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Roaming Check-in ("Second Screen")

Roaming check-in is the companion "second screen" experience. Instead of a fixed lobby tablet, a receptionist hands the guest a roaming device on which the guest reviews their own details, accepts the terms, and signs, while the receptionist keeps driving the arrival from the reservation in the Operations Platform. It lets the guest-facing part of check-in happen on a screen that moves with you, rather than one tied to a single kiosk or desk.

This article explains what roaming check-in is, how you enable and configure it for a property, and what the guest experiences. It is the companion to the main Configure the Check-In Flow article. The check-in steps are the same; here we cover the roaming second-screen surface they run on. For the full device setup (dedicated tablets and roaming devices, connecting and locking a device, troubleshooting), see Set Up and Manage Second Screen Devices.

This article is written for the administrator or front-desk lead who configures the check-in experience for a property.

1. Who Can Use This​

  • Configuring roaming devices happens in the Operations Platform under Settings → Second Screens. A property's devices are editable by Property Admin (property-admin) and admin. Account-level devices are editable by Account Administrator (account-admin) and admin. Property Viewer (property-viewer) and Account Viewer (account-viewer) see the devices but cannot change them.
  • Using a roaming device during an arrival is done by front-desk staff (a Host or an administrator) from the reservation: no extra setup once a device exists.

Second Screen, and therefore roaming check-in, is not available for properties running on Apaleo. For the device setup, see Set Up and Manage Second Screen Devices.

2. What Roaming Check-in Is​

A Second Screen is the LIKE MAGIC guest app running in a special, guest-facing mode on a device at reception. You stay in control from the reservation in the Operations Platform; the guest interacts on the second device: reviewing their details, choosing preferences, accepting the terms, and signing the Digital Registration Form.

There are two ways to run a second screen:

  • A dedicated device: a tablet that stays at the front desk, always ready.
  • A roaming device: your own reception screen instead of a separate tablet. When you share the current check-in step to a roaming device, it opens in a new browser tab that you hand to the guest and take back when they are done. This is the "second screen" that travels with you rather than sitting on one desk: hence roaming.

Roaming check-in is that second variant applied to arrival: a companion screen the guest fills in themselves, handed over for the guest-facing steps and taken back afterwards. It is a distinct surface for check-in: not a change to the check-in steps, which stay exactly as described in Configure the Check-In Flow.

ℹ️ Note: Roaming check-in is always staff-initiated. A team member starts each check-in from the reservation and shares the step to the roaming device. A guest completing pre-check-in unaided on their own phone before arrival is a different surface (the Digital Guest Portal), covered in Configure the Check-In Flow.

3. The Guest Experience​

From the guest's side, the roaming second screen only ever shows the current moment, never your Operations Platform, other reservations, or navigation:

  • While idle: an attract start screen with your property's background images and a QR code to your Digital Guest Journey, so a waiting guest can open the journey on their own phone.
  • During check-in: only the Digital Registration Form. The guest reviews their details, chooses their preferences, accepts the terms, and signs, in their own language.
  • After they confirm: you see a note prompting you to take the device back, rather than the screen resetting on its own.

The guest always interacts alongside your receptionist, who drives each step from the reservation so the guest is never left to navigate on their own. If no guest is active, or after a short period of inactivity, the device returns to the idle attract screen.

Language follows the guest's own selection on the device; if it looks wrong, the guest can reselect it and it will stick (see Multi-Language Support). The idle / attract content draws on your property's background images and content, so keep it current and on-brand.

4. How You Enable and Configure It​

Roaming check-in is switched on per property by creating a roaming device in the Operations Platform. This requires one of the administrator roles in section 1.

  1. Go to Settings → Second Screens and select Add Device.
  2. Turn on the Roaming switch (shown as Roaming Experience). The device name is set for you (it runs on this device, the one your Operations Platform is open on), so you only need to enter a Second Screen ID.
  3. Select Save, then Publish configuration to make the device active.

ℹ️ Note: Nothing is active until you publish. If you see a banner prompting you to publish your changes, select it.

Once published, you share to the roaming device from a reservation during check-in. It opens the current step in a new browser tab, you hand your device to the guest for the steps, take it back when they confirm, and return to the Operations Platform.

For the dedicated-tablet setup, connecting and locking a device, managing devices, and troubleshooting, use the full guide: Set Up and Manage Second Screen Devices.

5. Where It Runs​

Roaming check-in is one of the surfaces the check-in flow renders on. The three surfaces are:

  • Digital Guest Portal: the guest completes pre-check-in on their own device before arrival.
  • Self-Service Kiosk: the guest checks in at a lobby terminal, assisted where needed.
  • Second Screen: a reception-driven display during an assisted check-in, run either as a dedicated tablet or as a roaming device (this article).

The check-in steps and their per-property availability are the same across all three; only the presentation and the device differ.

Because Second Screen is not available on Apaleo, roaming check-in follows the same availability.

7. Conclusion​

Roaming check-in is the "second screen" without the extra tablet. Your team hands the guest their own reception screen to review, confirm, and sign the arrival, then takes it back, all driven from the reservation. It runs the same check-in steps as every other surface, and is switched on per property by adding a roaming device under Settings → Second Screens.

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