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Hotel Yearbook Article The Hotel Yearbook 2026 - Annual Edition

The Future of Hospitality Is in a Fine-Tuned Blend of Humans and Technology

Max Starkov argues that guests are already comfortable with “human-less” service in accommodations, and hotels should respond by using AI, robotics, mobile, and cloud tools to do more with fewer staff while keeping a warm human face where it matters most. Using vacation rentals as proof that self-service works at scale, he links accelerated tech adoption to solving labor shortages and rising costs, and predicts a major staffing reduction by 2030 as automation moves from the back of house into core operations. 

Max Starkov
By Max Starkov, Hospitality & travel technologist and digital strategist, Hospitality Net
Hotel Yearbook Article The Hotel Yearbook 2026 - Annual Edition

It’s Time to Rewrite Hospitality’s Story for the Next Generation

Christina Reti, Founder and CEO of CDR Global, reflects on why hospitality keeps losing young talent to misconception rather than reality. She argues that hotels remain one of the rare industries where starting at the bottom can lead to global leadership, but only if the sector updates its message and its internal practices, with clearer growth routes, stronger coaching, and workplaces that feel modern, purposeful, and human.

Christina Reti
By Christina Reti, Founder & CEO, CDR Global
Hotel Yearbook Article The Hotel Yearbook 2026 - Annual Edition

Beyond the Room: What the Next Era of Hotel Growth Will Look Like

Emily Weiss, Senior Managing Director and Travel Industry Lead at Accenture, argues that the industry cannot rely on higher ADRs to grow as RevPAR growth slows and costs rise. She explains how hotel brands are already shifting toward revenue beyond the room and stay, using retail and e commerce, bundled experiences, and next generation loyalty to keep guests engaged before, during, and after a visit. The message is clear: winners in 2026 and beyond will build lifestyle ecosystems that fit into how guests live and shop, not just how they sleep.

Emily Weiss
By Emily Weiss, Global Travel Industry Sector Lead, Accenture
Hotel Yearbook Article The Hotel Yearbook 2026 - Annual Edition

Can we please not say Hybrid, please

Hybrid is hospitality's buzzword du jour—but what if it's a dead end? Matthias Huettebraeuker, Hospitality Strategist & Senior Executive Advisor, argues that "hybrid" represents terminal thinking, not transformation. Instead of reassembling old boxes, he proposes three conditions for discovery: convergence, fluidity, and versatility. The key metric? Engagement—and redefining hospitality around how much of someone's life we hold space for.

Matthias Huettebraeuker
By Matthias Huettebraeuker, Hospitality Strategist & Senior Executive Advisor, Matthias Huettebraeuker
Hotel Yearbook Article The Hotel Yearbook 2026 - Annual Edition

Context-Driven Hospitality: The Next Evolution

Rok Kokalj, Co-founder and CEO of Nevron, describes “context-driven hospitality” as the next step for an industry facing uncertainty and rising complexity. He argues that hotels should move from binary thinking to hybrid intelligence, building clear identity and purpose first so technology, especially AI agents, can support human connection and turn back-end complexity into front-end simplicity that feels seamless for guests.

Rok Kokalj
By Rok Kokalj, Co-founder & CEO, Nevron
Hotel Yearbook Article The Hotel Yearbook 2026 - Annual Edition

How AI is Powering Efficiency and Imagination in Hospitality Design

Lisa A. Haude, Principal-Interior Designer at Studio RYS, shows how AI is becoming a practical creative partner in the studio. She describes using AI to speed up drafting, modeling, admin work, and BIM based visualisation, letting designers test more ideas, reduce errors, and give clients richer, real time ways to see and shape a project. Her main point is that AI should stay in the background as a tool for precision and sustainability insight, while the human side storytelling, taste, and emotional sense of place remains what makes hospitality design truly memorable.

Lisa A. Haude
By Lisa A. Haude, Principal, Studio RYS
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Hotel Yearbook Article The Hotel Yearbook 2026 - Annual Edition

Why Presence is the Next Amenity

Susie Arnett of Six Senses explains that as hotel service becomes more automated, the real value of hospitality moves back to the human relationship between guest and host. Drawing on lessons from retreat centres, she shows why future staff must act more like guides than service workers, and why training should focus on presence and emotional intelligence so guests feel truly seen, not just served.

Susie Arnett
By Susie Arnett, Director of Wellness Programming, Six Senses
Hotel Yearbook Article The Hotel Yearbook 2026 - Annual Edition

Bringing it All Together: How All-Inclusive Resorts Changed the Narrative

As all inclusive resorts shed their old value only reputation and reemerge as serious players in the upscale leisure space, Ricardo Orozco Arce of The Villa Group shows how the category’s revival is powered by “hybrid by design” thinking. He maps the unlikely pairings redefining the model luxury and explains how blending these forces can broaden appeal, deepen loyalty and keep the guest experience feeling effortless and worth it at every step.

