In-room digital concierge is set to transform the hospitality industry in 2027, personalising the guest experience and making it easier for staff to meet the growing expectations of modern guests.
Cape Town, 10 November 2026: Heading into 2027, conflicting pressures are putting stress on the hospitality industry. On one hand, guests (and, in particular, affluent travellers) are expecting a more personalised experience. On the other, hotels grapple with staff shortages, staff retention and rising costs, making it harder to deliver that experience.
AI is the answer guests don’t want
While automation seems like the obvious solution, particularly in the age of agentic AI, it’s not that simple. Many hotels already have multiple systems running, which don’t speak to each other and sometimes create more problems than they solve.
There’s also the concern around guests’ ambivalence towards artificial intelligence; while some don’t mind engaging with an automated system, others find the notion off-putting. In a recent global survey, 89% of respondents said they want AI to operate behind the scenes or a blend of tech and human service. Almost none wanted an AI-led experience and 75% said good hospitality depends on human staff.
Rise of the digital concierge
Amid this tangle of opposing challenges, the adoption of digital concierge services looks set to become a trend that solves multiple issues with one in-room solution.
Leading the way is Visto, an Android smart TV app that turns any screen into a digital concierge. In hotels and guesthouses, it sits on a guest’s TV, upgrading an existing in-room amenity to serve a dual purpose. “It’s cost-effective for the hospitality team because as long as the room has a smart TV, there’s no reason to invest in any hardware,” says Ben Wagner, cofounder and Chief Commercial Officer at Visto, adding that a streaming box is available for properties with non-smart TVs. “More importantly, it’s completely frictionless for the guest. People are used to picking up a remote and pointing it at the TV to select what they want to watch. Now they perform the same action to select what they want to do.”
How a digital concierge creates a personalised experience for guests
The experience begins even before a guest arrives – with a mail confirming their booking and inviting them to personalise their experience.
On arrival, the guest finds a personalised dashboard displayed on their TV, welcoming them by name and displaying their itinerary, local time, weather, and other important info, such as mealtimes, in-room dining or spa menus.
It’s fully customisable, so it can be as personalised as the hotel wants it to be (e.g. displaying childminding services for guests travelling with children or business support services for conference delegates) and the itinerary can be set to update daily. There’s a choice of more than 20 languages, with translation happening automatically on the backend.
Through a Netflix-style interface, the guest can explore recommended experiences and shops, curated for their preferences by the guest services manager. An e-commerce function allows them to make bookings for in-house services (such as the spa) as well as external activities (such as helicopter flips or yoga studios) directly through the digital concierge.
To address growing concerns around cybersecurity, transactions are redirected to a secure payment platform outside of the app, so guests never have to give the digital concierge their banking details.
And by simply scanning a QR code, the guest can replicate the entire experience in the internet browser on their smartphone without having to download an app. “People don’t want another app taking up space on their phone,” explains Wagner. “That’s been a major barrier to adoption for hospitality apps.”
Taking pressure off hospitality staff
Traditionally, hotels have had a large staff of dedicated people in specific roles. In modern hotels, those boundaries are increasingly blurring, with staff shortages and financial constraints creating an environment where staff have to juggle multiple responsibilities.
Used smartly, a digital concierge can take a lot of the pressure off this kind of environment by giving guests immediate access to information in their rooms.
“Partnering with Visto TV has been a complete gamechanger for the guest experience,” says Tiaan Fourie, General Manager at The Grand Daddy Boutique Hotel in Cape Town. “Since onboarding the application across our luxury rooms and iconic rooftop Airstream trailers, guest viewing satisfaction has soared, resulting in absolutely zero complaints. Visto has seamlessly bridged the gap between in-room entertainment and local exploration; our guests love the convenience of browsing and booking Cape Town excursions or securing exclusive partner restaurant discounts directly from their screens.”
For guests who prefer to outsource the admin of making bookings, a dedicated tool allows the hotel concierge to book activities through Visto on the guest’s behalf. Any bookings made are automatically displayed on the guest’s onscreen TV dashboard.
Additional revenue stream
When a guest books an external activity through Visto, the hotel has the option to earn commission via a referral system.
There’s also an optional “Room Service” facility for properties that don’t offer in-room dining or have limited menus. “Sushi is an example of something niche that many hotel room service menus don’t offer,” says Wagner. “So if a guest wants sushi, they can order a delivery from a local partner restaurant through the platform, and the hotel can earn commission on that order.”
“By facilitating direct, secure payments through the TV, Visto eliminates unnecessary friction for the guest while unlocking an entirely new, highly efficient revenue stream for the hotel,” says Fourie. “As we prepare to integrate our new minibar and room service ecosystem onto the platform, our commission-earned model on excursions and local dining orders has already put us on track to quickly break even on our initial investment.”
A guest-first solution
A digital concierge gives guests what they want: technology that operates unobtrusively and supports human service, rather than replacing it. It’s simple, intuitive and makes guests’ lives easier.
“I think the reason the concept is such a hit is because the service was initially built for guests,” says Visto co-founder and CEO, Brynn Potgieter, who developed the platform. “When you help your customers, what tends to happen is you end up helping your own business too, and that’s what’s happened here for hotels and guesthouses.”
Click here to check out Visto now.
Press Enquiries:
Ben Wagner
Chief Commercial Officer
Visto
Tel: + 27 82 775 4489
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.visto.host
