The human race: As AI reshapes hospitality, boutique hotels double down on people power

Every major hotel group is rolling out the red carpet for AI.They plan to save a few bucks by automating your stay and turning the concierge into a cyborg.

But a handful of hotels are giving chatbots the boot and doubling down on the human touch.“We’ve all had those experiences where you’re yelling ‘representative’ or ‘real person’ into the phone,” moaned Kelly Ronalds, general manager at Historic Hotel Bethlehem.“It’s people who make the difference.”Built in 1922 by steel mogul Charles M.

Schwab, the Beaux-Arts hotel is one of the nimble, indie-owned inns that sees AI as an opportunity to stand apart.It recently spent five months developing a “Real People Promise.” The premise? Avoid guest-facing AI and chatbots at all costs.

This means training every member of its roughly 200-strong team, including dishwashers, to be concierges.The hotel’s concierge curriculum includes eight hours of classroom instruction, role-playing, even field trips.All employees, whether they’re a housekeeper, line cook, or bartender, are sent on walking tours of downtown and to dine at local restaurants.

They’re expected to have personal recommendations at the ready should a guest ask.Ronalds didn’t receive any pushback when she proposed the anti-AI approach.Everyone, including the hotel’s owners, managers, and associates, was excited.

Still, she admitted some back-of-house staff are skeptical.“They say, ‘When will I ever get to interact with a guest?’ I tell them, ‘You never know.But if a guest asks, ‘Where should I go?’ you need to be able to answer that question.’ ”As for questions asked online, Ronalds estimates one chatbot would cost the hotel just $400 per month.

Still, she’s happy to pay substantially more for a human pulse behind the website’s live chat feature.In typical German fashion, Munich’s Hotel Europa is as blunt as it gets.“No AI in customer communication” reads its promise, in bold, on the hotel website’...