HotelChatter

You don’t even have to log onto the Indigo’s Twitter (@HotelIndigoSD). Guests can log on to Twitter using their own handles, and their posts will still stream live to the TV monitor, as will any responses from their personal networks. Plus, any Twitters that include the hotel’s handle are also streamed live in the lobby. That way, everyone around benefits from the local wisdom.

Assuming the sushi query goes well, or if guests do their own recon by using one of the iPads to surf online and find a restaurant for themselves, the Indigo’s concierges can then use the devices to make instant online reservations, standing side by side with the guests rather than behind a cold, impersonal desk.

We have to admit: the iPad didn’t revolutionize the way we experienced the hotel, but it was definitely exciting just getting to play around with an actual iPad, so we’re going to go ahead and applaud the Indigo (and its parent company Intercontinental Hotels) for pioneering the use of this new technology. It might just overtake the Indigo’s Canine Cocktails as our favorite amenity at the hotel.

If you want stroke one of the Indigo’s iPads for yourself, rates at the hotel start at $120.