Customer spotlight: Penta Hotels
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Enhancing guest interactions with KITT, the AI Receptionist
Key Results:
5,487 calls handled by KITT over a seven week period
50% of calls were handled without human interaction needed
Over the seven week period, KITT spoke 22 different languages
An average satisfactions core of 8.3/10 was achieved, based on feedback from guests who interacted with KITT
21.9% of calls ended with a booking link sent by SMS, and 57.8% of those callers clicked on the SMS link
About Penta Hotels
Penta Hotels is a global collection of stylish, design-led hotels that redefine modern hospitality with a relaxed and social atmosphere. With properties in key destinations across Europe and Asia, Penta blends contemporary comfort with a vibrant, laid-back vibe.
Penta Hotels has been partnering with Lighthouse since September 2019, continuously seeking innovative ways to enhance the guest journey and increase direct bookings —starting long before check-in. Recognizing that a great experience begins the moment a visitor lands on their website, Penta Hotels chose Lighthouse to support their mission of optimizing the direct booking experience and boosting conversion rates.
Most recently, the brand further strengthened its commitment to innovation and efficiency by introducing KITT, Lighthouse’s AI-powered receptionist. KITT now serves as the first point of contact for guests reaching out via phone to 13 Penta Hotels properties.
Through this ongoing partnership with Lighthouse, Penta Hotels continues to push the boundaries of hospitality tech, reinforcing its commitment to delivering a seamless, engaging, and personalized experience at every stage of the guest journey.
The setup
Voice-only setup
KITT, branded by Penta Hotels as “Zoe”, was designated as the first client touchpoint when a client reached out to any Google-listed Penta Hotel phone number. Each property of the brand has a redirection option to a live agent if the guest indicates they prefer to speak to a real person.
Objectives
Empower staff with more time for high-value tasks
Reduce the burden of routine calls, allowing the Penta Hotels team to focus on delivering exceptional guest experiences and handling more strategic, high-priority tasks.
Streamline non-reservation inquiries for greater efficiency
Seamlessly manage general guest inquiries—such as hotel amenities, policies, and services—so Penta Hotels staff can operate more efficiently while ensuring guests get instant, accurate responses.
Offer seamless multilingual guest support
Provide a frictionless experience for international guests by delivering real-time assistance in 30+ languages, eliminating language barriers and enhancing communication.
Boost direct bookings and revenue
Maximize every booking opportunity with 24/7 real-time support and seamless access to Penta Hotels’ availability, amenities, and special offers to boost ADR and drive ancillary revenue.
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"At first, we weren’t sure how guests would react to AI as their first point of contact, but the feedback on Zoe (KITT) has been largely positive. This transition has made a huge difference in our operations. Routine questions are now answered instantly and it's had a significant impact on both our guests and our team!"
The results
By automating routine questions, Penta Hotels freed up valuable time, allowing their team to focus on delivering personalized, high-value guest interactions.
Over the seven week period, KITT spoke 22 different languages with guests calling Penta Hotels. The top three were German, French, and English.
5,487 calls were handled by KITT over a seven week period.
50% of calls were handled without human interaction needed.
Main call topics included availability & booking (63.4%), amenities & services (14.1) and special requests (10.4%).
The bookings
With KITT, no Penta Hotels call or query goes unanswered. Guests receive seamless booking support, including a direct link to complete their reservation in just a few clicks.
This link redirects them to Penta Hotels’ booking engine, prefilled with their selected dates and number of guests—eliminating the need to re-enter details and streamlining the booking process.
By efficiently managing inquiries on availability, bookings, amenities, and special requests, KITT has freed up Penta Hotels’ staff time while ensuring a seamless guest experience. The transition to making KITT available as the first line of contact led to a key shift in how Penta Hotels was able to handle their guest interactions.
21.9% of calls ended with the booking link sent by SMS
57.8% of callers clicked on the SMS link
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The guest feedback
When Penta Hotels introduced KITT, a key concern was whether guests would feel comfortable interacting with artificial intelligence over the phone. However, this concern turned out to be unwarranted. With 50% of all calls being handled by KITT, the team at Penta Hotels was positively surprised at how receptive their calling guests already are with speaking to an AI agent.
What's more, at the end of each interaction, KITT invites Penta Hotels’ guests to leave feedback and rate the service experience. This process provides Penta Hotels with actionable insights to make informed decisions for continuous improvement. KITT received an average satisfaction score of 8.3/10, based on feedback from guests who interacted with Penta Hotels’ AI Receptionist, Zoe.
