Belmond has long been synonymous with timeless elegance. From luxury trains and river cruises to landmark hotels across the globe, the brand is recognized for delivering unique experiences that combine heritage, sophistication, and attentive service. Yet even for a company celebrated for its tradition, innovation has become essential. Today’s travelers expect every detail of their journey to be effortless, including the way they pay.
To meet these evolving demands, Belmond partnered with Adyen, a global leader in payments technology. The result is a seamless, secure, and guest-centric payment experience that blends effortlessly into Belmond’s signature service style.
The Challenge
For Belmond, the essence of hospitality lies in immersion. Guests should feel cared for at every step, with nothing distracting them from the experience. But legacy payment systems were increasingly at odds with this vision:
Inconsistent across regions: Each Belmond market had unique payment preferences, but fragmented systems made it difficult to deliver consistency.
Friction for staff and guests: Outdated processes slowed down check-in and checkout, creating delays.
Data security risks: The need to tokenize credit card data and reduce risk exposure became urgent.
Limited innovation: Belmond had ideas for improving the booking and payment journey but lacked the infrastructure to bring them to life.
As Bryan Hammer, VP of IT at Belmond, explained:
“We had the challenge to tokenize credit card data in our systems. We needed a partner that could help us to tokenize all of that in an easy way and reduce our risk profile, and make us less attractive as a target for the bad guys.”
The Solution: Adyen’s Unified Payments Platform
Belmond integrated Adyen’s technology across its eligible global hotel portfolio. By collaborating closely with Adyen and PMS partner Infor, the company was able to modernize payments in ways that benefited both staff and guests.
1. Seamless check-in to checkout
Guests now enjoy frictionless payments throughout their stay. Whether booking in advance, extending their visit, or paying at departure, every transaction is consistent and effortless.
2. Proxy tokenization for security
Adyen’s expertise helped Belmond implement proxy tokenization, a first for the brand.
“We used Adyen's expertise and experience, and they helped to develop the solution and work with those partners, and more importantly, deliver it,” Hammer said.
“Working with Adyen helped us to deliver on proxy tokenization. This was new, so we leaned a lot on Adyen's experience and resources. It gave us a comfortable feeling. It reassured us. And we trusted Adyen to help guide us through this.”
3. Streamlined staff workflows
Integrating with Infor’s PMS and Adyen simplified daily operations.
As Santi Roggio, Head Concierge at Grand Hotel Timeo, A Belmond Hotel, shared:
“Since our integration with Adyen and PMS partner Infor, our day-to-day tasks have become easier and have freed up more time for staff to focus on guests. The staff have more time. The guests have more time. Everyone is happy.”
Results and Impact
The measurable results of Belmond’s partnership with Adyen demonstrate the value of treating payments as part of the guest journey:
90 percent conversion rate across Belmond properties.
100 percent of the eligible hotel portfolio integrated with Adyen.
+4.2 percent uplift in Net Promoter Score (NPS), showing a direct link between seamless payments and guest satisfaction.
Hammer highlighted the impact:
“We know that over the last 12 month period, we've had more than a 90 percent conversion rate in our properties using Adyen, and those are numbers that we've never had visibility on before.”
He also emphasized how the partnership has raised the bar internally:
“Our customer experience and the operational efficiencies at Belmond are so much better now because of this tight ecosystem of the partners. It's raised the bar for any new partners coming in because now we say, ‘if you want to do business with us, if you want to play in this space, you need to be integrating at the same level everybody else is.’
Why It Matters
For luxury hospitality, details define the experience. A clunky payment system, however small, can disrupt the sense of flow that brands like Belmond work so hard to cultivate.
Technology, when well-implemented, should remain invisible. Hammer summarized this perfectly:
“Technology facilitates a great hospitality experience at Belmond by being discreet and seamless. You don't always want everybody to know that the technology is prevalent and when it is there, it has to be fun or exciting or easy to use.”
By modernizing its payments approach, Belmond illustrates how payments can:
Reinforce brand promise through effortless interactions.
Increase guest trust and confidence with world-class security.
Enhance staff efficiency, ensuring service remains personal.
Deliver measurable ROI, linking technology adoption with guest satisfaction scores.
Looking Ahead
One of the most exciting aspects of the Belmond–Adyen partnership is the capacity for future innovation. With systems now in place, Belmond is poised to reimagine the booking experience.
Hammer shared his vision:
“Adyen is working with our developers. This means we can deliver on innovations that we were always thinking about before, but we were never able to deliver. So the future booking experience at Belmond, working with Adyen, is going to be amazing.”
He also spoke to the cultural fit:
“For any potential customers considering Adyen, I would say get ready for a great experience. They're a pleasure to work with. They're pleasant, they're optimistic, and they come up with solutions and ideas. It's a culture of let's work together and figure out a way of how we can do this.”
Watch the video: Discover how Belmond has enhanced its payments technology to match modern travelers' demands
Lessons for Hoteliers
This case study offers clear takeaways for other hospitality leaders:
Payments are part of the guest journey. Do not treat them as an isolated back-office process.
Global consistency plus local flexibility equals success. Guests expect their preferred payment method, wherever they are.
Security is essential. Tokenization and PCI compliance reduce risk and inspire trust.
Technology should empower staff. Freeing employees from manual processes lets them focus on guests.
Partnerships matter. Choose vendors who not only provide solutions but also collaborate closely to deliver.
Conclusion
Belmond’s collaboration with Adyen underscores a broader truth in hospitality: the best technology is invisible. When payments are seamless, secure, and supportive, they cease to be transactions and instead become part of the service itself.
By blending classical elegance with innovation, Belmond shows how luxury brands can honor their heritage while meeting the expectations of today’s digital-first travelers. For hoteliers everywhere, this case study is a reminder that the path to elevated guest experience often begins with rethinking the basics, like how guests pay.
Discover how seamless payments can transform your guest experience.
👉 Explore Adyen’s Hospitality Solutions
