The Wi-Fi utility is the be-all and end-all in the hotel industry. Get it wrong and your customers will shout about it by all means and channels possible.
Driven by consumer demand for connectivity and convenience, hotels that prioritize technology are banking on in-room features that provide a return on innovation.
Starwood is thinking about loyalty much differently than its peers, and moves like this new Apple Watch app should be seen as a loyalty play more than a tech one.
Airlines such as Delta and JetBlue are finding ways to offer free Wi-Fi products to their customers and that could become the norm as in-flight Wi-Fi becomes pervasive.
We sure are glad the the FCC gave the go-ahead for passengers to turn on their phones in-flight. No more having to fumble for credit cards with Apple Pay on JetBlue flights. Google Wallet, though, appears to be missing in action.
Walking into a travel terminal, beginning a journey and then following it through, is poised to become an increasingly autonomous experience. It may well be marked not as much by lines at a kiosk but instead by the wave of a watch or band at a sensor, followed by an instant interaction in which seamless add-ons and ancillary sales could become a major market factor for travel brands who lean into the convergence of mobile payments and wearable tech.