CASE STUDY
Great Wolf Lodge
Virdee technology saves Great Wolf Lodge resorts significant time on guest check-ins and staffing hours
Client profile: a family waterpark adventure
Imagine the sound of splashing water and children's laughter echoing through the air as families eagerly await the start of their day at the waterpark. Great Wolf Lodge is the leading indoor waterpark resort, with 20 locations across the United States (and more in the works) and 3,500 hotel rooms. Given its popularity, the excitement often bubbles over into the lobby, where busy check-in lines snake around the entry during peak hours. This is where Virdee technology comes in, streamlining the check-in process and turning potential frustration into a seamless start to an unforgettable stay. This case study dives into how Virdee optimized Great Wolf Lodge's check in experience, transforming long waits into instant holiday gratification.
The Virdee solution and time to impact
Mobile web and mobile app check-in options using the client’s existing app
In-lobby kiosks for check-in and wristband pickup
Virdee Identity for secure identity and age verification
Payment submission occurs during check-in via mobile or kiosk
Add-on packages can be viewed and upsold during check-in
Great Wolf Lodge
key achievements with Virdee
The challenge: long check-in lines cause frustrated families
Great Wolf Lodge is renowned for the experience it provides. However, as its popularity has gained traction, so have the challenges associated with managing the growing influx of guests. The resort recognized the clear need to streamline guest arrivals without sacrificing the engaging welcome that’s part of its brand.
To address the ongoing check-in bottlenecks, the resort engaged Virdee and its hotel check-in platform. Virdee introduced a solution that embedded the resort’s existing branded mobile app, as well as a self-service check-in system in the hotel lobby. These solutions facilitated pre-check-in, significantly cut down on wait times and enhanced overall guest satisfaction. Guests were able to begin their vacations sooner freeing up the lobby staff to focus on providing exceptional service.
The partnership with Virdee, from discovery to implementation gave Great Wolf Lodge a comprehensive plan to revolutionize their check-in procedures. By investing in cutting-edge self-check-in technology, including mobile check-in with user-friendly kiosks placed in the lobby for key pickup the resort was able to expedite the check-in process and empowered guests to take control of their arrival experience.
The solution: mobile & kiosk check-in with custom wristband dispensers
Guests are encouraged to check in before arriving at the property. They can either download Great Wolf Lodge’s app or use mobile web without a download needed to complete identity verification, payment submission, and accept terms and conditions. This all happens before arrival, making key pickup even faster.
Mobile check-in
By offering both mobile app and mobile web options, Great Wolf Lodge increased mobile adoption since no app download is required to check in. Virdee’s SDK technology was used to integrate features directly into the brand’s existing app. This allowed check-in features to be integrated into the app without requiring custom development or maintenance from Great Wolf Lodge’s side. Future feature updates automatically flow through to the client app.
Kiosk-dispensed wristbands
Great Wolf Lodge does not use standard key cards but instead uses wristbands with embedded RFID chips as room keys. This meant that mobile key on the phone was not possible. Instead, in-lobby kiosks provide wristbands while also enabling full check-in for those guests who did not complete any of the check-in steps prior to arrival.
A Virdee-powered Smart Wristband to enhance the customer experience
Great Wolf Lodge’s use of wristbands necessitated creating custom enclosures that would encode and dispense wristbands when guests checked in. Two dispensers were developed for each kiosk, a strategic design aimed at addressing two key objectives. The first is that this setup offers redundancy, mitigating most technical glitches such as a dispenser jam. By having a backup dispenser, a kiosk remains operational even if the other encounters an issue, ensuring uninterrupted service to guests. Second, the dual dispenser configuration will address future functionality where wristbands are distributed to adults and children. This forward-thinking approach ensures that the kiosks are equipped to seamlessly accommodate evolving requirements.
In more detail: Wristband dispensers
Introducing moving parts, like those in dispensers, inherently escalates the risk of malfunctions. Wristbands, unlike stacks of plastic room keys, are more prone to inconsistencies in coding and dispensing. Therefore, the integration of this new technology necessitated rigorous testing, fine-tuning, and iterative adjustments to optimize performance and reliability. Through testing and refinement, the system achieved impressive uptime levels, boasting wristband success rates exceeding 98% across all locations. Notably, some locations consistently attained a flawless success rate of 100%, underscoring the effectiveness of the testing and refinement process in ensuring optimal functionality.
A technology solution that deeply understands resorts, hotels, and their customers
Great Wolf Lodge offers numerous packages and upgrades, so it was important for guests to be able to access those options during check-in. When checking in, guests are able to see packages they purchased at the time of booking while also adding additional packages. This can be accomplished both on mobile and at the kiosk.
An additional challenge caused by many guests arriving throughout the day is that rooms are not always ready when guests arrive too early. This necessitates two trips to the front desk or kiosk: one to check in and one to pick up a key at a later time (usually the official check-in time). To address this need, room ready notifications were added at the end of 2023. This feature allows guests to check in via mobile or via the kiosk even if a room is not yet ready. Guests are checked in and receive a wristband at the kiosk. They are then notified via text message of the room number once the room is ready and can head straight to their room.
A big benefit of the room ready notification feature is that it can be leveraged by staff at the front desk as well as at the kiosk. If a guest chooses to check in at the front desk before their room is ready, staff can enroll the guests into the room ready queue, resulting in the same benefit, eliminating an additional trip to the front desk to pick up a wristband.
Great Wolf Lodge
key achievements with Virdee
The results: 8,200 hours saved on check-ins, 13,000 staffing hours saved
The average front-desk check-in takes eight minutes. Virdee technology has reduced that to an average of three minutes. With 97,800 check-ins handled electronically in 2023, this saved each guest five minutes per check-in, resulting in 8,200 hours saved. This doesn’t even take the time spent standing in line into account, which can easily add up to 60 minutes during peak times. The frustration of having to stand in line impacts guest satisfaction. Eliminating this has an additive effect on the time saved at the actual front desk.
The biggest impact was on staffing. Without having to check in nearly 100,000 guests, 13,000 hours of staffing time were saved. This amounts to nearly seven full-time employees’ time. As a result, Great Wolf Lodge was able to reassign staff to more impactful duties including acting as guest experience ambassadors for arriving guests.
Room ready notifications are a new feature launched at the end of 2023. In January 2024 alone, 7,300 check-ins fell into this category. With a conservative estimate of three minutes required to pick up a wristband at the check-in desk, guests and staff saved an additional 365 hours each in just one month.
The Great Wolf Lodge check-in experience
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