Concierge Software Services for Hotels and Serviced Apartments
Concierge software that gets the front desk off the phone.
Front desks spend half their day fielding calls that guests could handle themselves: wake-up calls, extra towels, taxi bookings, restaurant reservations. The staff answers the same questions on repeat, and requests logged on paper or WhatsApp have no audit trail. International guests with language barriers add another layer of friction on both sides.
We build custom digital concierge apps for hotels, resorts, and serviced apartments. Guests submit requests, track status, and communicate with staff from a mobile app or in-room tablet. Operations teams get a full request log, routing to the right department, and real-time visibility across the property. Integrated with Mews, Opera, Apaleo, and other PMS platforms. Multi-language support included.
Guests self-serve room service, housekeeping, taxi bookings, and wake-up calls without calling the front desk.
Every request is logged, routed, and tracked, no paper slips, no WhatsApp threads.
Multi-language support removes the communication barrier for international guests.
PMS integration with Mews, Opera, and Apaleo syncs guest profiles and room data automatically.
Every request runs on an SLA clock, so nothing sits unassigned past its response target.
Shipping hospitality platforms since 2015, in production across the US, UK, and Ireland.
Bring the problem, the current workflow, or the existing code. We reply with a practical next step within one business day.
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The brief
Start with what is not working.
Good software decisions begin with the constraint, not a list of features or a preferred technology.
Front desk staff fielding the same calls all day for services guests could request themselves?
No way to know which guest requests are outstanding, in progress, or missed?
International guests struggling to communicate needs due to language barriers?
Plain answer
RaftLabs builds custom concierge software for hotels, resorts, and serviced apartments. Guests request services, track status against an SLA, and message staff from a mobile app or in-room tablet. The software integrates with Mews, Opera, Apaleo, and Cloudbeds, with multi-language support. A first module is scoped after discovery and delivered at a fixed price.
What to remember
- A validated concierge-app v1 for hotels and serviced apartments is scoped after discovery and delivered at a fixed price.
- A first module is built first; a full multi-property platform is added in phases over time.
- Every guest request runs on a response and resolution SLA, routed to the department or vendor that owns it.
- Integrates with Mews, Opera, Apaleo, and Cloudbeds; custom PMS integration available for other platforms.
- City Break Apartments reached 72+ weekly self check-ins, up 7x, after the guest self-service app launched.
The front desk phone that never stops ringing for towels.
It's 9pm and the front desk is on the phone: an extra pillow to 412, a taxi booked for 6am, the spa hours, a dinner reservation. Every request lands as a note on a paper slip or a WhatsApp thread nobody can search later.
A guest who doesn't speak the receptionist's language gives up and waits until morning. Another calls twice because no one confirmed the first request ever went through.
Now the same guest opens an app, taps extra towels, picks their language, and watches the status move from received to on the way. The request is logged, routed to housekeeping, and timestamped.
The front desk is free for the arrival walking through the door.
Oracle Hospitality's consumer research found that 73% of travellers want to run their whole stay from their phone: check-in and check-out, ordering food, and asking for service. When a property still funnels those taps through the front desk, the gap between what a guest expects and what they get is where review scores slip. Move the routine requests into an app and the desk stops answering the same questions all evening.
At City Break Apartments in Dublin, the guest self-service platform we built now handles 72+ weekly self check-ins, up from fewer than 10 a week before launch. RaftLabs has shipped hospitality platforms since 2015, in production across the US, UK, and Ireland. The team that scopes your concierge app is the team that ships it, and the price is locked in writing before any development starts.
Proof
- weekly self check-ins through a guest self-service app RaftLabs built for City Break Apartments
- 72+
- RaftLabs, City Break Apartments
- growth in self check-ins after launch, up from fewer than 10 a week
- 7x
- RaftLabs, City Break Apartments
- of travellers want to run their whole stay from their phone, including service requests
- 73%
- Oracle Hospitality consumer research
A concierge app pays off when routine requests already flood the front desk.
Everything on the left should already be true for your property. Even one thing on the right, and a lighter fix is the smarter first step.
A hotel, resort, or serviced apartment where the front desk fields the same routine requests all day, on paper or WhatsApp.
You run a PMS like Mews, Opera, Apaleo, or Cloudbeds and want guest profiles and room data to flow into the app automatically.
International guests hit language barriers today that your staff work around by hand.
A single small property where the front desk handles request volume comfortably by phone.
You want an off-the-shelf app with no PMS integration and no custom routing.
You need in-room tablet hardware procured and mounted, not the software that runs on it.
The first decision is not what to build.
It is whether software is the right answer at all. We use four possible recommendations before discussing a development scope.
