You can now use AirPlay to cast movies, shows, music, Fitness+ workouts, Arcade games, photo slideshows, and more from your iPhone to hotel TVs. AirPlay functionality is currently limited to about 60 IHG hotels with LG TVs, though it will expand to other locations “in the coming months.”
This has been a year in the making. Apple initially announced its plan to bring AirPlay to hotels at the 2023 Worldwide Developers Conference. I’m not sure why it took Apple so long to get this right, but Google’s version of AirPlay, called Chromecast, is currently featured in hundreds of hotels—Apple is somewhat late to the game.
Technically speaking, the LG smart TVs in IHG hotels already support AirPlay. Hotels simply disable this functionality because of AirPlay’s wireless pairing process—you wouldn’t want a stranger connecting to the TV in your room, and so on. In this new implementation, Apple has nixed the wireless pairing process in favor of an on-screen QR code.
To use AirPlay on a compatible hotel TV, scan the QR code on the TV’s home screen. Each QR code is unique to its hotel room and rests upon checkout. Apple claims that all information shared to a TV over AirPlay is inaccessible to hotel staff or other guests.
Also, you aren’t limited to a single device connection. A family can connect all of their Apple devices to a supported hotel TV over AirPlay, as the QR code will show up every time the TV goes back to its home screen.
Note that AirPlay connectivity in hotels requires an iPhone X or later running at least iOS 17.3. You can also use an iPad, so long as you have one that’s capable of running the 17.3 update. Some AirPlay functionality, such as Apple Arcade games and Fitness+ workouts, require additional subscriptions (you may already have these subscriptions through the Apple One bundle).
You can view a full list of AirPlay-supported IGH hotels at the IGH website. For reference, IGH owns Holiday Inn, Avid, and Staybridge Suites, among many other chains and resorts. Most of these hotels are located in the United States, though some are in Canada and Mexico.
