There is a moment at the start of every stay that we have never been fully happy with. You have travelled all day, the train has just pulled into Interlaken Ost, and before you can drop your bags there is a handover: a meeting point, a time window, a key. We built Swiss Hotel Apartments around the idea that a serviced apartment should feel like your own home with a hotel behind it. A home does not make you wait at the door.
From this week, in Interlaken, it no longer does. Guests who complete their online check-in receive their apartment key directly on their phone. Arrive at 3 pm or 3 am, walk in, tap, and you are home.
Why we did it ourselves
Most operators buy keyless entry as a package: a lock supplier, a middleware provider, a consultant to make the pieces talk to each other. We took a different route. I worked on this personally with the Mews team over the past months, because I wanted the guest journey to be designed by the people who actually run it, not assembled from parts.
Mews is the property management system behind everything we do: reservations, online check-in, payments, guest communication. The Digital Key had to live inside that same flow, not beside it. So the work was less about hardware and more about sequence: when exactly a key should exist, what has to be true before it is issued, and what the guest sees at each step.
A particular thank you to Laurence Orru, Customer Success Manager at Mews, who worked through every one of those questions with me until the flow was exactly as it should be.
The rule behind the key
A digital key is only a good idea if it is issued at the right moment. We set one rule that runs the whole system: a key is activated only when the reservation is fully paid, the apartment has been cleaned, prepared and inspected, and everything is ready for the guest. Until all three are true, no key.
That rule protects the guest more than anyone. Nobody arrives to an apartment that is not finished. Nobody is asked for a payment at the door. The key appearing on your phone is our confirmation that your home is ready.
How it works for guests
- Check your email. After booking, you receive a link to complete your online check-in in a couple of minutes: guest details, arrival time, ID, and payment if there is a balance.
- Download the Mews Digital Key app. Once your check-in is complete, your key appears in the app automatically. No codes to type, no card to collect.
- Tap and unlock. Hold your phone to the door reader. Building entrance, your apartment, done.
If you prefer a personal welcome, that has not gone anywhere. Our Interlaken team is still happy to meet you on arrival. Just tell us when you check in online.
What it changes for our team
The Digital Key removes the most time-sensitive task in our day: being at the right door at the right minute. That time goes back into the things a hotel team should be doing, from housekeeping standards to answering guest messages in seconds rather than minutes. It also makes online check-in the natural path for every guest, which means fewer surprises at arrival for everyone.
Interlaken first
The Digital Key is live now at Swiss Hotel Apartments Interlaken, 80 metres from Interlaken Ost station. Our other residences continue with a personal handover for the time being. We will extend the system property by property once each building's access and cleaning workflow is ready to carry the same rule.
If you are staying with us in Interlaken, look out for the online check-in email. Your key is waiting.
Asaad Al Taher, Founder and CEO, Swiss Hotel Apartments
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