Category: Recent News

Holiday Inn Express & Suites has expanded its presence in Switzerland with the opening of Holiday Inn Express & Suites Sion. This new hotel, developed in partnership with Cycas Hospitality, marks the debut of the brand in Switzerland and is part of a major urban development project in the region.

Hotel experiences have become increasingly tailored. Preferences remembered, services preempted, journeys smoothed out by systems that learn as guests move. AI and data analytics make all this possible, but they also raise an unavoidable question: what’s the cost of personalization?

Recently, I wrote an article about the customer service farce. One of several examples I shared was the line we often hear when calling customer support: “Your call is very important to us.” When we hear it, we hope it’s true. We hope it means that the company is going to respect our time, that someone will pick up the call quickly (versus being put on hold for an unreasonable amount of time), and that the agent we talk to will have the knowledge and skills to answer our question or resolve our complaint, and we’ll not have to repeat our story again and again.

Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE: H) today announced plans to further strengthen its leadership position in the lifestyle hospitality segment across Europe, Africa and the Middle East (EAME), with the planned opening of 14 new lifestyle hotels by 2027.

This viewpoint explores the growing scarcity of human labor in hospitality and how automation, robotics, and AI (especially agentic) may redefine the nature of service. The paper argues that human workers could evolve into a luxury feature in an increasingly automated environment by drawing on examples from art, spirituality, and emerging workplace trends. Three potential hospitality models—technocentric, anthropocentric, and hybrid—are identified, each defined by the proportion of human labor versus agents, digital workers, synthetic or automated solutions. The findings highlight how, far from becoming obsolete, human labor may assume a premium status as personalization, authenticity, and empathy become highly sought-after commodities.

In a luxury suite overlooking Hong Kong’s vibrant skyline, a senior banking executive concludes her quarterly board meeting on Thursday afternoon. By Friday morning, she’s exploring local markets with her partner, who flew in specifically for the weekend. Once an exception, this scenario now represents a powerful trend reshaping the travel industry.

The hospitality industry faces a critical labor shortage that affects operations, service quality, and overall customer satisfaction. This growing challenge arises from a complex combination of economic, demographic, and social changes. Addressing this urgent issue is essential for stimulating the sector and ensuring the high standards of service that characterize the hospitality experience.

Mews, the leading hospitality technology platform, now serves over 12,500 customers worldwide, increasing its customer base by 85% over the last year and cementing its position as a leader in the industry’s digital transformation. As more hoteliers abandon outdated legacy systems, Mews is redefining what’s possible with cloud-native, AI-enabled automated solutions that maximize efficiency and elevate guest experiences.

As we dive into the busy year ahead, it’s a great time to revisit your hotel’s group sales solution stack and verify that it has everything necessary to elevate your event and meeting revenue possibilities.

Below is an excerpt from SiteMinder’s blog.