Sydney, 5 June 2019 – Behind every insta-worthy holiday moment in paradise is a finely tuned technology strategy working hard in the background.
“It might not sound romantic, but for contemporary resorts, it is the truth,” says Matthew White who as Managing Director of Asia Pacific’s leading hotel tech group, McLaren Technologies, has seen the positive impact of enhanced connectivity first-hand.
McLaren’s latest project – Daydream Island Resort – is no exception, turning tragedy into opportunity for a chance to reinvent its digital framework with the future in mind.
The North Queensland resort made its much-anticipated comeback just weeks ago (15 April 2019), after being forced to temporarily close and rebuild as a result of Cyclone Debbie devastating the island in March 2017.
While the exhaustive renovation has brought reimagined architecture, restaurants and even a new Underwater Observatory to help guests better interact with the Great Barrier Reef, it’s the resort’s investment in technology that possibly represents its greatest – but least obvious – transformation.
“With adversity comes opportunity,” said Daydream Island Resort General Manager, Dawson Tang.
“In rebuilding the resort, we had an opportunity to transform the way we do business from a technology perspective. McLaren’s expertise has helped guide us through this process.”
As part of its $100 million renovation, Daydream Island Resort collaborated with the McLaren Technologies team to design and invest in a state-of-the-art guest experience system.
Mr White of McLaren said, “The physical transformation of Daydream Island is truly outstanding, however our brief was to look beyond the physical assets of the resort and invent a user-friendly technology framework that would seamlessly bring together all elements of the Daydream experience. The result is a comprehensive end-to-end system that applies to every step of the guest – and staff – journey.”
Today, guests staying in one of Daydream Island Resort’s Deluxe Rooms and Suites will find iPads and docking/charging stations in-room, with each tablet installed with the robust INTELITY hospitality technology platform.
INTELITY’s platform offers convenient self-service solutions for guests – such as ordering in-room dining, requesting housekeeping services, access to comprehensive property compendium and local information, and much more. The INTELITY platform also integrates the resort’s operational efficiencies, reporting in real time and providing data management, for an elevated guest experience.
In addition, McLaren installed a high speed internet access (HSIA) solution, to deliver a service that is consistent, reliable, and meets guests' expectations across the property.
“This is such an integral feature of any property, but even more so for one operating from a remote Whitsunday Island location,” said Mr White.
“Daydream Island’s HSIA harnesses the capabilities of Google Cloud Hosting, which is the most effective in this scenario. It is supported with hardware by Nomadix.Inc®, which is an innovative public access wireless and wired network solution and McLaren’s own Fluide web portal. Fluide is a customised internet-based management and reporting platform we’ve developed specifically for hotels given our experience and expertise with the hospitality market.”
McLaren also installed Jazzware’s cloud-based Telephony Management solution for a centralized telephony control, billing and reporting solution for the Daydream Island Resort team.
Mr White said “We felt privileged to have had an opportunity to work on bringing to life this iconic resort experience for new generations to enjoy, in a modern way. Daydream Island Resort has always been one of Australia’s most loved destinations, and now they are not only back on the tourist map, but confidently leading the way in hotel technology too.”
