At poolside, find phone-free zone
Wyndham Bonnet Creek rewards sunbathers without devices.
The scene around the Wyndham Grand Orlando Bonnet Creek’s pool seems typical for a warm October afternoon. Guests, young and old, are buried in their phones, checking email, texting friends or perhaps looking up movie showtimes.
But set into a little nook along the edge of the pool sits four bulky chairs, holding a white and turquoise beach ball with a message on it: “Phone Free Zone!” Alongside, a cellphone sits in a locked pouch.
The Orlando hotel is one of five in the nationwide chain testing a way to reward guests who put their phones away for a predetermined length of time such as over dinner.
“It’s become an excuse to say to the family, ‘Hey, everybody, we are going without our phones for a bit,” said Ted Zerfas, director of food and beverage at the property.
The program represents a more family-friendly way to ask people to put phones away.
Some entertainers have been more aggressive.
Comedian Chris Rock, for instance, has fans put their phones in a fabric pouch that closes magnetically for the entirety of his performance. The pouch can only be opened by tapping it on a base station.
Wyndham uses the same phone pouch, a product called Yondr, at the hotels, which include properties in Orlando, Chicago, Clearwater, Charleston and Galveston, Texas.
“Every hotel company is looking for a way to stand out,” said Deborah Breiter Terry, a professor at UCF’s Rosen College of Hospitality. “I haven’t seen any hotel promote this idea of putting away the phone because they usually encourage people to take selfies and post on Instagram. This is a smart and clever idea.”
Guests who volunteer their phones get entered into a drawing that awards the equivalent of a free five-day hotel stay every month or so.
The effort can pay off by creating loyal customers, said Lisa Checchio, Wyndham Hotels and Resorts’ chief marketing officer.
“Technology is changing the way we vacation,” she said. “Before the pull of our devices, we would never dream of wasting time on our phones instead of jumping straight into the pool.”
The approach has received mixed results so far. On a recent morning, Zerfas had some guests decline to turn over their phones.
Still, some say they can appreciate a hotel chain that encourages more in-person communication.
"It is sad that we live in a society where you have to entice people to socialize and communicate with each other," said Alex Santos, a business traveler reached by email. “I hope this works out and catches some traction."
But while Santos has hope for the program, others say it won’t work.
“Attempts to decrease society’s reliance on technology are destined for failure,” said Ryan O’Rourke, executive director of the Association of Fraternal Leadership & Values, who says he travels two to three times per month. “As a business traveler, being connected is both essential to my work and to keep in touch with family and friends while I’m on the road. I’m not likely to give that up, regardless of the perk or prize.”
As he walks around his property, from the pool to the restaurants, Zerfas tries to sell the phone program.
He sees it as another strategy to connect with guests.
“Anything you can do to have a conversation with a guest is a good thing,” he said. “You want to get that conversation started.”
Also, it could help families reconnect, Zerfas said.
“The whole point of vacation was to spend time together,” he said. “That just doesn’t happen today as much as it used to.”