Self check-in means checking in without meeting: the guest gets into the place on their own, at a time that suits them. For hosts on Airbnb and Booking.com it is no longer a luxury but an expectation. Guests filter for it, and hosts save hours of waiting and driving.
The ways to do self check-in
A lockbox. The key waits in a box with a code by the door. It is cheap, but the code often stays the same for months, the key may not come back or may be copied, and you do not know who came in when. A full comparison: Lockbox or smart lock.
A keypad lock. The guest types a code. Better than a lockbox, but the code has to be changed for every guest and can still be shared.
A key in the phone. The door has a small controller connected to the internet, and the guest gets a link that unlocks only their door and only for the days of their stay. This is what Atrino does.
How it works with Atrino
- Add your place in the app: name, address, photos and your usual check-in and check-out times.
- A controller on the door. A small relay by the electric strike or magnetic lock, connected to the place’s Wi-Fi. It is set up from the app, step by step. Which suits your door: Electric strike or magnetic lock.
- An invitation for every guest. After the booking you create an invitation for the stay and send the guest the link: in Airbnb’s or Booking.com’s messages, on Viber, WhatsApp, by SMS or email.
- The guest confirms with an SMS code sent to their phone. From check-in to check-out they unlock the door with the phone, in the Atrino app or right in the browser, without signing up.
- You see what is going on. You get a notification when the guest arrives, and every unlock is recorded.
Why it is safer than a key or a code
- Access ends on its own. The link works only until check-out. No key to return, no code to change.
- On one phone only. The link opens nothing without the SMS code sent to the guest’s phone, and works on one device only.
- Only at the place. A guest can unlock only when they are at the place, so a forwarded link opens nothing from afar.
- You know who came in when. Every unlock is recorded, and with a door sensor you also see whether the door is closed.
Does it suit my place?
If the door has an electric strike or a magnetic lock, or can get one, and the place has power and Wi-Fi, yes. It works for apartments, guest houses and rooms, for one place or many. For hotels and apartment groups: Atrino for business.
Guests need no app and no technical skills: they open a link and slide a button.