What I Can Do for You
When you call a Welcome Hotel, I'm here to help you. I can:
Check Availability
I'll check for available rooms for the dates you've requested.
Reserve a Room
I'll make the reservation directly through the hotel's system—you'll receive a confirmation.
State prices
I will provide you with information on current rates and terms.
Answer questions
Check-in times, parking, breakfast—just ask.
Transfer the call
Would you prefer to speak with a representative? No problem.
“This Is How I Work” — For Everyone
I am an artificial intelligence—that is, a computer program that can understand and respond to human language. Here, I'll explain step by step what happens when you call me.
Step 1:
You speak, I listen
When you speak, a speech recognition system converts your spoken words into written text. This is called transcription—similar to the kind of transcript you might see in meetings or court proceedings.
Important: Your voice is not recorded during this process. The audio signal is processed in real time and discarded immediately.
Step 2:
I understand your request.
The text is analyzed by what’s known as a language model. This is an AI that has been trained to understand the meaning of sentences—much like a person who reads a letter and grasps its content. This allows me to determine whether you’re looking for a room, have a question, or would like to be transferred.
Step 3:
I will respond to you.
Based on your inquiry, I will formulate an appropriate response. This response will be converted back into spoken language by a text-to-speech system—so you will hear my response over the phone.
Step 4:
I'll take care of it if you'd like.
If you'd like to make a reservation, I'll access the hotel's reservation system directly. Upon request, you'll receive a confirmation via email or text message.
“Under the Hood” — For Tech Enthusiasts
Lena is based on a modular system consisting of several specialized services:
Technical Background
Lena is based on a modular system consisting of several specialized services:
Telephony: Call answering and forwarding (Telnyx)
Speech Recognition (STT): Speech-to-text conversion (Speechmatics)
Natural Language Understanding (LLM): Analysis and response generation (Google Gemini / OpenAI)
Text-to-Speech (TTS): Conversion of text to speech (Speechmatics)
Orchestration: Control of the entire system (Codyco)
Hotel Management System (PMS): Reservations, availability (Oracle Opera)
Data flow:
Your call → Telnyx (telephony) → Speechmatics (speech → text) → Codyco (orchestration) → Google/OpenAI (language model) → Speechmatics (text → speech) → Your phone
For reservations, additionally: → Oracle Opera (hotel reservation system)
Where is the data processed?
Data processing takes place primarily on servers located within the EU. Some subcontractors are headquartered in the U.S. or the U.K. Data transfers are made in accordance with the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework (DPF) or the U.K. Adequacy Decision.
Will my data be used for AI training?
No. Your call data is used exclusively to process your request. No provider in the chain uses your data to train AI models.
Your Data — Transparent and Secure
What is processed?
We take the protection of your personal information seriously. Here you can find out exactly what information we process, why, and for how long.
Phone number
Source: Automatically transmitted
Purpose: Callback assignment, call routing
Retention period: 24 months
Transcript of a Conversation
Source: Speech recognition
Purpose: Processing your request
Duration: 90 days
Summary of the Conversation
Source: Generated automatically
Purpose: Quality assurance, tracking
Duration: 24 months
Reservation details (name, dates, room)
Source: Provided by you
Purpose: Hotel reservation
Retention period: Statutory retention periods
Call metadata (time, duration)
Source: Collected automatically
Purpose: Billing, troubleshooting
Retention period: 24 months
What is NOT stored?
- Your voice — the audio signal is processed in real time and immediately discarded
- Voice profiles or biometric data — no speaker recognition
- Location data — we don't know where you're calling from
Legal Basis:
Your data is processed based on your consent (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR). You provide this consent by pressing 1 when you call. This consent applies only to the individual phone call.
No processing without consent: If you press 0 or hang up, you will be connected directly to a representative or the call will end—without any data being processed by the AI system.
Data Controller and Subcontractors:
The data controller is the operating company of the respective hotel (brand: Welcome Hotels, a subsidiary of GHG Beteiligungs GmbH). Technical implementation is carried out by Codyco GmbH, Munich, as the data processor. Codyco uses specialized subcontractors to provide the service (see “Behind the Scenes”).
Your Rights
As a data subject, you have the following rights under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR):
- Right of Access (Art. 15)
You may find out at any time what data we have stored about you. - Right to Rectification (Art. 16)
Is any data incorrect? We will correct it. - Right to Erasure (Art. 17)
You may request that your data be erased. - Right to Restriction of Processing (Art. 18)
You may request that the processing of your data be temporarily restricted.
-
Data Portability (Art. 20)
You may receive your data in a commonly used format. -
Objection (Art. 21)
You may object to the processing of your data. -
Withdrawal of Consent
You may withdraw your consent at any time—by email, by phone, or at the front desk. This does not affect the lawfulness of the processing that has taken place up to that point.
During the call:
You can hang up at any time or say, “Please connect me to a representative”—the AI processing will then stop immediately.
After the phone call:
Please email us at:
datenschutz@welcome-hotels.com
Frequently Asked Questions
No. Your voice is not recorded. The audio signal is converted to text in real time and immediately discarded. Only the text version is saved.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is a technology that enables computers to understand human language and respond to it in a meaningful way. Lena uses what is known as a “language model”—a program that has been trained on large amounts of text to understand language. Her conversations are not used for this purpose.
Yes, anytime. Press zero when you call, or simply say, “Please connect me to a representative,” during the call.
No. You can press “0” or hang up at any time. You can also contact the hotel by email, through the website, or directly at the front desk.
Lena has access to the hotel's reservation system (PMS) and can check in real time which rooms are available for your desired dates.
Yes — Your phone number is automatically transmitted with every call and stored for up to 24 months. This is for tracking and billing purposes.
Lena is a service provided by Welcome Hotels in collaboration with Codyco GmbH, Munich. Codyco is a technology company specializing in AI for the hotel industry.
If Lena doesn't understand your request or can't help you, you'll be automatically transferred to a staff member.