In hotels, the difference between a good stay and a great one often isn’t flawless execution. It’s emotional resonance. Guests rarely remember a seamless check-in or a perfectly folded towel. They remember how they felt.  

That was the central theme of the session, “Experience: Perfection or Perception?” at Service 2026, where hospitality leaders explored the tension between operational excellence and emotional impact. 

Service is an annual event, held at Brewdog Waterloo, by HT360 partner Tech on Toast. Featuring Eljesa Saciri, General Manager of The Mandrake, Stephen Nash, General Manager of The Other House Covent Garden, and Paul Spencer, CEO of Kula, a platform offering flex-term serviced apartments; and moderated by Jo Morgan, an adviser to Tech on Toast, the panel sought  to unpack what truly drives loyalty in 2026 and beyond. 

The consensus was nuanced. Operational excellence is essential. It builds trust and credibility. But perception, how the experience feels, is what creates advocacy, repeat stays and brand love. As one speaker put it, no one ever fell in love with a QR code. 

The conversation echoed the wider mission of Hospitality Tech360 to connect hospitality innovators with operators focused on growth, efficiency and guest satisfaction. 

Personalisation cannot be prescribed 

A standout theme was personalisation. Not the over-engineered, data-heavy version. The human one. 

True personalisation, Eljesa Saciri argued, comes from trust and freedom. Define the brand’s guardrails clearly. Outline what must never happen. Then allow teams to bring their own personality to interactions.  

When you trust your team, they create the moments you could never plan in a boardroom. The spontaneous gesture. The thoughtful remark. The unexpected delight. That is what guests talk about. 

Technology should disappear 

Paul Spencer reinforced a powerful point: technology is an enabler. It becomes visible only when it fails. 

Guests expect Wi-Fi to work. Payments to be seamless. Streaming to connect instantly. These are hygiene factors. When they work, they are invisible. When they don’t, they dominate the memory of the stay. 

The role of AI and automation is to remove friction, not to replace hospitality. The challenge is ensuring that tech elevates experience rather than stripping out humanity. 

Foundation first. Then feeling. 

At the end of the session, panelists were asked to choose between operational perfection and emotional perception. The answer was layered. Stephen Nash argued that operational excellence is the foundation. Without it, emotion cannot scale. But once the basics are secure, leaders must lean into feeling. 

Get the fundamentals right. Then create moments that matter. 

---

We are looking forward to bringing the community together again at Hospitality Tech360 on 30 March - 01 April. Secure your free trade pass and join us there.