A Curious Group of Hotels

A Curious Group of Hotels is a British company of chic hotels and restaurants for the culturally Curious; including Cowley Manor in the Cotswolds, L'Hotel and Le Restaurant in Paris, Canal House in Amsterdam and The Portobello Hotel in London.

Cowley Manor is a contemporary country house hotel and spa located in the glorious Cotswold countryside surrounded by 55 acres of parkland, woods, and meadows. 

The five star L'Hotel in Paris has been a secret hideaway over the past two centuries. With quintessential French charm and glamour, L'Hotel is nestled in the heart of the Left Bank, amidst the cultural riches, bohemian soul, and high fashion of St Germain-des-Prés.

Located in the heart of the cultural centre of Amsterdam, Canal House is a boutique hotel located on the Keizergracht and comprised of seventeenth-century merchants' houses.

Located on a quiet street in the centre of West London’s Notting Hill, The Portobello Hotel is the stylish combination of two converted neo-classical mansions.

The Curious Hotels App

The Curious Hotels App combines guest information with innovative features that absolutely transform the guest experience. From live chat to speedy online check-in, the app plays an important role as an extension of the team. The digital guestbook answers all FAQs, giving the FOH staff the opportunity to provide what really matters, hospitality. 

Guests can browse the menus, order room service, book a spa treatment, read a magazine and book another stay, all on their own device. Curious Hotels are also able to provide invaluable recommendations of what to do in the local area, from local attractions to shops and restaurants. 

Testimonial

We spoke with Joe Setchell, Group Marketing Director at A Curious Group of Hotels and here’s what he said. 

Why did you decide to partner with Criton and create an app for your properties? 

"In March, we very quickly identified the need to digitise our customer experience, whether it was in a restaurant and it came down to ordering, online check-in or messaging, and we found in Criton the partner we were looking for. 

Even if we wanted to maintain the human connection that characterises our boutique properties, we realised that all our guests are now digitally savvy and use a smartphone so an app so a no-brainer."

What are the main advantages you felt our product offered to you and your guests? 

"The app enabled us to remove all the high touch items from our rooms, including magazines and the guest information book. By digitising everything we had the power to use one central system to be able to update a lot of technologies and a lot of information for the guests. 

We could also add to the app other services, like digital magazines, videos and games, that would enhance the overall in-room experience. With social distancing, it was quite important for us also to give our guests a platform they could use to message and speak with our staff without doing that in person. 

Developing an app also enabled us to offer online check-in and digitally capture that information about the guest that is now required for track & trace."

What do you like the most about Criton and why? 

"When we researched our technologies, we knew what we needed to achieve and for us it was ever more important to partner with companies with the right service proposition. Especially in times when we needed to lean on each other, we were looking for the support over the sale.

There were many app development companies that were available to us, but the team at Criton really benchmarked themselves above and beyond. And, in times of crisis, it was nice to develop a partnership that would benefit each other with a company like Criton."