GET IN TOUCH
“One of our favourite features with Goki is that via events and shout-outs we can let everybody know what’s going on in the hostel... But we also love to have fun, one time we offered a beer to the first guest who arrived at reception dressed with a bedsheet!”
The award-winning Italian Hostel group Ostello Bello can be found in two different countries, Italy and Myanmar with 8 and 4 hostels respectively, counts more than 200 employees and has reached a total of more than 1.000 beds.
Our Sales Director for APAC, Charly Garske, sat down with Federico Scotti, the Manager of Operations at Ostello Bello to tell us more about how they have brought contactless to their properties across Italy by installing and implementing Goki.
CG - Travellers and locals quickly fall in love with your properties wherever they stay. Can you tell me what Ostello Bello is all about and what makes the properties different to other hostels?
FS - our main goal in our hostels is to make everybody feel at home. We offer high-quality standards from cleanliness to design combined with a laid-back atmosphere. We really care about our guest's needs and we try to deal with every different person in a unique way. Combining international travellers with locals allows us to make feel anybody feel part of our big family, to have a good time and share new experiences.
CG - The number of smart access providers out there is endless. Why did Goki stand out to you when you explored and compared the market for smart access solutions to go digital?
FS - We decided to go with Goki because of the combined digital solution to get inside a room with an app that allows us to interact with our guests.
CG - Ostello Bello has implemented several systems including Mews and Goki. Do you think it is important for properties to embrace new technologies?
FS - Hostels have always been one step behind when talking about new technologies, especially in our market where the biggest part of the hostels is run by families. Until a few years ago it was common to pay for WiFi. Since we opened our first hostel we knew that new technologies were crucial in order to save receptionists’ time from manual data entry and other boring and repetitive tasks. We want our receptionists to have fun with guests, empathising with them from the very beginning. It’s much easier to do it if you don’t have to spend a lot of that time with the guest manually entering information into the computer and not interacting with the guest.
CG - The perfect guest journey can be defined in lots of different ways. In your opinion, what should the perfect check-in process look and feel like to your guests?
FS - The ideal guest journey should automate all the cold and robotic areas of arrival, like guest information, registration cards and signature, payments, and invoicing. But enabling the team to keep a true human interaction with guests, it is the reason why we love our job. New technologies should be a tool to encourage social interactions and friendship. We prefer that the “software” takes and processes all the boring information while we can act as hosts and point guests to where they can eat the best pizza in town or sing with them at karaoke night.
CG - How does Goki play into this guest journey at Ostello Bello and what have you found the greatest benefits are as a hostel operator?
FS - Goki gives us the opportunity to speed up our check-in process and to provide guests with keyless access to the properties. Aside from this one of our favourite features with Goki is that via events and shout-outs we can let everybody know what’s going on in the hostel, which are the daily deals and events. But we also love to have fun, one time we offered a beer to the first guest who arrived at reception dressed with a bedsheet!
CG - What is your ultimate goal for the Ostello Bello group?
FS - To keep growing as a group and continue opening in other Italian cities. We want to be setting the standard in our industry where we can offer great accommodation whilst still keeping it human. Our biggest goal is that every Ostello Bello will have the same quality and standard but with a different soul, and a unique atmosphere depending on the cities they belong to.
Integration Spotlight
Mews -> Mews is a fully cloud-based property management system that enables smart automation to boost business and improve guest experiences. From the booking engine to check-out, from the front desk to revenue management, every process is easier, faster and more connected with Mews.
If you share the passion for innovation, want to transform your property and elevate the guest journey then reach out to us today -> book a demo
