Celebrating 5 Wins: Hospitality Technology Visionary Awards

Over the past five years, Hapi has partnered with some of the world’s most forward-thinking hotel brands to reimagine what loyalty and guest experience can be. Each award win has told a story of innovation, collaboration, and the power of connected data. Here’s a snapshot of our journey through five milestones.

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🌟 2022 – Hyatt: Redefining the Digital Guest Journey

When Hyatt set out to make the guest experience more seamless, the challenge was clear: how do you bring real-time personalization into the palm of a guest’s hand? By integrating digital keys and connected data, Hyatt transformed check-in from a transaction into a moment of convenience and delight. 

This bold move earned the 2022 Hospitality Technology Visionary Customer-Facing Award, proving that innovation isn’t just about technology – it’s about trust and ease. And with Hapi powering the integration, Hyatt showed how data can turn everyday interactions into memorable guest experiences.

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🌟 2023 – Sonesta: Loyalty Reimagined

After a series of major acquisitions, Sonesta faced a complex data challenge: with 1,200 properties and 17 brands running on 16 separate PMS systems, the company needed real-time access to reservation and guest information. To solve it, Sonesta partnered with Hapi to extract and normalize data from each PMS and deliver it in a single stream to Sonesta’s new in-house customer data platform (CDP).

That CDP became the foundation for Sonesta’s award-winning loyalty program, enabling the brand to restructure guest recognition across all properties and streamline operations from the C-suite to the front desk. In November 2023, Sonesta received the Hospitality Technology Visionary Product Innovation Award, a recognition of how data integration and a unified guest view can transform loyalty into a truly personal experience.

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🌟 2024 – Nemacolin Resort: Partnership in Action

Luxury resorts thrive on personalization, and Nemacolin wanted every guest touchpoint to feel curated. Partnering with Hapi, they enhanced their CRM solution and built a connected ecosystem where data flowed seamlessly across departments, creating unified guest profiles that staff could act on in real time.

This collaboration wasn’t just a project – it was a partnership that won the 2024 Hospitality Technology Visionary Partnership Award, highlighting how shared vision can elevate guest experiences to new heights. With insights into guest preferences, Nemacolin’s team could prepare for VIP arrivals or tailor services before check-in, proving that when technology and hospitality align, the result is a guest journey that feels effortless and extraordinary.

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🌟 2024 – SH Hotels (Starwood): Marketing with Meaning

The former SH Hotels & Resorts, since rebranded to Starwood, was honored with the Hotel Visionary Award for Sales & Marketing, recognizing its innovative approach to unifying guest profiles across its portfolio. Working with Hapi, the brand tackled challenges like data silos, duplicate records, and underutilized guest information by integrating multiple systems into a single, accurate golden record of each guest. 

The rollout of the Hapi Guest Focus App gave staff immediate access to rich, consolidated profiles, enabling personalized service in real time. This award highlights SH Hotels’ commitment to raising the bar for guest experience and its leadership in hospitality technology innovation.

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🌟 2025 – IHG: Elevating Guest Experience at Scale

IHG was honored with the 2025 Hospitality Technology Visionary Guest Experience Award, recognizing its innovative work in delivering a seamless, contactless digital checkout across its global portfolio. Developed in partnership with Hapi, the initiative streamlined guest interactions, eased front desk congestion, and delivered the seamless mobile experience travelers expect.

With more than 6,800 properties worldwide, IHG overcame the complexity of multiple PMS platforms and regional requirements by leveraging Hapi’s cloud-native architecture. The rollout has already reached thousands of hotels, achieving a 97% success rate for digital checkouts and setting a new standard for guest journeys. This award highlights how IHG and Hapi together simplified one of hospitality’s most complex processes to create a smoother, more consistent experience for guests everywhere.

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Looking Ahead

Four years, five awards, and countless stories of innovation. Each win reflects a shared commitment to moving hospitality beyond programs and into ecosystems – where every touchpoint is an opportunity to delight. As we celebrate these milestones, we look forward to the next chapter in redefining loyalty and guest experience together.

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