Case Study

More revenue, less time at the desk: what a Guest App changes in daily hotel operations

Katja Weinmüller

Gastfreund · September 02, 2026

MADRIGALE, a family-run 4-star superior hotel above Lake Garda, launched the Gastfreund Guest App under its own name as "MAD Vibes", available in the App Store and Google Play. Guests open it before arrival and use it throughout the stay: 12,862 accesses a month, 87 hours of front-desk time saved and 554 printouts avoided.

Why it matters: Most hotels that care about their brand accept a gap: the property is styled down to the last detail, and the digital touchpoint looks like everyone else's. MADRIGALE closed that gap by running the Guest App as a standalone app under its own name, so the digital channel carries the same identity as the hotel. The effect goes beyond appearance. Guests arrive already informed, routine questions no longer reach the desk, and services became bookable at any hour.

In practice: after booking, guests receive a link to MAD Vibes and can look at the hotel, the region and the offers in advance. During the stay, the app holds all information on the restaurant, spa, bar, bike hire and shuttle, multilingual and available around the clock, and services such as massages, table reservations and bike hire can be booked at any hour rather than only during reception hours. The Hotel Newspaper, branded MAD News, reaches guests at the breakfast table with offers, events and excursion tips, with a QR code leading back into the app. After departure, chat, push notifications and feedback keep the hotel in contact.

Top 3 Core Objectives: MADRIGALE wanted its digital guest experience to match the standard of the property itself, take routine questions off the front desk and make services bookable outside reception hours.

Sell around the clock: Massages, table reservations and bike hire could only be booked while reception was staffed. Guests who wanted to book in the evening or on impulse had no way to do so.
Free up the front: Shuttle times, opening hours and table reservations were asked and answered minute after minute. That time was missing from personal contact with guests.
Replace weekly printing: Seasonal programme changes, daily events and current recommendations were produced and distributed by hand every week, on paper.

"We used to answer the same questions every day: shuttle times, spa opening hours, table reservations and so on. Since Gastfreund has been in place, our guests can find this information themselves at any time. That gives us time for what really matters: personal care."

Manuela Pellegrini

Reservation Manager

👍 Reservation Manager Manuela Pellegrini said that the same questions no longer reach the desk, which leaves time for personal care:

"We used to answer the same questions every day: shuttle times, spa opening hours, table reservations and so on. Since Gastfreund has been in place, our guests can find this information themselves at any time. That gives us time for what really matters: personal care."

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

Owner Francesco Tondini said, about their decision: "MADRIGALE lives through its atmosphere, and MAD Vibes brings that atmosphere to our guests' smartphones from the very first moment. For us as a family, it matters that the app doesn't look like a standard app, it looks like our hotel."

📈 The results: The app has become the hotel's central guest channel rather than an add-on. Guests use it heavily, book services outside reception hours, and the team spends less of the day repeating the same answers.

12,862 Guest App accesses per month, with 12.7 interactions per session.
87 hours of front-desk time saved per month, as routine questions are answered in the app around the clock.
554 printouts saved per month, covering the guest A–Z, weekly programme, events and excursion tips.