Ricardo Orozco Arce
By Ricardo Orozco Arce, Vice President Operations, The Villa Group
Hotel Yearbook Article The Hotel Yearbook 2026 - Annual Edition

The Growth Code: Why Human Investment is the Ultimate Advantage in an AI Era

As hotels race to automate, Tanja Stegmüller, co-founder of TRUSTmenti, makes the case that resilience will come from intentional hybridity: blending digital efficiency with human wisdom, global standards with local soul, and automation with empathy. She lays out a ten point playbook for building hybrid leaders, learning ecosystems, and people centred cultures, arguing that technology can handle tasks, but only humans can deliver judgment, emotion, and the moments that define great hospitality.

Tanja Stegmüller
By Tanja Stegmüller, Co-Founder, TRUSTmenti
Hotel Yearbook Article The Hotel Yearbook 2026 - Annual Edition

Closing the personalization gap: Why hotels still struggle to connect online promises with offline reality

Hotels have perfected AI powered personalization online, yet the experience often falls flat on property because guest insights stay trapped in fragmented systems and are not translated into simple, actionable cues for front line teams. Floor explains how unified data layers, predictive and agentic AI, and open standards like MCP could finally bridge this digital physical gap, as long as hotels pair the tech with training and a culture that turns insights into meaningful moments.

Floor Bleeker
By Floor Bleeker, Global technology executive, board advisor, and investor, IN2 Consulting
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Hotel Yearbook Article The Hotel Yearbook 2026 - Annual Edition

AI Adoption in Hospitality: Meet People Where They Are

AI may be rewriting hospitality’s playbook, but the toughest part of adoption is not the software, it is the quiet anxieties it triggers on the front line. By tracing three common fears that surface whenever AI enters the workplace, Lynn Zwibak shows how leaders can turn resistance into readiness and make change something teams help build rather than brace against.

Lynn Zwibak
By Lynn Zwibak, Founder & CEO, Zwibak | Commercial Strategy
Scott Dahl
By Scott Dahl
Expert Views (7)
Muhammad Tanveer
Muhammad Tanveer, Author - The Sales Leadership Brief (Linkedin Newsletter), The Sales Leadership Brief

This is a pivotal shift. The issue is no longer which channels we use, but who controls the guest narrative and the data behind it. Hotels will not win by fighting OTAs on scale or ad spend. We win by aligning revenue, marketing, and sales around a single guest intelligence strategy using data to drive relevance, not just reach.

Ira Vouk
Ira Vouk, Hospitality Tech and AI Consultant, Hospitality 2.0 Consulting

OpenAI, Google and Perplexity will reshape this landscape again. Nobody knows how exactly but 2 years from now the picture will be very different.

Markus Mueller
Markus Mueller, Managing Director, GauVendi

Stop playing the OTA game—change the game with the product. Yes, third parties are taking control of search, booking flows, and traveler data—but copying their playbook won't reclaim the guest relationship. If you try to "out-CRM" Expedia or "out-loyalty" Airbnb, you're choosing a scale game you can't win.

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Development Renovation

Palladium Hotel Group Announces the Official Re-Opening of Grand Palladium Select Bavaro and Family Selection in Punta Cana

Palladium Hotel Group, is excited to announce the official re-opening and launch of Grand Palladium Select Bávaro and Family Selection at Grand Palladium Select Bávaro. This much anticipated re-opening follows an impressive $61.5 million renovation completed earlier this year underscoring Palladium Hotel Group's commitment to reinvention, staying ahead of industry design trends, and elevating guest experiences.

Grand Palladium Hotels & Resorts
Higüey, Dominican Republic
Development Opening

The Hyatt Centric Brand Debuts in Puerto Rico with Hyatt Centric San Juan Isla Verde

Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE: H), Interlink and Vivo Beach Club today announced the opening of Hyatt Centric San Juan Isla Verde, marking the first Hyatt Centric branded hotel in Puerto Rico. Located in one of Puerto Rico's most celebrated neighborhoods, the hotel is walking distance to the award-winning Isla Verde Beach, vibrant restaurants, nightlife, and shopping, placing savvy travelers in the middle of the action. A five-minute drive from Luis Muñoz Marin International Airport, the hotel provides easy access to the historic colonial district of Old San Juan, El Yunque National Rain Forest, San Juan's Financial District, and the Puerto Rico Convention District.

Hyatt Centric
Carolina, Puerto Rico
Development Pipeline

Hilton to Expand Luxury Footprint with LXR Hotels & Resorts in Turks and Caicos with AMARIS Grace Bay

Hilton (NYSE: HLT) today announced the signing of AMARIS Grace Bay to its exclusive LXR Hotels & Resorts portfolio, a distinctive resort and residential development set to debut in 2028 on the world-renowned Grace Bay Beach. Located along pristine shores, AMARIS brings a new dimension of curated luxury to Turks & Caicos, offering travelers an intimate escape defined by exceptional design and personalized service. AMARIS Grace Bay, LXR Hotels & Resorts is owned by SEFAMM (TCI) Ltd.

LXR Hotels & Resorts
Grace Bay, Turks and Caicos Islands