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Development Pipeline

ITC Hotels signs Welcomhotel Dehradun Selaqui, strengthens presence in Uttarakhand

ITC Hotels Limited, which draws on over five decades of legacy in Indian hospitality, today announced the signing of a management agreement for Welcomhotel Dehradun Selaqui, a 117-key hotel that will further strengthen the company's footprint in Uttarakhand and expand the presence of the Welcomhotel brand in North India. The second Welcomhotel signing in Dehradun reinforces ITCHL’s asset right strategy, enhancing brand footprint in business and leisure destinations.

WelcomHotels
Selakui, India
Development Opening

The Hon. Natalie Suleyman MP Minister for Tourism marks official opening of Crowne Plaza Melbourne Carlton

The Hon. Natalie Suleyman MP, Minister for Tourism, was joined by Melbourne Lord Mayor Nicholas Reece, Member for Melbourne Sarah Whitty MP, Matt Tripolone, IHG Hotels & Resorts Managing Director Australasia & Pacific, and Ross Pelligra, Founder and Director of Pelligra Group, at a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the official opening of Crowne Plaza Melbourne Carlton.

Crowne Plaza
Carlton, Australia
Hotel Yearbook Article The Hotel Yearbook 2026 - Technology Edition

The Ethics of the Traveler: Responsibility in an Intelligent Ecosystem

Jonathan MacDonald reframes the post-stay phase (typically dismissed as administrative afterthought) as the moment where the ethical stakes of AI-mediated travel become most visible. Once a guest checks out, their experience dissolves into data, and the central question becomes not what they remember, but who owns the narrative, and on what terms.

Jonathan MacDonald
By Jonathan MacDonald, Founder, SELF
Development Opening

Hilton Debuts Lifestyle Portfolio in India with Opening of Slohh by Roach Bengaluru, Curio Collection by Hilton

Hilton (NYSE: HLT) today announced the opening of Slohh by Roach in Bengaluru, marking the debut of Curio Collection by Hilton and Hilton's first lifestyle hotel in India. Located in Whitefield, one of Bengaluru's key business and technology corridors, the 221-key hotel is developed in partnership with Roach Lifescapes, a Bengaluru-based boutique real estate brand. Slohh by Roach introduces a design-forward, locally rooted experience that blends culture, community, and contemporary living.

Curio – A Collection by Hilton
Bengaluru, India
Hotel Yearbook Article The Hotel Yearbook 2026 - Technology Edition

Panem, Circenses, and Prompt Engineering: What Ancient Rome Already Knew About AI

Andrzej Wajda traces the AI revolution back to Antiquity, arguing that what we call automation today is structurally indistinguishable from what ancient Romans achieved through slavery — and that Aristotle essentially predicted it. The real lesson for hospitality, he contends, is not technological but perennial: if you cannot manage people and operations well today, no tool, ancient or artificial, will save you.

Andrzej Mateusz Wajda
By Andrzej Mateusz Wajda, Hospitality consultant & Sociologist, Wajda Hotel Consulting
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Development Rebranding

The Leela Unveils The Leela Coorg Forest Sanctuary

The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts, India's only pure-play luxury hospitality brand, today unveiled The Leela Coorg Forest Sanctuary, the new identity for its recently acquired retreat in Coorg. The reimagined identity reflects the property's extraordinary setting amidst 76 acres of ancient forests, coffee plantations and the rich biodiversity of the Western Ghats, while reinforcing The Leela's vision of creating distinctive luxury destinations that are deeply rooted in their surroundings.

The Leela
Madikeri, India
Development Pipeline

Centara Expands Vietnam Portfolio with Stunning New Coastal Address

Centara Hotels & Resorts, Thailand’s leading hotel operator, is proud to unveil the first details of Centara Hotel & Residences Van Don, a new bayfront destination set to open in Q4 2026. Marking the group’s second property in Vietnam, this hotel brings Centara’s warm, Thai-inspired hospitality, world-class service, and Signature Experiences to one of the country’s most promising coastal locations. Set within the Ao Tien High-Class Port and Tourism Urban Area, the property enjoys uninterrupted views across the serene waters and limestone formations of Bai Tu Long Bay. Just 15 minutes from Van Don International Airport, the hotel offers convenient access to both natural landmarks and key transport hubs, positioning it as an ideal base for leisure and business travellers alike. Designed for couples, families, groups, and extended stays, the hotel offers 481 rooms and suites across 12 categories. Every room is equipped with a kitchenette, modern décor, and functional layouts for added flexibility and comfort throughout their stay. Beyond accommodation, Centara Hotel & Residences Van Don introduces an all-in-one lifestyle offering, from diverse dining experiences spanning Vietnamese, Italian, Chinese, and international flavours to versatile MICE venues, including two ballrooms and multiple meeting rooms. Guests will also enjoy both indoor and outdoor swimming pools, a Kids’ Club, fitness centre, and SPA Cenvaree, along with family-friendly activities, premium shopping, and curated bay tours. To stay tuned for more details about Centara Hotel & Residences Van Don, please visit  https://www.centarahotelsresorts.com/centara/cvd

