NEWS

A Waldorf = Astoria Collection property now secured with SALTO

“...the very best in hospitality simply because we are a Waldorf Hotel” - Lynne Sienon, Corporate Director of Loss Prevention for Hilton Hotels Corporation.

The Dakota Mountain Lodge & Spa, the latest property in the Waldorf = Astoria Collection has selected Salto Systems RFID Networked locking system to secure their upscale guest rooms. Surrounded by great skiing, golf, fishing and hiking, the Dakota Mountain Lodge is a premier resort that requires unique security applications for their guests.

“Our clientele expects the very best simply because we are a Waldorf Hotel,” says Lynne Sienon, the Corporate Director of Loss Prevention for Hilton Hotels Corporation, “and this is also true for their safety and security. Salto Systems meets those expectations and gives us that security guarantee.”

The difference in the Salto locking system is obvious at first glance. First, the lock utilizes an RFID reader as opposed to the traditional magnetic card hotel lock. This eliminates the demagnetized or damaged key issues that guests sometimes experience with a traditional hotel key card. The guest simply presents their key to the door lock and it opens.

Second, and not so obvious, is that the locks are networked through wall readers called “Hot-Spots.” These Hot-Spots capture data that is traveling on the key cards and archives it in the computer. This gives the property the ability to cancel users, change access privileges and store audit trail information automatically from their desk without having to visit the locks.

“The fact that valuable data and access control can be accomplished remotely allows the property to increase security, simplify personnel management and reduce the number of hours needed to maintain the system,” says Lynne Sienon. “These features, along with the enhancements to the guest’s experience, make Salto Systems a perfect fit for our resort”.

In addition, putting this technology in place now, places Hilton Hotels in front of the competition, leading the way for technological advancements in upcoming NFC technology that will be in all cell phones in the next two years and incorporating this technology into HHonors awards program allowing seamless online booking via the Hilton website and check in options. This will be an added value to the overall guest experience expected at a Waldorf=Astoria Hotel. This property will be the only totally keyless building in the Hilton family of brands inventory to include all back of house locks.

About Waldorf = Astoria Collection

In 1932 Conrad N. Hilton wrote “The Greatest of Them All” onto a photograph of The Waldorf Astoria in New York City. It was his dream to own this hotel and include it in his restigious collection of hotels. In 1949 he realized his dream and extended his version of “the light and warmth of hospitality” to the legendary New York landmark. Today, the hotel is the inspiration for the distinctive hotels of The Waldorf Astoria Collection where discovery and unique experiences are inherent in some of the most desirable destinations around the world.

William Waldorf Astor, heir to John Jacob Astor III, built the original 13-story Waldorf Hotel on the site of his Fifth Avenue mansion. Opened in 1893, the Waldorf immediately became the gathering place for the world’s wealthy and society’s elite. Four years later, Waldorf’s cousin, John Jacob Astor IV built the adjacent 17-story Astoria Hotel. Separate, yet equivalent in grandeur and prestige, both The Waldorf and The Astoria were designed by acclaimed architect, Henry Hardenbergh, who in an act of great foresight added a three-hundred-foot-long marble corridor connecting the two hotels. This corridor, built to connect the two buildings, became an enduring symbol of the combined Waldorf and Astoria hotels - it is represented by the “=” in The Waldorf=Astoria.

Each celebrated hotel joining the Waldorf = Astoria Collection retains their name while adding The Waldorf = Astoria Collection designation as a mark of their exclusivity.

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