Success story
Meliá Hotels International: self-service without the wait
How one of the world’s major hotel chains took self-service beyond the front desk with Roommatik: key dispensers that went from the pilot at Meliá Zel Mallorca to over 30 hotels across Europe in the first year, and automated luggage lockers for its guests.
The challenge: online check-in should end the wait on arrival
When the chain launched its corporate online check-in, the challenge was to make it genuinely pay off for the guest. Registering before the trip is of little use if, on reaching the hotel, you still have to wait at reception all the same to pick up your key.
The goal: eliminate waiting for guests who have already completed check-in before arriving at the hotel. And the key to that is automating key delivery.
Rolling out a digital key across the entire chain was unfeasible in terms of time and cost, especially for independently managed hotels. The chain therefore chose to equip its hotels with Roommatik key dispensers, compatible with every lock brand and technology.
- Global integration: the solution had to be compatible with magnetic-stripe, MIFARE Classic and MIFARE Ultralight locks, among others.
- Reliability and speed: fast dispensers with high availability and stability, to avoid waiting at reception.
- Rapid rollout: the responsiveness to reach as many hotels as possible in the shortest time.
- Customisation: every dispenser had to respect the corporate identity of each brand in the chain.
- Operational fit: a simple integration with minimal development time, to meet the chain’s deadlines.
The solution: Roommatik key dispensers
The flow is simple. Before arrival, the guest completes the chain’s online check-in and receives a QR code. On reaching the hotel, they show that code at the dispenser and collect their key quickly and securely — without going through reception.
Key dispensers
Microcontroller-based, with no PC inside, and updatable online. With over 20 years of manufacturing and development experience, Roommatik has full control over hardware and software — which means an agile response to the deadlines of a chain-wide rollout.
Each unit is customised with vinyl wraps matching the identity of every brand in the group.
Integrations
The dispensers are integrated with the leading lock brands and card technologies: magnetic stripe, MIFARE Classic, MIFARE Ultralight and others.
That compatibility made one single rollout possible across hotels with very different installations, without replacing the existing locks.
Results: from pilot to European rollout
The project moved forward in stages, with figures that speak for themselves:
2023 pilot, a complete success
The pilot ran in 2023 at the Meliá Zel Mallorca hotel and proved a complete success.
Over 30 hotels in the first year
During the first year of rollout, more than 30 hotels were equipped across Europe.
Over 7,300 rooms in 2024
By 2024, more than 7,300 rooms were controlled by Roommatik key dispensers.
Continuity secured
The project continues over the following years, until it reaches every brand and every country where the chain operates.
A second automation: self-service luggage lockers
The relationship with the chain did not stop at key delivery. At one of its resort hotels, an automated self-service luggage solution has also been deployed: smart lockers that the guest opens and closes on their own, without going through reception.
The guest identifies themselves with the same credentials they use for check-in —the code or the key on their phone—, with no extra cards or physical keys. The hotel can offer the service free of charge or as a paid amenity, and reception no longer has to look after luggage, freeing up time to attend to the guest.
Luggage stored before check-in
The guest who arrives before check-in time, when the room is not yet ready, drops their luggage in the locker and starts enjoying the hotel from the very first minute.
Bags kept safe after check-out
Anyone who has already checked out but has a late-night flight has a secure place to keep their bags until departure, without relying on the front desk.
With key delivery automated, Meliá’s online check-in keeps its promise: the guest who registers before travelling walks into the hotel and goes straight to their room.
Products in this story
Key dispensers
Automatic key delivery with a QR code: the guest collects their key without going through reception.
Locker management
Self-service luggage lockers: the guest stores and collects their bags with their own credentials, without going through the front desk.
Integrations
Compatibility with the leading lock brands and card technologies, and with the chain’s own online check-in, which generates the QR code the dispensers read.
Want to bring self-service to your property like Meliá?
We’ll show you the full flow — from QR code to key in hand, and self-service luggage lockers — in a demonstration tailored to your operation. No commitment.