Hotel PMS and Check-In: The Future of Self-Service

Hotel PMS - Property Management Systems for Hotels Backgrounder In 2025, the hotel property management domain (hotel PMD) is undergoing significant transformation, driven by both technological innovation and evolving guest expectations. Here are the most notable developments: 1. AI-Powered Property Management Becomes the Standard Artificial intelligence (AI) is now deeply embedded in nearly all leading hotel platforms, moving from a buzzword to an essential, default feature. AI handles tasks like guest communications, reputation management, operational decision-making, and real-time data analysis, reducing manual work and enabling faster, smarter decisions for hotel managers167. Virtual agents, decision intelligence, and AI-powered chatbots are streamlining operations and guest interactions, with some experts predicting that up to 80% of guest interactions could be managed by AI in 202561. 2. Fully Integrated and Connected Systems Hotels are rapidly adopting integrated property management systems (PMS) that unify reservations, guest services, staff management, and more into a single interface. This shift is eliminating inefficiencies caused by disconnected systems and spreadsheets, allowing for better data capture and business performance management27. Integration enables seamless digital check-ins, automated upselling, and a unified guest journey across all touchpoints27. 3. Personalization and Attribute-Based Selling Technology now allows hotels to offer guests the ability to customize their stays by selecting specific room attributes (such as floor level, balcony, or mini-kitchen) rather than just room types, creating more tailored experiences and new revenue streams76. Personalization is a key driver of guest satisfaction and loyalty, with AI and data integration making it possible at scale67. 4. Labor and Operational Challenges The industry continues to face labor shortages and rising operational costs, but technology is helping mitigate these issues by automating routine tasks and enabling staff to focus on higher-value interactions47. Despite these challenges, hotel employment and wages are projected to rise modestly in 2025, with a focus on employee retention and efficiency7. 5. Sustainability and Eco-Innovation There is a growing emphasis on sustainable operations and the use of recycled materials, both to meet consumer demand and to control costs7. Hotels are leveraging technology to monitor and reduce their environmental impact, which is becoming a competitive advantage7. 6. Market and Financial Trends While operational performance remains strong, hotel stocks have seen declines in 2025, reflecting broader economic uncertainties despite sector tailwinds8. Certain U.S. markets (such as Houston, Columbus, New York, New Orleans, and Raleigh) are expected to outperform, while others may face headwinds due to local factors5. 7. Major Industry Events The year features significant events like major concert tours and the Super Bowl, which are expected to drive hotel demand in key cities510. In summary: 2025 is a pivotal year for hotel property management, with AI-driven automation, system integration, and guest personalization at the forefront. Hotels that embrace these innovations are positioned to improve efficiency, enhance guest experiences, and drive profitability, even as they navigate ongoing labor and economic challenges1267. Update June 30, 2024 - HITEC is the big self-service show for hotels and hospitality. Some of our members there include LG Business, Actineon and KIOSK. Recently Ariane hacked so be careful. Here is post on Bleeping Computer July 23 -- Ariane provided a nice list of PMS integrations they have done. Over 30 different ones and we were not aware of Opera coming in three different versions. From Laurent CEO -- We currently support 30 PMS companies out of which: Oracle Opera (Cloud, hosted and on-premise), Infor (on-premise & cloud), Protel (on-premise & cloud), Mews, Springer Miller SMS, Hoist, Hotello, MisterBooking and many local PMSs in France, Germany & Spain. Many of our members provide self-service options to hotels. The recent HITEC trade show in Toronto showcased some of those. We note that on the Intel Solutions Marketplace there are a couple of entries for Hotel Check-In related. Consequently we get asked about property management systems for hotels and factors to consider as well as who are the largest and most popular. The featured image above for this shows some of the Ariane Duo 2000 desktop check-in kiosks at the Hyatt in Chicago where we stayed for NRA. Hyatt used to use WinPM from MSI (later acquired by Jonas Club out of Canada) for its PMS before switching to Opera by Oracle in 2003 or so. For reference we found the kiosk interface was a bit wanting, their accessibility factor probably lower than most and oddly enough they were located somewhat distant and almost hard to see arriving at the main check-in. They did work though and the room cards worked. With any self-service solution there are generally three components The customer-facing component which is the interface and middleware dialogue with backend The backend -- for hotels this is a "PMS". Think PMS for hotels For healthcare it is likely Epic In digital signage you have the CMS (Sitekiosk for example or SCALA or numerous others) In transactional you also have processors and merchant providers (Datacap has a great list of those and of course people like UCP Inc. and Ingenico know them all very well). Hyatt for example uses Worldpay. Hotels come with their specific variables in regard to self-service Which PMS are they using? (Micros, Amadeus e.g., here is list of some others) -- the list of members at HITEC is a good checklist Do they have a CMS for web They would require higher level of outsourced onsite service so that is good recurring revenue and nice profit factor Side channels like local wayfinding, internet access stations, digital signage all in play Restaurants, hospitals, amusements, ticketing verticals share many of these factors. Coming up with a list of PMS providers is the usual google