The first fully "smart hotel" has opened its doors in New Zealand, and true to its name you're going to need a smart phone to get in.
The $15 million mi-pad hotel in the heart of Queenstrown is a six-storey, 57 room, new hotel its makers describe as "the ultimate marriage of technology, sustainability, comfort and convenience".
What distinguishes the smart hotel is that most administrative and logistic functions with your stay will be made via your smart phone.
Guests booking their stay download the hotel’s personal app "mia" and their smartphone then becomes a room key.
This means that the traditional physical check-ins and check outs are a thing of the past.
The mia app also enabling guests to set temperatures and mood lighting in their room, request room service, or notify hotel staff they don’t want to be disturbed.
Access to the hotel is available 24/7 thanks to the technology.
The mia app then serves as a kind of "personal digital concierge", say its makers MIPAD Holdings, delivering the latest information on events, activities or offers in Queenstown.
The mi-pad hotel was conceived by Queenstown property developer Lewis Gdanitz and is the product of three years of work, and 15 years of travelling research.
Mi-pad hotel manager Kylie Hogan has 20 years' experience in international resort management, and says she hasn't seen anything like this before.
"We're offering an innovative, connected hotel experience for smart travellers who'd prefer to spend their hard-earned dollars on experiences rather than pay over the odds for accommodation," she says.
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