Who Needs a Concierge?

It's been a few months since my last trip to Arizona, and the Hilton Garden Inn in Scottsdale has added some cool new features since my last visit. The latest was hard to miss since it's 46 inches tall and parked right in the middle of the lobby next to the front desk.

Meet Monscierge.



I was quite intrigued by the concept, so I checked out their company website, which describes this unique device as "A fusion of technology and elegance to enlighten guests, give them the power to explore your city at a touch, while freeing up more time at the front desk for smoother registrations, prompt service and cheerful greetings." Their mission statement? "Empower Your Guest, Regain the Front Desk™."

OK, makes sense to me if I'm a hotel owner. But what about the guest experience?

In my view, it depends on the experience you want. I'm moderately tech savvy, and already have an iPhone that can do most of what Monscierge does in a different way. The benefit of Monscierge is that it accomplishes the same thing FASTER. And when you're on the go, speed is good!

For example, if I want to find a good steak restaurant, I would have to use an app like Urban Spoon, or go to a review site like Yelp, and first input some search parameters, including the city where I'm located, to find the information I want. Since Monscierge is already focusing on data in proximity to your location, it streamlines the search process. And because it's hard wired, the data speed is faster than my iPhone - not a big surprise there. The best part is that when you find what you're looking for, you can have the information sent to your smart phone or other hand held device for navigation and help en route.

And it's more than just restaurants. Flight information, local attractions, arts and culture information, and real time weather are all available - basically lots of the things front desk staff get questioned about routinely, while you wait in line for the information with the other guests.

Now, if you're looking for the kind of personal, detailed recommendations a quality hotel concierge can provide, Monscierge isn't for you. But it might help you weed through some possibilities quickly, so you can take your top 2 or 3 choices to the actual concierge to get that "expert" opinion you want.

And wouldn't you rather be out exploring than stuck in the hotel?