In December 2025, Iñigo Valenzuela, CEO of Smartvel, participated in Hospitality Technology’s HT Talks Tech series, where he shared his vision of how technology is helping hotels evolve from simple places to stay into authentic centers of guest experiences.
During the interview, Iñigo analyzes one of the main challenges facing the hotel sector: the lack of integration between Property Management Systems (PMS) and other internal and external services. Unlike the airline industry, where systems are highly standardized, technological fragmentation in hotels makes it difficult to offer consistent and seamless experiences throughout the guest journey.
The article delves into the importance of naturally integrating complementary services (restaurants, spas, or local experiences) into the customer journey. When these offerings are well connected technologically and aligned with the hotel brand, they not only improve guest satisfaction but also drive additional revenue.
Iñigo also highlights the key role of personalization based on structured data, emphasizing the need to generate relevant experiences without being invasive. Small details, such as food preferences or travel habits, can make a difference when managed with confidence and respect for privacy, relying on the correct feeding of CRM systems.
Regarding the use of artificial intelligence, the CEO of Smartvel points out its impact on both revenue optimization, especially in pricing and distribution strategies, and operational efficiency. The use of language models for internal processes, such as translation and content adaptation, allows hotels to scale operations, maintain consistency, and free up resources for tasks of greater human value.
The interview concludes by focusing on intelligent automation, understood not as a replacement for personal service, but as a tool to eliminate manual tasks that do not add direct value to the guest. According to Iñigo, the future of hospitality lies in finding the balance between technology, efficiency, and the human component that defines a memorable experience.
If you want to read more about the interview, visit
