Mobile check-in goes global at Marriott Hotels

Following success in the US and Canada, Marriott Hotels plans to  roll out mobile check-in at all 500 hotels globally, as well as offer check-out functionality, in the first half of 2014.

The UAE is one of 19 additional countries to now offer the service. 

First launched at 329 hotels in the U.S and Canada, the Marriott Mobile App, which has been downloaded more than 2.5 million times, is now the broadest mobile offering of its kind following global expansion.

Marriott Hotels senior vice president of brand management Paul Cahill said: “As Marriott developed the app and tested mobile check-in, we engaged customers, asking for their feedback to perfect the experience and learn what mattered most to them.

“Mobile check-in is just the start. Our guests are more mobile and global than ever before and technology is increasingly important to them, which is why we will add check-out next year. We will continue to solicit feedback from our guests as we enhance the travel experience with Marriott.”

According to research by GroupM Next*, mobile check-in is particularly popular with younger travellers, with 57 percent of business travellers aged 21-39 using their smartphone to book a hotel.