Category: Recent News

Advertising can make or break a destination’s reputation. A well-designed advertising campaign that captures travellers’ imagination can transform an overlooked location into a tourism hotspot. Conversely, a poorly executed ad can discourage visitors and damage a destination’s image for good. Thanks to Professor Mimi Li of the School of Hotel and Tourism Management (SHTM) at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) and co-authors, we now know more about one of the most important metrics of advertising effectiveness: emotions. Using cutting-edge electroencephalogram technology, they reveal how children’s emotional responses to tourism ads fluctuate in real time. Their findings will help destination marketers to design more effective and emotionally resonant advertisements.

In a world shaped by unprecedented technological advancement, the hospitality sector finds itself at a fascinating intersection of tradition and transformation. At this crossroads, the food system – a sector shaped by human connection and culture – is undergoing a revolution of its own. As AI, climate change and shifting consumer values redefine the rules of engagement, it’s becoming increasingly clear that the transformation we need will not come from isolated breakthroughs, but from radical collaboration.

CBRE expects 2025 U.S. RevPAR to grow 2% given the outlook for mid-single-digit increases in inbound international visitation, modest increases in group demand and a slight improvement in business travel. Margins and profits likely will decline as expenses outpace total revenue growth.

Lighthouse, the leading commercial platform for the travel and hospitality industry, today announced the acquisition of The Hotels Network, the leader in marketing personalization technology that drives direct channel growth for hotels. The acquisition will combine Lighthouse’s commercial intelligence platform with AI-driven marketing technology from The Hotels Network.

As a candidate for UN Tourism Secretary-General, Harry Theoharis is a strong advocate and reaffirmed his call for launching a Global Tourism Fund and explained why UN Tourism, under his leadership, will be in the best position to manage it.

Today the guest journey largely occurs online, from research, inquiry, booking, and even the check-in and check-out experience can occur digitally. With so much happening digitally, hotels need to maximize their customer channels as much as possible. One of the most powerful channels for hotels to invest in is guest feedback, both online guest reviews, and additional feedback collection mechanisms.

[Amsterdam, 16th April 2025] – Mews, the operating system for hospitality, is launching Multicurrency. This new feature, which is now available for customers in Europe, helps Mews achieve its vision of creating new revenue streams for hotels – all while enabling a world-class payment experience for guests.

[Danbury, Conn., April 16, 2025] — Meyer Jabara Hotels and Pappas Hotels have teamed to acquire the Courtyard by Marriott Clemson in South Carolina, the only upscale franchised hotel in the market with Clemson University just 1.4 miles away. Renovations to the select service hotel will begin this summer and will include replacement of all softgoods and flooring, a makeover to The Bistro and lobby, and an expansion of the meeting space to incorporate lobby areas for meetings and receptions.

What does it mean to be truly guest-centric? For decades or longer, the hospitality industry has talked about guest experience as a top priority. But when you look under the hood of many of the systems and metrics that hoteliers rely on, the focus is on rooms and reservations.

SAN DIEGO, CA – April 15, 2025 – Cloudbeds, the innovative leader in hospitality management technology, today announced the launch of Cloudbeds Labs, a dedicated innovation hub, created to accelerate the industry’s transition to AI-driven operations. The new division debuts with two breakthrough solutions powered by Cloudbeds Intelligence – Signals and Engage – that mark the company’s bold step toward building the hospitality sector’s unified AI layer.