The way travellers choose a destination, book a trip, travel there and the in-stay experience will be dramatically different in the future.
HONG KONG – When travellers check into a hotel in 2060 they can expect it to be on Mars, to feature augmented reality, artificial intelligence, morphing beds, robotics, touchscreen everything, hyper connectivity and much more, as revealed by the Hotels.com Hotels of the Future study.
Hotels.com celebrates 25 years of accommodation expertise this year and is looking to the future by partnering with renowned futurist Dr James Canton of the Institute for Global Futures on the Hotels.com Hotels of the Future study. It uncovers how the travel and hotel experience will be different in a year, 25 years and as far ahead as 2060.
The way travellers choose a destination, book a trip, travel there and the in-stay experience will be dramatically different in the future. Hotels.com is already one of the technology leaders in the travel industry but these new forecasts see super-tech meet super-science.
Dr James Canton from The Institute for Global Futures, a leading think tank that identifies emerging consumer trends, explains: ‘Trends in technology, science, energy and entertainment will vastly change the hotel experience for travellers. The emergence of a new travel design science, which is a combination of using big data, artificial intelligence and predicting travellers’ dreams, will mean the whole travel experience will change.
‘The future of travel is really exciting, as we’ll see predictive travel analytics anticipating what consumers want from their experience before booking. The hotel booking itself will be helped along by artificial intelligence software agents, using data mining and intuitive computing. The new travel design science will help create highly personalized in-stay experiences. And it doesn’t end when you check out, because new analytics will also ensure lifelong travel fulfillment.’
Hotels.com has worked with Dr James Canton to identify the top trends for what hotels of the future will be like by 2060:
- RoboButlers – These autonomous robots can be designed online before arrival and can be programmed with special talents, skills, languages and information to help make the hotel stay exceptional. They will do everything from greeting guests at the airport, to offering gourmet food service, room makeup, companionship, education, entertainment, business advice and concierge services.
- Morphing hotels made to order – This is the next generation of made to order. Hotels which self-assemble and morph from one design to another based on consumer’s votes. These crowdsourced hotels will use nanotechnology and machines that can self-assemble environments, buildings or even entire physical worlds (the Real Jurassic Park?). This could all be possible in the next 20 years.
- 3D Makers in every hotel room – Taking luggage on holiday will be a thing of the past. 3D Printers will transform the travel experience and specifically the in room experience. 3D Makers will generate in real time items guests desire, such as a new pair of shoes, clothes, pharmaceuticals, even computers or wearable phones. 3D shopping will be available, where consumers download from the cloud, retail goods that they want to design on demand. This will become the standard in every hotel room.
- Neuro-Dreaming – choose your own dream – The definition of getting a good night’s sleep will be changing in the future. A hotel bed will no longer just be a place to enjoy a comfortable night’s sleep, as future travellers will be able to choose their own dreams before dozing off. Hotels will give guests access to neurotechnology to program their dreams and they can choose a dream theme to either relax, enhance, learn or enjoy. Romantic adventure or space exploration?
- Pop-up hotels based on crowdsourcing – the next generation of pop up hotels will be based on special mobile crowdsourcing, where the theme and location is decided by votes. The pop up hotel designs that win the most votes will be programmed to self-assemble using 3D printers, use continuously generating Bio-solar cells and feature nanotechnology. These hotels will exist for a limited time and HotelCoin, the digital Blockchain currency, will be used by consumers to pay with their wearable mobile app.
- Wellness & longevity hotel spas – The spa 2.0 – the next generation of wellness spas will be mind blowing. Gone are the days of a simple facial or massage at hotel spa. The hotel spa of the future is based on DNA analysis and promoting living longer. You will receive personalized prevention treatments, prediction and health enhancement programs designed to refresh your health, your fitness and understand your future health risks. These will use the latest genetic medicine treatment, mind refreshing drugs, brain fitness and prevent disease. Massage and mud baths will of course still be available.
- Airport transfer of the future – Self-driving pods, RoboFlying cars and Hyperloop – one of the most stressful parts of any vacation is getting from the airport to your hotel. Travellers will be pleased to hear that the future of airport transfers is high tech and high speed. Future transports include self-driving pods, RoboFlying cars, which will help you avoid the traffic, and larger developments such as the Hyper Loop – supersonic air travel, covering hundreds of kilometers in seconds.
- DNA mobile payments – DNA is the ultimate personal identification and will be used to confirm identify in making travel bookings and payments online. When you check into your hotel, all that will be needed is DNA fingerprints to confirm who you are and check in is complete! Long check in lines will be a thing of the past.
- My travel avatar – The booking of hotels will be done by your very own travel avatar – like a digital software agent. Your travel avatar will help fulfill all your travel needs and wishes. Your Avatar will manage bookings, like a personal version of Apple’s Siri or Amazon’s Alexa, they will search, design and book travel. Avatars will communicate, negotiate and design your whole travel experience – the ultimate in customer care.
- EcoHotels on the next level – Many hotels already focus on sustainability and being eco-friendly but in future every hotel will be fully sustainable. They will excel in energy efficiency, buy and sell energy off the Renewable Energy Grid, use safe & clean products only, use the latest solar and geothermal technology and have a carbon neutral footprint. EcoHotels will also be socially aware, with products and workers all producing a positive social impact in the community.
- Augmented reality hotels – Travellers will be able to stay at hotels that are part physical and part virtual. While virtual reality is simply a recreation of a real life setting, an augmented reality experience actually blends the physical real world with virtual reality. Millions of innovative scenarios will therefore be possible – an excursion to Africa or a trip Machu Picchu in Peru? Augmented reality hotels will customize the ultimate adventure, history or drama travel experience. Consumers will not just stay at a hotel and be limited to excursions locally, the hotels will transport them to fantasy worlds they can only dream of.
- Gourmet genomics in hotel restaurants – Hotel restaurants will start to feature food designed for the individual’s palate, all based on DNA analysis. Before you even arrive at your hotel, your diet and nutrition menu will be designed based on your DNA and optimized for your health. The menu is created to improve health, nutrition and fitness, but the food will still be gourmet and delicious. It will be designer food, made by top chefs but it won’t make you gain weight or ruin your diet!
- Immersive-themed hotels – Hotels in the future will have themes based on immersive worlds. Hotels will become entertainment experiences that we can only imagine today. Travellers can expect a fully interactive live event location, where the hotel is in character with in-world. Consumers could interact in real-time or by virtual reality. Imagine a Call of Duty World enabling combat gaming competitions between networked hotel communities or a Roman World with chariot races or a Renaissance World complete with costumes and customized androids, story lines, drama and action.
Inside the smart hotel room
By 2060 the standard hotel room you know today will be almost unrecognizable. The room of the future will be so personalized, so smart and techy down to the last detail. It will include:
- Entering your room via face recognition
- Multiple sensors attuned to you
- Talk-back TV
- Every surface will be touchscreen, reactive and interactive
- Bathrooms will have smart toilets and mirrors streaming real-time news
- Neuro-enhanced aromas will sprout from interactive spa walls that sense stress and auto-generate a relaxing sleep experience
- Special towels with pollution wipe nano coatings
- Wireless temperature controls that adjusts automatically
- Self-assembling and personalized bed and pillows based on neuro-feedback
- In room-personalized experiences like watching a holographic music concert
Vicky is the co-founder of TravelDailyNews Media Network where she is the Editor-in Chief. She is also responsible for the daily operation and the financial policy. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Tourism Business Administration from the Technical University of Athens and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales. She has many years of both academic and industrial experience within the travel industry. She has written/edited numerous articles in various tourism magazines.