Buy
Run the build-vs-buy numbersChoose a maintained product when it handles the core guest service operations workflow and the remaining gaps can be solved with configuration, a connector, or a small process change. Paying for software you do not have to maintain is often the better trade.
Repair
Keep the existing product when users still get value from it and the code can be understood safely. Start with evidence: where the code lives, how the data is organized, what is tested, which outside services it depends on, who can access what, and how updates go live.
Build
Own the system when guest service operations shape margin, customer experience, speed, or a product customers pay for. Start with one complete path and the system connections that path cannot work without.
Wait
Do not turn a changing policy into permanent software. Stabilise the rules, name the workflow owner, and measure the cost of the current process before paying for a product.
Not sure which path is yours? Bring it to a 30-minute call. Leave with the answer in writing.
What we build
Concierge app capabilities
Service request management
Guests submit room service orders, housekeeping requests, maintenance reports, wake-up calls, and extra amenity requests from their device. Each request routes to the right department queue and updates in real time.
In-app messaging
Two-way chat between guests and staff. Guests ask questions, make special requests, and get answers without calling the front desk. Staff reply from the web-based operations dashboard.
Restaurant and spa booking
Guests browse availability and book restaurant slots, spa appointments, and activity sessions directly in the app. Bookings sync to your reservation system or appear in the staff dashboard for confirmation.
SLA clocks and escalation
Each request category carries a response and resolution target. A request that passes its target escalates to a duty manager, so a 6am taxi never sits unseen in a queue. Managers see which categories breach most.
Off-property vendor network
Requests that leave the property, taxis, restaurants, tours, florists, route to the partner who fulfils them, not just an internal queue. Vendors confirm or decline, and the guest sees the same live status.
In-app payments and folio posting
Chargeable requests (room service, paid transport, spa upgrades) are paid by card in the app or posted to the room folio through the PMS. No separate terminal trip, no cash handling at the door.
Returning-guest tiers
Recognise repeat and loyalty-tier guests on arrival and surface the perks they are owed, priority routing, welcome amenities, late checkout, without staff looking anyone up by hand.
Push notifications
Request status updates sent automatically to guests: confirmed, in progress, complete. Proactive alerts for check-in readiness, welcome messages, and checkout reminders.
Multi-language support
Guest interface available in any language. Request categories, menu items, and system messages managed from the admin panel. Right-to-left languages supported.
PMS integration
Guest profiles, room assignments, and check-in status pulled from your PMS automatically. Mews, Opera, Apaleo, and Cloudbeds supported. Custom integration available for other platforms.
Operations dashboard
Web-based staff interface for managing the request queue, assigning tasks, updating status, and reviewing the full request log with timestamps and resolution times.
In-room tablet and personal device support
Kiosk mode for in-room tablets tied to the room. Personal device access via booking reference or SMS link. Both modes access the same request catalog and messaging.
Why hotels choose a custom concierge app
No more lost requests
Every request is logged with a timestamp, a department assignment, and a resolution status. Managers see the full queue at a glance and identify bottlenecks without chasing down WhatsApp threads.
Front desk freed for high-value work
Routine calls, room service orders, and towel requests are handled by the app, so staff spend less time on repeat inquiries and more time on arrivals, VIP guests, and situations that actually need a human.
International guests served without friction
Guests submit requests in their own language and staff see them in the operations language, so no bilingual staff is required for every interaction. Fewer misunderstandings, fewer follow-up calls.
Audit trail for operations
Every request carries a staff member, a timestamp, and a resolution time. Managers use the data to identify which request types take longest, which shifts have backlog, and where to focus training.
Guests feel more in control
Guests dislike waiting on hold and repeating requests to different staff members. An app that shows their request status in real time reduces anxiety and increases satisfaction scores.
Upsell and ancillary revenue
Restaurant bookings, spa slots, and add-on services surfaced in the same interface guests use to request towels. Upsell without a hard sell.
Guest data handling and GDPR scoping happen in week 1, not retrofitted before launch, drawing on hospitality platforms we have shipped for European markets including Ireland and the UK.
What is your front desk spending its day on?
Walk us through the requests your team fields most. We'll show you how a concierge app would handle them and what it takes to build.
How it works
The request-to-resolution pipeline
- Week 101
Map every request and set its SLA
We list the requests your guests actually make, from wake-up calls to spa slots, and for each one we name the department or outside vendor that owns it and the response and resolution SLA it should run on. Chargeable requests get a payment path here: card in-app or a folio post through the PMS. You leave the week with a routing matrix, an SLA table, and a fixed-price quote.
