Marriott to let guests use Apple Pay at check-in

Nancy Trejos | USA TODAY

Credit cards may one day become obsolete at Marriott International hotels.

The Bethesda, Md.-based chain will offer Apple Pay at many of its hotels across the USA. Guests will be able to show up to the front desk with their iPhone 6, iPhone Plus and, eventually, their Apple Watch. A nearby contactless reader will vibrate and beep when the payment information has been captured.

Marriott will begin phasing in the program this summer at brands such as The Ritz-Carlton, EDITION, Renaissance Hotels, and Marriott Hotels. It will begin at 11 hotels, including The Ritz-Carlton Washington D.C., the EDITION Miami, and the Renaissance New York Times Square Hotel.

"Millions of customers already use Marriott Mobile to quickly book a hotel, check-in, or check out," says George Corbin, senior vice president of Marriott Digital. "Now, Apple Pay can make it virtually effortless."

Corbin says that about 75 percent of Marriott's guests, particularly 25 to 35 year-olds, travel with one or more devices.

Millennials, as they are called, are a "group that will make up a larger proportion of our guests over the next three years," Corbin says.

Hotel companies have been increasingly experimenting with technology to appeal to those Millennial travelers. In particular, they are automating the check-in and check-out process to the point where hotel guests don't have to interact with employees unless they want to.

Many hotel companies, including Marriott and Starwood Hotels and Resorts, have launched mobile check-in and check-out on their Smartphone app. Starwood is now going so far as letting guests use their Smartphones as keys at some hotels.

Hotels are adapting to new Apple technology in other ways.

Marriott says it will launch an app for the Apple Watch once it becomes available April 24. Guests will be able to check-in in advance, receive an alert when their room is ready and check-out.

Starwood too is planning an Apple Watch app. Guests will be able to get information about their Starwood Preferred Guest account and about current and future stays.

Guests will also be able to check-in and use their Apple Watch as a key via the SPG app.

"In a mobile world, people increasingly expect their technology to help them do whatever they need to do on the spot," says Chris Holdren, senior vice president of SPG and Digital for Starwood. "Apple Watch allows us to engage with our guests in-the-moment like never before with a glance at their wrist."