Hotel Wanderer offers explorers who choose to "wander" in search of beautiful places a restful haven. Wanderer is located at the foot of Sighișoara Fortress, in a building over 300 years old, which previously housed a pastry laboratory.
Cristina Szocs, the current owner and manager, recognized the historical value of the building and purchased it in 2015, renovating and expanding it to give it new life.
The name ("Wanderer" means "wanderer" in both German and English) refers to the history of the Saxon town of Sighișoara, which has hosted many Germans throughout history. The Wanderer team wanted the hotel to tell the story of the place from the very beginning.
The building already had its own identity, so the Wanderer team preserved all the rustic wooden elements, combining them with modern and digital elements, from air conditioning to multimedia, to harmoniously blend the past and the future.
The 12 available rooms for tourists, the restaurant, the terrace, the wine cellar, and the event space have been furnished and equipped maintaining this balance for the maximum comfort of guests.
Cristina already had experience in the HoReCa industry, but her interest in entrepreneurship grew with the intensification of tourism in Sighișoara, when she realized that the city had great potential due to its old and beautiful buildings that deserved to be better showcased.
Business Challenges
From the opening of the business, the Wanderer team wanted to have cutting-edge technology that was very accessible to everyone, not just at the room level but also for the booking system, hotel, and restaurant.
On one hand, they wanted to create a good image and offer a digital experience to their clients, and on the other hand, they needed a unified way of working in the hotel and restaurant, making a single platform necessary for the entire operation.
Additionally, the management team needed online access from any location, without being tied to the office or a specific PC.
Cristina also knew that many hotels working manually face significant overbooking problems caused by simple data entry mistakes. Therefore, she aimed to avoid such situations from the start and learn from the experiences of others.
Wanderer used Pynbooking from the very beginning, based on recommendations from industry contacts who were already successfully using this platform.
Solution
The initial setup of the platform went smoothly and quickly, with support from the Pynbooking team.
Currently, Hotel Wanderer uses Pynbooking PMS (Property Management System) integrated with Channel Manager and Booking Engine for hotel management, while for restaurant administration, it uses POS Restaurant.
The Channel Manager is used for synchronizing partner online booking platforms.
"Channel Manager helped us with the extensive list of online partners already integrated into Pynbooking. Although Booking.com is the most well-known, there are others, such as Expedia, which bring significant opportunities and attract many foreign tourists," said Cristina Szocs, owner and manager of Hotel Wanderer.
With the implementation of Pynbooking, the Wanderer team also installed smart locks, allowing the transition to online reception and mobile check-in through the Pynbooking Guest APP.
For managing the restaurant and cellar, Wanderer uses Pynbooking POS Restaurant.
The platform allows for detailed stock management, generating consumption slips, procurement orders, stock management, and handling restaurant bills and invoices.
From POS Restaurant, the data is exported to accounting. A digital environment was also defined via a QR code, which coexists with printed versions. Similarly, orders are taken both on mobile phones and traditionally on paper, depending on the waitstaff's level of digitalization.
Benefits
With the help of Pynbooking Guest APP, Hotel Wanderer managed to eliminate the night shift in the Reception area, saving the equivalent of two salaries. Currently, after 11:00 PM, the hotel operates without a physical reception.
Additionally, the ease of use of the Pynbooking platform allows even waitstaff to take over reception duties in special situations.
"Although many people prefer physical reception, the online reception, which allows guests to access the hotel with a code, helps us after 11:00 PM when we don’t have staff present. We’ve managed to eliminate the night shift, thus saving at least 2 salaries. On the hotel side, this is an important saving. Moreover, the software is easy to use, so almost anyone can take care of the reception, even a waiter, if necessary," added Cristina Szocs, owner and manager of Wanderer.
Key benefits of using Pynbooking for Hotel Wanderer in Sighișoara include:
- Centralized management of all booking sources: Directing bookings coming through the phone to Pynbooking, eliminating manual interventions and errors.
- Increase in direct bookings: Thanks to Pricing Plans. Wanderer sets these differently on their own website compared to partner platforms, creating a differentiator. The hotel uses Pynbooking to define a profitable pricing policy and run marketing campaigns. Currently, the hotel has achieved a 40% direct booking rate.
- Lengthening guest stays with the help of the Channel Manager’s Rate Optimizer:
"We modify prices and pricing plans according to the season and events taking place in the city, adjusting them manually. The Rate Optimizer helps us keep guests for more nights, thus increasing the length of their stay, as Sighișoara is not yet a long-stay destination. With Pynbooking, we manage to secure 3-4 day bookings, while on Booking.com the average is 1-2 nights," said Cristina Szocs.
- Automatic communication with guests: Using the Guest APP, Wanderer automatically sends booking confirmation emails to guests.
- Digital menu with QR codes for rooms via POS Restaurant.
- Access to managerial reports from Pynbooking: The reports are extremely detailed for the hotel area, providing comparisons between months and years, which is very helpful for the Wanderer team. These include all operational reports such as bookings on channels, direct bookings, and performance indicators. This allows efficient monitoring of individual bookings and those made through their website.
- Automatic invoice management through PMS: Pynbooking allows for managing invoices both for the hotel and restaurant, without needing a dedicated invoicing solution. Additionally, through integration with e-Factura, invoices are sent directly to ANAF’s SPV, simplifying the administrative process.
- Mobility, flexibility, and operational efficiency: Pynbooking is a 100% cloud platform, which allows for online access and management of the hotel from any mobile device, regardless of location.
"The mobility provided by Pynbooking is a huge benefit for me. I frequently use the platform on my phone and work a lot remotely. Quick access from any device, just by changing login details, eliminates the need for a dedicated device or additional software installation. Pynbooking is like an employee and partner that helps me with everything I do. I save time to focus on other activities and can work remotely. I save time and money," concluded Cristina Szocs, owner and manager of Wanderer.
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