Hotels should copy the airline check-in feature.  Rooms should have a QR code scanner so you can hold your phone up to the scanner to get in.  If you don't want to use your phone, you can print a room key at home on your printer or you can use a kiosk like they have at the airport to print on in the lobby of the hotel. A guest could go curb to bed without stopping to check in or out.

These would be available 24/7 and the kiosk would push upsells on available rooms so it would increase revenue for the hotel (for example, checking in late during the slow season, the hotel could upgrade the guest for a nominal fee).

This doesn't need to replace humans, they can still be at the desk for guests that insist a human does it for them.  The desk attendant will just have a kiosk behind the desk and do the same thing as the guest could do on their own, but with a personal touch.

The kiosk could also have tourist information, which businesses would buy advertising space.  Potentially, the kiosk could also buy train tickets and print the train pass with directions on the paper how to get to the station.