How Corduroy Inn & Lodge Solved Seasonal Staffing Challenges With Canary’s Self-Service Kiosks

OPERATIONS

Corduroy Inn & Lodge, a 42-room Wyndham Trademark Collection inn atop Snowshoe Mountain, West Virginia, doesn't staff its front desk overnight. With Canary, late arrivals check in on a Self-Service Kiosk, and the team captures guest contact and payment details for every booking, including OTA reservations.

Why it matters: Small, seasonal hotels can't justify a 24/7 front desk, but they still need every guest's contact information, a card on file for incidentals and a smooth arrival. Corduroy shows how self-service check-in and guest messaging can cover staffing gaps without adding headcount.

Corduroy uses Canary's Mobile Check-In to collect guest contact details before arrival (even for OTA bookings), Self-Service Kiosks to check in after-hours guests and securely store cards for incidentals, Guest Messaging to text pre-arrival and departure instructions, and Dynamic Upsells to let guests reserve early check-in and late checkout in advance.

Top 3 Core Objectives: Corduroy needed a reliable way to check in after-hours guests, capture contact and payment details from OTA bookings, and keep travelers informed without a 24/7 front desk.

Reach OTA guests: OTA reservations arrived without real contact details, so the team couldn’t send lockbox codes before the desk closed and had to wait for guests to call on arrival.
Cover after-hours arrivals: With the front desk closing as early as 4 p.m. in off-seasons, the inn needed a secure way to check in guests and get cards on file for incidentals and taxes.
Guarantee early check-in: With only 42 rooms, last-minute early check-in and late checkout requests were hard to accommodate, creating friction for guests.

Innovators Mentioned

Corduroy Inn & Lodge

Canary Technologies

David Billings

Owner

Corduroy Inn & Lodge

"Because we're only 42 rooms, it just doesn't make financial sense to staff a front desk 24/7. But we had no way to get cards for incidentals and taxes from OTA guests unless we were able to catch them the next day. Canary lets us make sure we have all the info we legally need."

David Billings

Owner

👍 Owner David Billings said that Canary's kiosks let Corduroy capture payment and guest details after hours without staffing the front desk 24/7.:

"Because we're only 42 rooms, it just doesn't make financial sense to staff a front desk 24/7. But we had no way to get cards for incidentals and taxes from OTA guests unless we were able to catch them the next day. Canary lets us make sure we have all the info we legally need."

⚖️ The selection process: During their research process, David Billings evaluated Canary Technologies's product differentiators, customer support, and holistic value as a strategic partner and ultimately decided that Canary Technologies was the best fit solution:

Owner David Billings said, about their decision: "Since OTA reservations didn't give us contact information, we couldn't get them the lockbox code before the front desk closed for the night. That meant we would have to wait for them to call whenever they did arrive. With Canary's Mobile Check-In, we get their information every time."

📈 The results: Corduroy now captures contact and payment information from every guest, checks in after-hours arrivals on Self-Service Kiosks and guarantees early check-in for guests who reserve it, all without staffing the desk 24/7.

Mobile Check-In collects contact details from every guest, including OTA bookings, so staff can send pre-arrival instructions before the desk closes.
After-hours guests check in on a Self-Service Kiosk, so cards for incidentals and taxes are stored compliantly instead of chased down the next day.
Guests reserve early check-in and late checkout through Dynamic Upsells, letting housekeeping prioritize their rooms so they’re ready on arrival.