Roatel sets new standards with fully digital micro-hotels

The future of hospitality begins where others have not yet looked: along Europe's highways. This is precisely where Roatel steps in, with an innovative niche concept, offering comfortable and affordable accommodation along the major transport routes. The name Roatel, a blend of ‘Road’ and ‘Hotel,’ thereby encapsulates the original vision of providing convenient, cost-effective overnight stays along Europe’s key highways.

What started in 2019 as a solution for the legally mandated rest periods for truck drivers has long since evolved into a smart accommodation option for anyone on the move, whether it’s business travellers, or holidaymakers. Each micro-hotel typically features four self-sufficient, digitally controlled rooms, offering 7.5 m² of compact, comfortable space, fully operable without on-site staff. With centralised digital management, these hotels can scale efficiently. Today, Roatel operates 29 locations with a total of 115 rooms, including those run by franchise partners.

The founders, Ralf-Peter Kals, Chairman of the Supervisory Board and Managing Director, Christian Theisen, Board Member and Managing Director, and Martin Swart, the COO and Board Member, have been committed to automation, digital excellence, speed, and Apaleo as their technological foundation from the very beginning. Along with Stella Hormeß, Social Media Marketing Manager at Völker Digital, Christian and Martin shared valuable insights into their journey with Apaleo, detailing how they strategically leverage the API-first platform to successfully shape and scale their innovative niche concept.

Challenge: Industry outsiders with a hotel tech ambition

At the time of founding, Ralf-Peter, Christian, and Martin faced the challenge of familiarising themselves with the established processes of running a hotel. Their goal was to find a partner offering a PMS that could fully digitise complex hotel processes. At the same time, the system needed to be flexible enough to support the specific needs of their innovative niche concept.

This meant they had to, for example, determine how to process bookings efficiently and fully digitally, how to create a seamless guest journey, and how to support housekeeping processes through digital solutions. One particular challenge in managing bookings was the billing of the city tax. In contrast to many hotels, which handle the city tax manually on-site, Roatel was unable to manage this process manually due to their fully digital operation and lack of on-site staff. As a result, the micro-hotels needed an automated, compliant alternative solution.

Solution: Apaleo as the PMS, tailored automation through open APIs

With Apaleo, the founders found the perfect PMS provider. The open platform now serves as the reliable back-end for Roatel, enabling them to automate processes precisely and exactly as needed. Thanks to the open APIs, Roatel's development team was thereby able to create a customised front-end solution that seamlessly integrates with Apaleo, allowing it to pull the necessary data directly from the platform.

”Our front-end solution is already quite comprehensive, but the APIs at Apaleo are truly outstanding. It's something you can’t help but appreciate,” Christian explained.

Result: Seamless digitalisation of processes & rollout within 24 hours

Apaleo enables Roatel to seamlessly digitise and automate all core processes. While operational housekeeping tasks are managed directly through the hotels front-end, payments are automatically and efficiently processed via the integrated payment service, Apaleo Pay.

The booking of the city tax is also directly handled within Apaleo and automatically added to reservations. The city tax amount is thereby calculated and billed accurately according to the set criteria. From an accounting perspective, the process is neatly organised as well, with the city tax being posted to a separate account, ensuring it does not affect revenue. Overall, this streamlined approach offers a clear advantage for an efficient, digital booking process, without the need for on-site staff or manual intervention.

“With Apaleo, we have found our partner, with whom we can effectively tackle challenges and successfully implement solutions,” Christian added.

This partnership also shines through in the rollout process. Today, each new micro-hotel can be set up and go live in under 24 hours, from physical construction to the system setup.

Challenge: Designing a fully digital guest journey without manual intervention

From day one, Ralf-Peter, Christian, and Martin aimed to provide their guests with a fully digital and seamless journey, from the first booking step to check-out. To achieve this, all processes had to be efficiently automated. This included, for example, booking and invoice delivery, as well as the digital provision of keys.

Solution: High level of automation with real-time processes

Through Apaleo, Roatel was able to realise a fully digital guest journey, where all processes are seamlessly interconnected. Bookings are now made not only through OTAs but also directly via their own front-end, which is in continuous communication with Apaleo. Availability, location queries, and booking data are managed internally through Apaleo and made available in real time. Billing, including the prepayment immediately after booking, as well as invoice data, are efficiently processed through Apaleo and in combination with Apaleo Pay. The entire check-in process, including pre-check-in, key provisioning, and digital registration forms, is then managed via the front-end.

Ultimately, all guest journey processes are connected in real time, fully automated, and run entirely without manual intervention.

“The way it works now is exactly how we envisioned it,” Christian said.

Result: 100% digital guest journey, bookings made a year in advance

Thanks to the fully digital guest journey, guests can now book their stay anytime, day or night, completing their reservations quickly and effortlessly. Unlike bookings made through OTAs, which can be delayed by missing or incorrect email addresses, Roatel’s direct booking process operates seamlessly. The custom-developed front-end thereby ensures an uninterrupted experience, giving guests immediate access to their digital check-in key.

This completely digitised guest journey has also been highly praised by guests. They particularly value the flexibility offered by features, such as the digital check-in for late arrivals, as well as the seamless and intuitive user experience. Overall, guests benefit from an end-to-end smooth journey that not only boosts satisfaction but also measurably enhances the overall guest journey, leading to bookings up to a year in advance.

Outlook: International expansion and new AI-based tech solutions

With clear growth objectives in mind, Ralf-Peter, Christian, and Martin plan to open additional international locations starting next year. Apaleo will thus continue to serve as the stable technological foundation, providing Roatel with the flexibility and scalability required for this next phase of expansion.

A central driver in this expansion is Roatel’s franchise model. When the first franchise partner was integrated around two years ago, Apaleo enabled a smooth technical connection without burdening the franchisee with unnecessary complexity. At the same time, contractual terms were quickly and efficiently resolved, ensuring a seamless onboarding process.

Building on this strong foundation, the founders are also exploring the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI), particularly to enhance guest communication. Their goal is to further optimise processes and make guest interactions even more efficient, taking full advantage of the fully digital foundation already in place.

“Apaleo gives us the stable foundation we need to keep building and improving our front-end,” Martin added.