New Interactive Touchscreen Displays Provide Another Way For Guests to Explore — Photo by IHG
New Interactive Touchscreen Displays Provide Another Way For Guests to Explore — Photo by IHG
New Interactive Touchscreen Displays Provide Another Way For Guests to Explore — Photo by IHG

For travelers who have a passion for discovery, getting recommendations from a hotel for things to do off the beaten path can be a challenge. Hotel Indigo®, the brand that connects guests and the neighborhood, is the perfect fit for these explorers, who are typically not interested in the museum mentioned in every guidebook or the hottest exclusive restaurant. Instead, they want a meaningful connection with the neighborhood they're visiting and the people who live there, which no other brand but Hotel Indigo provides.

The Hotel Indigo brand has turned the idea of the traditional concierge role into a full-scale experience throughout each hotel, and it starts with the team members, many of whom are locals themselves. Everyone who works at a Hotel Indigo hotel, from a bartender to a room attendant, can recommend hidden neighborhood gems that won't be found in most guidebooks or recommended by many, if any, concierges at other hotels.

"Our guests want to experience something unique and different when they travel. For them, it's not about doing what's trendy or popular. They want to be with interesting people and make a meaningful connection to the neighborhood," said Mary Winslow, director, Americas Brand Management, Hotel Indigo. "Every person who works in a Hotel Indigo hotel is an expert on their local neighborhood. They learn what intrigues our guests and what they're passionate about, and they make recommendations based on their personal knowledge. At our hotels, it's everyone's role to connect guests to the neighborhood."

The newest way that the Hotel Indigo brand is making this connection is through the Neighborhood Guide, an innovative touchscreen display that connects guests to each other, the local neighborhood and to Hotel Indigo locations around the world. The Neighborhood Guide, a proprietary offering found only at Hotel Indigo hotels, offers guests an overview of each hotel's unique neighborhood story, a roundup of the local hotel team's favorite attractions and restaurants and the technology to share what they've discovered through a fun photo sharing tool linked to Facebook. With 55 Hotel Indigo properties worldwide, guests can explore and discover the brand's global community through an interactive map, prompting some to plan future travel as they discover new hotels and locales around the world.

Piloted in eight test markets in 2012, including Atlanta, San Diego and Chicago, the Neighborhood Guide was immediately well-received by guests, generating more than a quarter of a million guest interactions and the sharing of more than 12,000 pictures.

"The Neighborhood Guide serves as a visual way for our hotel team to engage with guests and to bring our neighborhood story to life in a way that inspires curious travelers to get out and explore," said Barbara Kulwiec, general manager at the Hotel Indigo Asheville hotel in North Carolina. "People can't get enough of the platform's photo feature. Some even include their pets in the pictures! It's wonderful to see how excited guests are about the Neighborhood Guide, and it gives our lobby space a fun, social element."

The Neighborhood Guide information is also available on the Hotel Indigo mobile website, enabling travelers to explore any Hotel Indigo neighborhood they're visiting, even if they don't step foot in a hotel.

"You don't have to be a guest in one of our hotels to discover our neighborhoods," added Winslow. "Anyone can access our recommendations directly from the palm of their hand."

The Neighborhood Guides are now available in all Hotel Indigo properties across the Americas**, and will eventually be in all Hotel Indigo properties worldwide.

About IHG®

IHG Hotels & Resorts [LON:IHG, NYSE:IHG (ADRs)] is a global hospitality company, with a purpose to provide True Hospitality for Good.

With a family of 17 hotel brands and IHG Rewards, one of the world's largest hotel loyalty programmes, IHG has over 6,000 open hotels in more than 100 countries, and a further 1,800 in the development pipeline.

InterContinental Hotels Group PLC is the Group's holding company and is incorporated and registered in England and Wales. Approximately 350,000 people work across IHG's hotels and corporate offices globally.

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