Owners of electric vehicles already choose differently. In tourism and hospitality, the charging station is becoming a service similar to what Wi-Fi or air conditioning used to be.
Years ago it was a nice additional benefit, but today more and more guests expect it already when booking. Especially those who come on the road with an electric vehicle.
At first glance, it appears to be a technical detail. The parking space is also equipped with the possibility of charging. But there is much more going on behind the scenes. Electric mobility changes the habits of people on the road, and together with them, the criteria by which they choose accommodation, a restaurant or a place to stop.
Owners of hotels, apartments, tourist farms and restaurants are therefore increasingly thinking about a question that almost no one asked a few years ago. Can the bottling plant affect the business result?
The answer is closely related to how electric vehicle drivers travel today. If until recently it was self-evident that fuel should be filled on the way, the logic changes slightly with electric vehicles. A large number of users want to charge their vehicle when they are not using it. While sleeping in a hotel, during dinner in an inn, during a visit to the wellness center or during a morning meeting. Charging thus becomes part of their schedule and not a separate chore.
Guest behavior is already changing. A survey by the Electromaps platform showed that more than half of electric vehicle drivers check whether the chosen accommodation has the possibility of charging before booking. Research in the hotel industry also finds similar findings. A British survey of electric vehicle drivers by SMS plc found that almost half of respondents would not choose a hotel without a charging station on site, and two-thirds said that the ability to charge affects their choice of accommodation.
Owners of electric vehicles are already planning their routes differently than they did a few years ago. When choosing accommodation or a stopover, they are also interested in things they hadn’t thought about before. PHOTO: Depositphotos
Platforms for booking accommodation are also observing similar trends. One of the world’s largest accommodation search platforms reports that the number of searches for accommodation with the possibility of charging electric vehicles increased by more than 80 percent in one year. Due to the rapidly growing interest, it even offered hosts programs to facilitate the installation of charging stations.
Such numbers are not only interesting for large hotel chains. Perhaps they concern smaller providers even more, who build a competitive advantage with additional services and a more personal experience. When a guest chooses between several similar accommodations, the charging option can decide where to book a vacation.
This is an important shift for tourism providers. Electric vehicles are no longer a specialty. In many European markets, they are becoming a normal part of traffic, and along with them, the expectations of guests are also changing. Just as today no one specifically checks whether a hotel has Internet access, in the coming years more and more visitors will expect the possibility of charging their vehicle as a matter of course.
A charging station rarely makes a profit only by selling electricity
Owners of accommodation and catering facilities may wonder whether the investment makes sense at all, if the income from the sold electricity is not particularly high. But at the filling station, you have to look wider. Direct charging revenue is just one element. A much greater role is played by the impact on reservations, greater visibility of the offer and additional spending by guests who decide to visit because of the bottling plant.
How much can one charging station bring?
Let’s imagine a small apartment house with four apartments and one charging station for electric vehicles. If each apartment is occupied about 120 days a year, this means a total of about 480 nights sold.
It is a simplified calculation, as the actual results depend on occupancy, length of stay and the charging method. If we assume that every fifth guest arrives with an electric vehicle, this means approximately 96 charges per year. With an average charge of 25 kWh and a price of about 0.40 euros per kWh, the annual income from charging would amount to around 960 euros.
The direct income from the sold electricity is not negligible, but it often represents only a small part of the total benefit.
A completely different picture emerges with reservations. If the top-up option convinces only five additional guests per year and the average value of the reservation is 250 euros, this means approximately 1,250 euros in additional revenue.
The real value of the charging station is therefore hidden in higher occupancy, better visibility and additional consumption by guests and not only in the sale of electricity.
Such calculations are, of course, purely illustrative, but they clearly show where the business logic of the investment lies. Charging station it does not create maximum value by itself. Its biggest advantage is that it influences the guest’s decision, which applies to hotels, apartments, tourist farms and also to campsites. In any case, this service can increase the attractiveness of the offer and eliminate one of the reasons why the guest would choose another location.
The guest stays longer and often spends more
A similar logic applies to catering providers. A guest who stops during the journey to fill up the vehicle does not usually wait next to the vehicle. Use the time for lunch, coffee, a meeting or a short rest.
Research summarized by one of the motorcycle magazines showed that drivers tend to visit nearby restaurants, shops and other services while charging. This is a great opportunity for local companies, which is especially interesting for the catering industry. The owner of a restaurant next to a busy regional road will find it difficult to justify the investment with only the electricity sold. The picture changes, however, if the filling station attracts a few extra visitors every day who order lunch or a drink from it.