- Weeks 2-402
Wire the PMS, payment, and vendor spine
The integration layer goes in before the screens. We connect your PMS (Mews, Opera, Apaleo, Cloudbeds) for guest identity and room state, wire the payment rail for chargeable requests, and set up the vendor network so off-property requests reach the partner who fulfils them. This is tested against your PMS staging environment, not on live guests.
- Weeks 4-1103
One system for guests and staff
Guest app and staff dashboard are built as one system so routing, live chat, and SLA timers behave the same on both sides. A request carries a countdown against its target and escalates when it breaches. Returning-guest tiers and multi-language content load in here. Working app at a staging URL from sprint one, with a demo every two weeks.
- Weeks 12-1404
Pilot one property, then expand
We launch the v1 on a single property and watch the real routing and SLA data: which categories breach, where guests drop off, which vendors lag. We tune against that evidence, then roll to the rest of the estate. Staff training and guest onboarding materials are included, plus 8 weeks of post-launch support.
Scope your concierge app.
A 30-minute call to walk through your property's requests and PMS. A costed scope follows in about two business days. Fixed price, locked in writing before any development starts.
What it costs
Every project starts at $10000.
A first module is scoped after discovery and delivered at a fixed price, covering guest requests with SLA tracking.
Starting investment
Starts at $10000
The first module covers guest requests with SLA tracking, integrated with your PMS. After a 30-minute call, you get a written build, buy, repair, or wait recommendation plus first-phase direction. Free, whether or not you build with us.
Work with us
Tell us where the work is stuck.
Bring the rough workflow, half-built product, or messy brief. We will map the smallest useful first move, then send scope, timeline, and price in plain English.
- Scope and cost agreed before work starts. No surprises. No obligation.
- Working prototype within 3 weeks of kickoff.
- Pay by milestone. You see progress before each invoice.
- 60-day post-launch warranty. Bug fixes, UI tweaks, and deployment support. No retainer.
- All conversations are NDA-protected.
Common questions
A digital concierge app lets hotel and serviced apartment guests request services, ask questions, book spa or restaurant slots, and communicate with staff from a mobile app or in-room tablet, without calling the front desk. The app routes each request to the right department, tracks its status in real time, and maintains a full audit log. Multi-language support handles international guests without requiring bilingual staff for every interaction.
We integrate with the PMS platforms most commonly used in hotels and serviced apartments: Mews, Opera, Apaleo, and Cloudbeds. The app reads guest profile data, room assignments, and check-in status automatically, so staff see each request alongside the guest's profile without manual data entry. If your PMS is not on that list, we audit its API during discovery and test the integration against your PMS staging environment before go-live.
Each service request appears on an operations dashboard assigned to the relevant department. Staff acknowledge requests, update status to in progress, and mark them complete; the guest sees status changes in real time. Every request carries a timestamp, staff member, and resolution time, giving managers a full audit log. The staff-facing dashboard is web-based and works on any device.
Yes. The guest interface can display in any language you need, and request categories, menu items, and system messages are translated and maintained in the admin panel without a developer. The operations-side dashboard stays in your preferred language. We scope which languages you need in discovery and include them in the fixed-price quote.
Yes. On in-room tablets it runs as a kiosk-mode web app tied to the room, with no login required. On personal devices, guests log in with a booking reference or receive a unique link via SMS or email at check-in. Both modes access the same request catalog and messaging interface. Tablet hardware procurement and mounting is outside our scope.
Run three tests. The PMS-integration test: without PMS integration it is a chat widget, not an operating tool. The login test: core features should work before any login, and the app should never share or post without explicit action. The real-person test: a human must be reachable for anything off the standard request list.
Payments belong in the same flow as the request: secure in-app payment for concierge services and room-charge posting via PMS integration. Upsells such as room upgrades, spa, and dining are surfaced in the same interface guests already use. Measure ancillary revenue per occupied room before and after; that is the commercial justification.
Custom fits proprietary workflows, deep PMS and CRM integration, and ownable data. SaaS fits standard request-plus-upsell flows; always request a custom quote. The real question: does the app route requests to the right team with tracking and an audit trail, or just digitize the phone call?
Check three things: does the request flow into the PMS and the systems staff already use, can guests use core features before login, and is a human reachable for non-standard requests? Check multilingual support and in-room tablet support. And ask how ancillary revenue per occupied room will be measured.
We build the first module first, then expand. A v1 covers guest requests, SLA-tracked routing, in-app messaging, push notifications, one PMS integration, and a staff operations dashboard. From there, restaurant and spa booking, in-app payments, an off-property vendor network, and multi-property rollout are added in phases. You receive a fixed-price document after the first week of discovery, and the price is locked in writing before any development starts.