Touchless technology for contactless hospitality – A real post-COVID alternative?

Abstract

The COVID-19 epidemic has severely affected the hotel sector around the world. The current crisis may lead to an even stronger demand for touchless technologies and the introduction of smart services to reassure hotel guests. The aim of our research is to obtain a comprehensive picture of the attitudes towards different types of interactions through guests’ hotel experience and in this context to investigate the incentive effect of COVID on the future search for contactless hotel service alternatives. In our research, we conducted a content analysis of 104 in-depth interviews, supplemented by quantitative analyses. Our results show that among the groups of hotel contacts, the most disturbing factor is interaction with other guests, followed by contact with physical objects, then employee interactions. Despite the assumptions, our results suggest that COVID has little or no effect on the intention to book in a smart hotel implementing contactless service after the pandemic.