Centara
Van Don Special Zone, Vietnam
Hotel Yearbook Article The Hotel Yearbook 2026 - Technology Edition

Beyond Bias: AI and the Reconstruction of Perception

Rita Jusztina Varga raises an uncomfortable question the industry is only beginning to grapple with: when AI summarizes guest reviews at scale, whose experience actually gets represented? Drawing on her own decade-old stay as a case study, she argues that AI bias in review aggregation systematically amplifies certain voices while quietly erasing others — and that the hospitality industry urgently needs to rethink how it collects, segments, and trusts feedback data.

Rita Jusztina Varga
By Rita Jusztina Varga, CEO, RAIZUP
Hotel Yearbook Article The Hotel Yearbook 2026 - Technology Edition

How Brand Identity Evolves in an AI World

Martin Soler argues that AI does not threaten brand identity by making bad content — it threatens it by making an overwhelming volume of acceptable content, which over time erodes the distinctiveness that makes a brand worth remembering. In a world of infinite iteration, he contends, consistency and taste become scarcer and therefore more valuable, not less.

Martin Soler
By Martin Soler, Partner, Soler & Associates
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Hotel Yearbook Article The Hotel Yearbook 2026 - Technology Edition

Post‑Stay, Pre‑Loss: Rethinking Travel Agent and OTA Commission Reconciliation

Sean Anderson makes the unglamorous but financially compelling case that post-stay commission reconciliation is one of the most overlooked revenue levers in hospitality. Using the example of a 400-property European group quietly overpaying up to $40,000 a month simply because no one was checking, he argues that the post-stay funnel deserves the same operational discipline as guest acquisition — because the money is already earned, and much of it is silently leaking away.

Sean Anderson
By Sean Anderson, Chief Revenue Officer, RobosizeME
Hotel Yearbook Article The Hotel Yearbook 2026 - Technology Edition

Digital Labour: Rethinking Work in Hospitality

Stanislav Ivanov reframes the automation debate by shifting the unit of analysis from jobs to tasks — and in doing so, arrives at conclusions that challenge common assumptions. Physical tasks, he argues, are often harder to automate than cognitive ones, which means low-paid housekeepers may be safer from replacement than high-paid marketing managers, and the future of hospitality labour is not fewer people but differently assembled teams of humans and machines.

Stanislav Ivanov
By Stanislav Ivanov, Founder and Editor-in-Chief, ROBONOMICS: The Journal of the Automated Economy
Development Pipeline

Beckons Announces Plans for New Ultra-Luxury Lodge at Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa

Beckons, a curated portfolio of luxury lodges in the world's most remote and remarkable places, has today announced plans for a new, ultra-luxury lodge set amongst the iconic red sand dunes of Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa. The retreat is the first new build for the portfolio since the brand's launch in March 2026. Plans have been approved following ecological, heritage and sacred sites assessments and consultation with Traditional Custodians*. Further details, including the lodge name and opening date, will be announced as construction timelines are finalized, however the lodge is currently projected to open in early 2028.

Beckons
Petermann, Australia
Hotel Yearbook Article The Hotel Yearbook 2026 - Technology Edition

Let’s Get Rid of the CIO

Mark Fancourt delivers a blunt, experience-backed argument against the industry's growing temptation to hollow out technology leadership in the name of AI efficiency. With 37 years in hospitality and 13 as a CIO, he makes the case that adding AI on top of fragmented, underfunded, and poorly governed tech stacks does not simplify anything — it compounds the chaos, and removing the people who understand the system is precisely the wrong response.

Mark Fancourt
By Mark Fancourt, Co-Founder & Principal Consultant, TRAVHOTECH
Hotel Yearbook Article The Hotel Yearbook 2026 - Technology Edition

Why AI in Hospitality Is Really About Human Sustainability

Davide Bernasconi reframes the AI conversation in hospitality around a problem the industry rarely names directly: operational hypercomplexity. As hotels become more digitally interconnected, the cognitive load placed on staff has quietly become unsustainable — and the most important thing AI can do is not replace people, but give them their cognitive bandwidth back.

Davide Bernasconi
By Davide Bernasconi, Co-Founder & COO, Hoxell