Category: Recent News

A stunning 7,000sqm rooftop public park, accessed by an outdoor staircase, is the signature feature of the 550-room The Social Hub Belfiore, opening in Florence’s San Jacopino neighbourhood in February. With an impressive 80,000sqm of total space, the hub will feature coworking for more than 600 people and facilities which include restaurants, bars, meetings and event spaces, a rooftop Olympic-length pool, and a public commercial avenue to help local businesses thrive. Near the historic city centre and great transport links, the modern structure will become a hub of innovation and creativity for locals, businesspeople, students, and visitors to the area and wider city.

A recent Shiji Buzz webinar tackled a question central to the hotel industry: Is the dream of a seamless, fully integrated hotel tech stack slipping out of reach as complexity grows? As more technology enters hotels, the tech stack becomes an unmanageable labyrinth. Integration, data security, and system management have become significant pain points for hoteliers. This discussion, moderated by Daniel Craig from Reknown and joined by Nikkie Singh from Shiji, Howard Phung from Pro-Invest Group, and Terence Ronson from Pertlink, discusses the current state of the hotel tech stack—its triumphs and deepening challenges—and offers a glimpse into the industry’s possible future.

The 11,000sqm, 310-room The Social Hub Porto will be located in Bonjardim, in the heart of the northern Portuguese city’s cosmopolitan city centre, within easy walking distance from Avenida dos Aliados and the Bolhão Market. Indeed, its position close to the University of Porto and the city’s thriving creative business district will make it a significant addition to the community. Indoor and outdoor features include a rooftop bar & pool, extensive food & drink options, coworking facilities complete with a media studio, and meeting & event spaces. A first for The Social Hub, the location will also offer 39 fully equipped residential apartments of up to two bedrooms for long-stay rent.

The 24,000sqm, 392-room The Social Hub Rome, slated to open in the Italian capital’s San Lorenzo area in March. It is designed to be ’a city within a city’, providing a ’destination venue’ embodying the spirit of the historic Ex-Dogana (railway customs house) which was located on the grounds. With three main structures, these include a new, contemporary main building alongside refurbished spaces now housing the Accademia Italiana and an outdoor-indoor event venue. Other standout facilities include a rooftop bar and pool with a view over the Eternal City, restaurants, a modern coworking space for 160 people and meeting & event spaces. The contemporary architectural style is designed to bring further life to an area known for its thriving university life and creative arts scene. A 10.000sqm public park connecting the spaces will be the hub’s showstopper.

Mews, the industry-leading hospitality cloud, now provides over 1,650 properties with its integrated multi-space management software, Mews Spaces. Over 1 million reservations in the industry have been booked via Mews Spaces, for co-working spaces, desks, day beds and more, creating more than €300 million in additional revenue for hoteliers.

When it comes to building impactful yet innovative businesses in the gastronomic industry, partnerships are essential. For food related ventures such as Thought For Food, Gustu, and Comida para Todos collaboration with diverse stakeholders—whether local communities, governments, or international organizations—has been key to their success. These partnerships not only help scale their operations but also amplify their social impact through innovative business models.

Read the latest interview with Journal des Palaces.

The Center for Hospitality Research at The Cornell Peter and Stephanie Nolan School of Hotel Administration in the SC Johnson College of Business at Cornell University hosted annual Sustainability Roundtables in fall 2022 and 2023. In many ways, the two sessions were part of an essential conversation. For the 2022 roundtable, participants were back on campus and in person for the first time since 2019. With the most severe public health concerns of the Covid-19 pandemic in the rear view, participants were excited to return to Ithaca and embrace the core element of hospitality—gathering together. In contrast, the 2023 roundtable represented the other side of the communications coin—namely, to remove barriers to give people voice through virtual participation.

Blackstone acquires Grand Hyatt Athens from Hines and Henderson Park, Blackstone acquires Sunprime Miramare and Alexander The Great hotels in Greece, London Choice Apartments acquires The Royal Hotel, Ventnor, UK from Bailey.

Like most things in life, the travel industry has been through many evolutions. If we go back as far as 1758, the first known travel agency was founded when Richard Cox became the official travel agent of the British Royal Armed Forces. Almost a century later (1841), Thomas Cook opened the first leisure travel agency, and by 1845, he launched his first commercial packaged tour. The creation of travel agencies was, undeniably, a revolutionary moment in the history of the tourism industry; for many generations, these agencies were wholly responsible for making travel plans (and dream vacations) a reality. During this time, the path to booking was relatively linear and simplified – if you wanted to book a trip, you contacted your travel agent, shared your needs and preferences, and let them work their magic.