It does not necessarily have to be a large number of users. Even a few extra guests a day can mean a significant part of the revenue on an annual basis. A similar effect is seen in wellness centers, sports facilities, shopping centers and other activities where visitors spend more time. Charging the vehicle becomes an accompanying service that makes everyday life easier for the visitor and helps the provider to increase the visit.
For many providers, the charging station can be one of the first steps in this direction. Not because of the electricity sold, but because of the guests, who will make it easier for them to decide to visit. PHOTO: MOON
A new point on electric mobility maps
In recent years, a new way of searching for tourist offers has also been developed. Owners of electric vehicles plan routes using specialized applications and maps, where they search for available charging stations. Accommodation or a restaurant with its own charging station thus becomes visible to users who otherwise might not even notice it. Signing up to e-mobility maps and platforms opens the door for providers to new groups of guests.
Specialized portals dedicated exclusively to accommodation with charging stations for electric vehicles are also appearing across Europe. Their growth shows that electric mobility is increasingly influencing tourist decisions. Just as someone checks the distance from the ski resort, the proximity to the beach or the possibility of parking, more and more guests also check the charging infrastructure, which is why the charging station is becoming part of the basic offer.
When the charging station becomes part of the energy system
In Europe, more and more accommodations include charging as standard guest services. PHOTO: MOON
When companies decide to invest, another question quickly arises. How charging station be included in the wider energy picture of the building? Electric mobility is closely related to the way energy is produced and consumed. That is why more and more facility owners are opting for a comprehensive approach that connects the charging infrastructure, solar power plant, energy saver and smart spending management.
This is especially important in facilities with a larger number of visitors. A hotel, apartment complex or tourist farm may need one or two charging points today, but significantly more in a few years.
If the system is not planned thoughtfully, growth in needs can bring additional costs and limitations. However, if the energy design is prepared for the long term, later upgrading is significantly easier, which is why many companies are no longer considering the purchase of an individual charging station, but the entire energy system.
Energy produced on the roof can charge guests’ vehicles
Tourist facilities often have one interesting advantage, namely large roof areas that can be used to generate electricity. A hotel, apartment house or tourist farm can s solar power plant it produces a significant part of the energy for its operation, and a part of the produced electricity is also used to charge guests’ vehicles.
Such a connection is becoming more and more interesting, especially due to the seasonal nature of tourism. In summer, when there is the most solar radiation, there are usually also the most guests. Energy production and consumption therefore often complement each other. Part of the electricity is used to operate the facility, part to prepare hot water, air conditioning or other systems, and part to charge vehicles.
If the system is supplemented with an energy storage device, the generated electricity can also be used later, when the solar power plants are no longer producing. Such an approach enables better utilization of the produced energy and reduces dependence on the network.
The MOON brand: from a charging station to a complete energy solution
PHOTO: MOON
It is in this area that it works brand MOONwhich under the aegis Porsche Slovenia develops energy solutions for companies and individuals.
The MOON brand is a reliable provider of charging stations, and their offer also includes solar power plants, electricity storage systems, charging infrastructure and energy consumption management systems. It allows users to plan the energy system as a connected whole. For companies, such an approach is often significantly more transparent. Instead of coordinating various contractors and individual solutions, they can plan the entire project in one place. Brand MOON in doing so, it provides consulting, planning, equipment supply, installation and post-project support, which is especially suitable for business users who want long-term reliable system operation.
Such a comprehensive solution can be particularly useful in tourism. The charging station, the solar power plant and the energy storage are not separate investments. An important part of the offer is also energy management systems that monitor the production, consumption and charging of vehicles and help optimize the operation of the entire system. This makes energy management more transparent, and decisions about future investments easier.
Today an advantage, tomorrow the expected standard
The solar power plant can allocate part of the energy for the facility’s operation to charging guests’ vehicles, which improves the use of its own electricity production. PHOTO: MOON
The number of electric vehicles in Europe is growing, and the expectations of guests are changing along with it. Some services were an additional benefit years ago, but today visitors take them as part of the basic offer. Chargers for electric vehicles follow a similar path.
For tourism and hospitality providers, the decision to set up a bottling plant is therefore becoming part of the development of the offer. Some see it as an opportunity for additional bookings, others as a way of attracting new visitors, others as part of a wider energy renovation of the facility. The common point of all these decisions is the understanding that guest habits are changing.
The customer of the advertising content is Porsche Slovenia
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