A hospitality executive, entrepreneur, and researcher with over twenty-five years of experience across four continents who observed that the most compelling luxury properties derive their strength from something deeper than service — their relationship with place, culture, ecology, and people. Founder of the first international certification and intelligence platform dedicated to regenerative luxury in hotels and retreats, now present in more than thirty countries —  transforming regeneration from a cost into a profit driver rooted in values — measurable and actionable.

Over 25 years he has held C-level positions at European hotel technical companies — including senior roles within the €40bn Grupo ACS — and has worked with and audited properties for brands such as Six Senses and Banyan Tree.

A fundamental question shaped the founding of Regenera Luxury: what happens to destinations after investment arrives and hotels are built? Drawing on over two decades of operational work — De Castro concluded that high-end hospitality could, and should give more voice to the boutique segment, and serve as a vehicle for ecological regeneration, cultural stewardship, and community empowerment, without compromising the guest experience.

Regenera Luxury is now operating in more than thirty countries with implemented hotel projects. Its ecosystem includes a proprietary certification standard, an ngo, an institute, an international awards program, and The Regenera Luxury Journal.

He is the author of the first formal academic definition of regenerative luxury in the scientific literature (De Castro, 2026) — a foundational contribution that gave the field, for the first time, a shared language and operational architecture.

A dual doctoral candidate, university professor, Global Executive MBA graduate from IE Business School, and GSTC-certified, his work has been featured in FORBES, Hotels Magazine, and Journal des Palaces, and he has spoken at numerous conferences alongside EHL and UN Tourism.

Hector is panel expert of the Sustainability in Hospitality panel.