In today's hyper-connected world, a hotel stay is no longer merely about a comfortable bed and great customer service. It’s become an extension of guests' digital lives, where seamless internet connectivity is now as fundamental as clean sheets or a hot shower.
We recently travelled through Southern Europe on a family holiday. We arrived with a backpack full of devices - smartphones, MacBooks, iPads, and wearables - all demanding a robust and reliable internet connection. What we discovered was that Wi-Fi has transitioned from a luxury amenity to a foundational utility, directly impacting guest satisfaction, online reputation, and, ultimately, a hotel's profitability.
The shift in how Wi-Fi is perceived by hotel guests represents a fundamental change in hospitality infrastructure. Poor performance is no longer a minor inconvenience but a perceived failure. If you’ve ever experienced a 3-year old’s meltdown from them being unable to watch the next episode of Paw Patrol because the Wi-Fi isn’t working, you know exactly what I mean.
This change has totally redefined how hotel operators must approach budgeting and maintaining their Wi-Fi networks.
Wi-Fi: The Non-Negotiable Amenity for Today's Guests
Modern travellers view Wi-Fi not as an added bonus, but as an indispensable expectation and a must-have for attracting and retaining guests.
The People Have Spoken
A 2025 survey revealed by Spectrum Enterprise that a remarkable 92% of guests expect free, high quality Wi-Fi as a standard amenity, with 65% ranking it among their top three hotel priorities.
A 2025 Amadeus report based on surveying 6,000 global travellers revealed during the booking phase, 38% believe free Wi-Fi a significant factor when choosing accommodation. That ranks a close second behind the 48% of travellers that consider complimentary breakfast as the most significant factor.
Digital Lifestyles: The Driving Force of Demand
The rise of remote work has profoundly impacted the expectations of business travellers, who now rely heavily on hotel Wi-Fi as an extension of their office. Like my husband, these guests utilise the Wi-Fi for essential work-related tasks, participating in video meetings, and maintaining connectivity with their colleagues and customers while on the road.
Holiday travellers are equally digitally dependent, but for different purposes. Whether it's binge-watching a favourite show or instantly sharing holiday photos with friends and family, guests expect uninterrupted connectivity for their entertainment and social needs.
A hotel's strategy must move beyond offering basic Wi-Fi. Hotels must now provide Great Wi-Fi that’s tailored to the specific needs of these critical segments, who are increasingly influential in booking decisions and sharing online reviews.
What is Great Hotel Wi-Fi?
When you break it down, we believe great Wi-Fi is about ensuring guests can perform their desired activities online without frustration or interruption in all areas of a hotel.
Speed Benchmarks for Common Guest Activities
To provide a truly high quality experience, hotels must understand the specific speed requirements for the most demanding guest internet activities.
Video streaming is the most speed intensive application on a Wi-Fi network, and nearly everyone streams their entertainment these days. increasingly popular 4K video streaming, platforms like Netflix recommend at least 15 Mbps per user. Achieving smooth, buffer-free streaming demands a fast Wi-Fi connection.
Video calling is the most demanding application. It requires robust download speeds but also sufficient upload speeds and low latency. For high-definition video calls, Cisco recommends an upload speed of at least 3 Mbps per call is preferable. Guests won't forgive a dropped Webex or Zoom call.
That might not seem very high. But when you multiply these requirements by the number of guests staying at your property at the same time, the total capacity required is actually quite significant.
The Reliability Factor: Seamless Connectivity
Reliability is as crucial as, if not more important than, raw speed. Frequent disconnections or spotty service are major pain points that can quickly lead to guest dissatisfaction.
Most of the hotels we stayed at during our summer holiday had great Wi-Fi. But there were a few hotels that suffered from pretty bad Wi-Fi. At one point, my husband pushed for us to check-out early as the Wi-Fi was “totally unusable” as it kept dropping out, interrupting his work video calls.
Coverage, Coverage, Coverage!
A hotel can have the fastest and most reliable Wi-Fi in the lobby. But if that Wi-Fi doesn't extend into the guest rooms, pool area, restaurant, gym, then it isn’t very useful to guests. Guests expect to be able to watch Netflix in their rooms and also on their child’s iPad in the restaurant.
Not that we would ever let our young child watch Netflix at dinner so that his parents could enjoy 20 minutes of silence!
The ROI of Great Wi-Fi: Boosting Your Hotel's Bottom Line
Investing in great Wi-Fi yields significant returns, directly contributing to a hotel's profitability and long-term success.
Enhanced Guest Satisfaction and Online Visibility
Hotels that consistently offer fast and reliable Wi-Fi show higher guest satisfaction ratings. You can see that in the reviews left by travellers on booking.com and TripAdvisor. Great Wi-Fi helps create a great guest experience, making them more likely to return for future stays and recommend the hotel to others.
In a fiercely competitive market, great Wi-Fi can be a pivotal differentiator. Hotels that prominently highlight "Free WiFi" in their Google My Business listings observe a boost in click-through rates.
Increased Revenue Opportunities
Great hotel Wi-Fi directly contributes to increased revenue streams. A 2025 survey of the hotels we work with across Australia revealed that the Wi-Fi experience they offer their guests has resulted in an average of 12% higher per-guest spending, which they believe is attributed to connected guests being more inclined to linger in their pool areas, restaurants or bars longer.
An example is Accor's free Wi-Fi rollout across its properties in 2024, which resulted in a 10% increase in in-hotel dining revenue, also attributed to guests spending more time working or socialising on-site.
Invest in Great Wi-Fi, Invest in Your Future
In 2025, free hotel Wi-Fi is undeniably a key driver of guest satisfaction and booking success. It’s evolved far beyond a basic amenity to become a critical utility and a strategic asset that underpins the entire guest experience - directly impacting a hotel's financial performance.
Great Wi-Fi isn't just a nice to have service; it's the key to winning guests' hearts and wallets. To thrive in the increasingly digital age, hotels of all sizes must prioritise and continually optimise their Wi-Fi infrastructure.
By investing in great Wi-Fi, you’re not just providing an expected service to your guests - you’re making a crucial investment in online reputation, fostering guest loyalty, increasing room occupancy, and ultimately driving revenue growth.
To find out more about how Calystro can help deliver great Wi-Fi for your guests, please reach out to our team. We’re experienced in building and operating great hotel Wi-Fi and we’d love to discuss how we can help you.
Want to learn more?
Our team is available to help. Reach out and we can discuss how Calystro can help you achieve your business goals.
