Mews has updated its property management system to integrate hotel room keys directly into smartphone wallets with the goal of eliminating the need for plastic key cards, third-party apps or middleware.
The new system—developed in partnership with Vingcard, an Assa Abloy company— is designed to allow guests to receive and store their digital keys in their phone’s wallet via a browser and unlock their room with a tap of a phone or compatible wearable device, according to the company. Germany-based Hey Lou Hotels is the first hotelier to adopt the technology, rolling out wallet-based access at its Karlsruhe property.
“Our guests can walk straight in and feel at home the moment they arrive—no queues, no plastic,” Martin Kemmer, founder and managing director of Hey Lou Hotels, said in a statement.
According to Mews, the feature not only reduces front desk congestion and lost key requests but also improves security and sustainability, according to Mews CEO Matt Welle, who added the move is in response to shifting guest expectations. “More than a third of travelers now consider keyless entry essential and 70 percent would skip the front desk if they could,” he said.
With the launch, Mews is looking to position itself as the first PMS to offer native wallet-based digital keys, an initiative the company said reflects its goal of creating seamless, mobile-first hotel experiences.
