A live camera for hotels and guesthouses

What a live view does for a hotel

Every hotel on the booking platforms has beautiful photos, and guests know photos can be edited. A live stream can be checked: it shows what is happening right now — sun or fog, a calm sea or a rough one, snow or no snow.

• A view that photos cannot prove. Mount Kazbek and Gergeti Trinity Church from Stepantsminda, the Alazani Valley and the Caucasus from Sighnaghi, the sea and the boulevard in Batumi — the guest sees it before booking.
• A reason to come back to your site. People planning a trip check the camera several times — for the weather, or simply because it is beautiful. Every time, they land on your website, next to your booking button.
• Direct bookings. People who stay on your own site often book right there, without an intermediary's commission.
• Guesthouses too. A small family guesthouse in Kazbegi, Sighnaghi or Mestia needs one camera and an ordinary website — or even just the direct viewing link to share on social media or in a messenger.

What to point the camera at

• The main view — the sea, the mountains, the valley or the old town. That is what guests come for.
• The terrace or the pool, but framed so that relaxing guests are not shown in close-up. A wide shot where the view is the subject and people are small.
• Not rooms, windows, the reception desk or staff areas.
• The best spot is often the edge of the roof or a top-floor balcony. Mount the camera firmly — a shaky picture on a windy day shows the guest nothing.

Camera, internet and settings

• Camera: 4 MP or more, outdoor, IP66/IP67. On the coast choose corrosion-resistant mounts; in the mountains, a camera rated for frost.
• Night: infrared turns the view black and white and often just lights up raindrops. For a view camera it is better to pause the stream at night with a schedule, or to choose a colour night-vision camera.
• Internet: our server connects to the camera over the internet, so you need a public IP and a forwarded RTSP port. See port forwarding. One 1080p camera needs 3–4 Mbit/s of upload.
• Keep guest Wi-Fi separate. Put the camera on a different network from your guests — they should not be able to reach it.
• Security: a separate view-only camera user, a changed default password, updated firmware. Open only the RTSP port to the outside, never the camera's web interface.
• Picture settings: turn on WDR for sea and snow scenes and choose a bitrate your upload can carry. See camera settings.

Guest privacy

Guests are on holiday and do not expect their image to be broadcast on the internet. Under Georgia's personal data protection law, the camera's area must be marked with a warning sign. Frame the view camera so faces cannot be recognised, and never point it at rooms or staff areas. More detail: CCTV law in Georgia.

Features that fit

• Logo editor: your hotel's name and logo on the video. When someone shares a screenshot of the view, your name goes with it.
• Ad link: clicking the camera name takes the viewer straight to your booking page or room list.
• Hide branding: only your brand appears in the player.
• Allowed domains: the embed code works only on your website — nobody else can put your view on theirs. See protecting a stream.
• Live switch and schedules: pause the stream at night, during renovation or in the closed season.
• WordPress plugin: many hotel sites run on WordPress — add the camera with one shortcode. See WordPress plugin.
• H.265 cameras are converted for the browser automatically: H.265 in the browser.

How to start

1. Create an account.
2. Add the camera — address, port, view-only user and stream path. Don't know the RTSP link? See how to find the RTSP URL, or the Hikvision and Dahua guides.
3. Run the connection test and check the picture.
4. Embed the player on your home page or next to the booking form: embedding on a website.

No camera yet, or no cable to the best viewpoint? NEWTECH comes on site, chooses and mounts the camera and starts the stream. Phone: +995 577 79 53 77.