search (see above) but this time we opted to give the task over to Google Bard and see how it compares to other "lists" of "most deployments". We did the usual searches and Bard did pretty well. The advantage is that the element of sponsorship or paid position is somewhat mitigated. Google hasn't yet incorporated paid search into Bard yet but odds are pretty good it will at some point. Another example of paid results: if you ask many respected research firms who the major players are in various endeavors, their list will start and often finish with their paid retainer clients. Awards at trade shows more often than not fall into the "paid to win" model, though not always. To a degree we are also susceptible to that paid position syndrome. However, we are not tied to it. Anyway onto the list... Query - Who are the top ten hotel property management systems? Here are the top 10 hotel property management systems in 2023, according to G2: Oracle Hospitality OPERA Property Management System SkyTouch Technology https://www2.sabrehospitality.com uHotelBooking 360HMS - Hotel Management Software protel PMS StayNTouch Cloud PMS 5stelle innRoad* WISH CloudbedsThese systems are all highly rated and offer a wide range of features, including: Reservation management Guest check-in/checkout Room assignment Room rates management Billing Inventory management Reporting Channel management Customer relationship management (CRM) The best system for your hotel will depend on your specific needs and requirements. However, all of the systems on this list are a good place to start your search. Here are some other factors to consider when choosing a hotel property management system: Size of your hotel: If you have a small hotel, you may not need a system with all the bells and whistles. However, if you have a large hotel or chain, you will need a system that can handle the volume of transactions. Budget: Hotel property management systems can range in price from a few hundred dollars to several thousand dollars per year. It is important to set a budget before you start shopping so that you do not overspend. Features: Make a list of the features that are important to you in a hotel property management system. Some features to consider include: Integration with other hotel software, such as your online booking engine or CRM system Mobile app for staff Reporting capabilities Customization options Support: Make sure that the hotel property management system you choose has good customer support. You will need to be able to get help if you have any problems with the system. I hope this helps! So we know Amadeus is widely used. What does Google Bard tell us about Amadeus? Amadeus is a good hotel PMS. It is a cloud-based system that offers a wide range of features, including: Reservation management Guest check-in/checkout Room assignment Room rates management Billing Inventory management Reporting Channel management Customer relationship management (CRM) Amadeus is also integrated with other hotel software, such as online booking engines and CRM systems. This makes it easy to manage your hotel's operations from a single platform. Here are some of the pros and cons of Amadeus hotel PMS: Pros: Cloud-based system Wide range of features Integrated with other hotel software Good customer support Cons: Can be expensive Not as customizable as some other PMS systems Overall, Amadeus is a good hotel PMS that offers a wide range of features and integrations. However, it can be expensive and not as customizable as some other PMS systems. Here are some other hotel PMS systems that you may want to consider: Oracle Hospitality OPERA Property Management System SkyTouch Technology SynXis Property Hub uHotelBooking 360HMS - Hotel Management Software protel PMS StayNTouch Cloud PMS 5stelle* innRoad WISH Cloudbeds The best hotel PMS for you will depend on your specific needs and requirements. However, all of the systems on this list are good options to consider. Video of Self-Check In Kiosk Video Let us hear from our CSO, Hans-Peter Nüdling in this video where he demonstrates how MK Hotel benefits from our Self-Checkin KIOSKs. Guests can have an alternative to hotel reception where they can discreetly Self-Checkin without the need to stand in a queue. Our self-checkin services allows the staffs to allocate their resources efficiently and ensures guests satisfaction at the same time. More posts on this site Kiosk Case Study - Thistle Guest Services(Opens in a new browser tab) Hospitality - How Hotels Cater to Business Travelers(Opens in a new browser tab) Disabled Access - How Self-Service Kiosks Help Hotels, Restaurants(Opens in a new browser tab) Hotel Check-In Kiosks HITEC(Opens in a new browser tab)\ Public Service Announcement Related From my LinkedIn network You arrive at your hotel and check in at the front desk. Typically when checking in, you give the front desk your credit card (for any charges to your room). You go to your room and settle in. All is good. The hotel receives a call and the caller asks for (as an example) room 620 - which happens to be your room. The phone rings in your room. You answer and the person on the other end says the following: 'This is the front desk. When checking in, we came across a problem with your charge card information. Please re-read me your credit card number and verify the last 3 digits numbers at the reverse side of your charge card.' Not thinking anything wrong, since the call seems to come from the front desk you oblige. But actually, it is a scam by someone calling from outside the hotel. They have asked for a random room number, then ask you for your credit card and address information. They sound so professional, that you think you are talking to the front desk. If you ever encounter this scenario on your travels, tell the caller that you will be down to the front desk to clear up any problems. Then, go to the front desk or call directly and ask if there was a problem. If there was none, inform the manager of the hotel that someone tried to scam you of your credit card information, acting like a front desk employee. ANYONE travelling should be aware of this one!