NEW YORK, NY – Hotel32, a newly launched boutique hotel on the top floor of the Monte Carlo Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, wants guests to feel like a VIP, without the celebrity drama.

Monte Carlo's agency, David&Goliath approached Runtriz, a company that provides hotels with mobile solutions to improve business, to create a virtual concierge for the hotel.

Upon check-in, each hotel guest is offered a virtual concierge in the form of an iPod Touch, at no extra charge.

The device allows guests to order room service, make dinner reservations, schedule wake-up calls, make spa appointments, request linens or toiletries, check messages and arrange car transportation, all without waiting on hold or talking to anyone.

Hotel guests also have the option to morph their own iPhone or smartphone into a personal concierge, by downloading an app to their phone. Guests then punch in their room number and security code, and 24/7 concierge access sits in their hands.

A handful of hotels are using similar applications, but Hotel32 at Monte Carlo is the first hotel in Las Vegas to offer a virtual concierge.

If users fall in love with their iPod Touch, they can have it added to their bill. Because buying one in a real world setting might require human contact.

The hotel is equipped with 30 devices and, thus far, none have been lost or broken. Yet.

The Hotel32 handheld does not include ads, nor are there plans to serve any in the future. I thought, at the very least, house ads might find their way into the app, perhaps a discount off dinner at a particular restaurant if reservations are made via virtual concierge.

Rooms at Hotel32 run from $250 to $500 a night. Creative elements, crafted by David&Goliath with media handled in-house, promote the hotel as a place where guests feel like a celebrity without breaking the bank or having to "compromise your morals." In addition, an online campaign allowed travelers to create their own celebrity pseudonym.

Copyright 2009 MediaPost Communications. All rights reserved. From http://www.mediapost.com. By Amy Corr.
To view the Internet Travel Monitor Archive, click http://www.tripinfo.com/ITM/index.html.