douglas and Four Points Cupertino.
Starwood first introduced SPG Keyless in November 2014 and since then has seen several other hotel companies roll out or experiment with their own mobile room keys. Hilton Worldwide launched Digital Key last summer.
While keyless entry isn't everywhere and isn't for everyone, it's a promising trend for guests.
Key cards and old school room keys likely aren't going away anytime soon, but now there's another option for travelers seeking a more convenient way to access their hotel room without the risk of leaving a key under the mat or hiding it in a hallway plant.
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