Easy access to Wi-Fi for quick and constant connectivity is an essential part of both business and leisure travel and is fast becoming a key factor in the choice of hotels for local and international travellers.

In its ongoing quest to create great experiences, Tsogo Sun has installed high speed quality connectivity Wi-Fi in all its hotels that is free up to a varying data limit per room per day, depending on which grade of hotel the guest is staying in.

In Tsogo Sun’s Deluxe hotels, 750MB is free per room per day to in-house guests; in Southern Sun hotels, the cap is 500MB per room per day; in Garden Court hotels, the cap is 350MB per room per day; and in StayEasy hotels, the cap is 250MB per room per day. In all the hotels, these data limits are limited to a maximum of three devices per room. The free high speed, quality connectivity Wi-Fi service was launched in Tsogo Sun hotels at the start of June 2013, setting a new Wi-Fi standard in the hospitality industry in South Africa.

“We were determined to get our Wi-Fi offering right in terms of what our guests need – whether they’re business or leisure travellers,” explains Graham Wood, Tsogo Sun hotels Managing Director. Our Wi-Fi offering is free from the first connection and we have set the cap in our different hotels at levels that would suit even the most technophilic of our guests.”

The introduction of this value-added service to Tsogo Sun guests follows extensive specification of the technical requirements of providing free Wi-Fi and the installation of an advanced system by service provider Alwayson, in the form of their Ruckus Wireless’ Wi-Fi solution. This system network offers symmetrical, high speed internet access at the majority of Tsogo Sun’s locations, built on best-of-breed equipment and infrastructure using 2.4GHz and 5Ghz channels to provide maximum capacity. This is a differentiator for Tsogo Sun as many other hotels only have asymmetrical internet access. Guests are assured of uninterrupted wireless broadband access, with high signal quality irrespective of the layout of each different hotel and the increase in mobile device access.
Says Nico Pretorius CEO of AlwaysOn, “The AlwaysOn solution at Tsogo Sun consists of more than 4 000 high performance, 802.11n dual band Smart Wi-Fi Access Points with adaptive antenna technology to ensure optimal Wi-Fi coverage and performance. The main advantages of this technology are better performance, coverage and signal quality. This, together with the high speed fibre optic (or equivalent) Internet backhaul connections, ensures that Tsogo Sun guests can enjoy superior internet access on their smartphones, tablets or laptops, throughout any Tsogo Sun hotel in South Africa.”

Hotel guests will now be able to download emails, upload presentations, surf the web, share holiday photographs, stay connected on social media and so much more – all for free. “Our absolute non-negotiable in introducing this service was that it should provide our guests with completely hassle-free and seamless Wi-Fi access that would allow them to remain connected – whether they are having a business meeting in Sandton, soaking up the sun in Durban, attending a conference in Cape Town or enjoying some downtime in Nelspruit,” adds Wood.

Source: Propertywheel