U.S. RevPAR Up 6.5%, Business Travel Hit a Record $538B, SiteMinder Bets on Infrastructure

The week that asked hard questions about technology and human connection closed with data pointing firmly upward. U.S. hotel RevPAR posted its strongest weekly gain in months, business travel hit a record, and the most interesting technology story was not a product launch but a strategic repositioning: SiteMinder embedding itself inside a hotel operating system and quietly changing what kind of company it is.

Two EHL HumanX Interviews to Close the Week

Explora Journeys President Anna Nash describes what her company is building in terms that resonate well beyond ocean travel: a floating luxury hotel whose address happens to be the sea. With 30% of guests being first-time sailors and a fleet growing to six ships by 2028, Explora is making the case that the guests who have never considered a cruise are its best opportunity. The interview is a useful read on how to reframe a category to attract guests who think it is not for them.

EHL Next CEO Andrea Monti ends the week's HumanX series with the most pointed critique: hospitality over-relies on ADR and RevPAR while the metrics that would capture workforce value, community impact, and long-term brand equity barely exist. His challenge to operators is direct: if AI is freeing up staff time, where is the evidence? Five HumanX interviews across five days, all pointing the same direction.

U.S. RevPAR Rose 6.5% in the Week Ending May 30

CoStar data puts RevPAR at $98.59, up 6.5% year over year, the strongest weekly performance in several months. Las Vegas led all markets, driven by major concert demand including BTS and the Jonas Brothers. The pattern reinforces what has been consistent all year: event-driven demand is doing more to move the weekly numbers than any structural demand trend.

U.S. Business Travel Hit a Record $538 Billion in 2024

GBTA's comprehensive economic impact study finds U.S. business travel spending reached $538.5 billion in 2024, supporting 6.7 million jobs and contributing $623.8 billion in total GDP impact, equivalent to 2.1% of the entire U.S. economy. The figures land the day after GBTA warned about $50.7 billion in risk from CBP airport disruptions. The gap between what business travel contributes and what operational failures could cost is the context the Monday story needed.

SiteMinder's Second Act: Infrastructure, Not Application

hospitality.today's analysis of SiteMinder's embedding inside the Mews operating system is the most strategically interesting piece of the week. The argument is that by becoming the native distribution engine inside a PMS rather than a standalone channel manager, SiteMinder is repositioning from application to infrastructure. Infrastructure businesses re-rate differently: they are stickier, harder to displace, and valued on different multiples. If the bet works, SiteMinder's current A$2 billion valuation looks conservative.

Signals

HVS's NYU IHIF takeaways point to narrowing bid-ask spreads and rising branded residential. The conference summary flags luxury segment resilience, AI's evolving operational role, and the acceleration of branded residential developments as the three structural trends investors are most focused on heading into H2. Bid-ask spreads narrowing is the most practically significant signal: it means deals that have been stalled are starting to move.

Pope Leo XIV's visit to Spain in June could generate €90-125 million in tourism spending. WTTC projects Madrid alone at €73.8 million driven by 1.8 million expected attendees. For hotels in the capital and along the papal itinerary, a demand event of this scale with a very short lead time is both an opportunity and an operational test.

Hong Kong hotel transactions hit $790 million in 2025 with $2.2 billion in conversion-linked deals over five years. JLL identifies a strategic inflection point, with luxury assets outperforming and visitor arrivals forecast to reach 53.8 million by the end of 2026. The conversion activity, office and retail buildings becoming hotels, is the most telling indicator of where institutional confidence in the market sits.

Dividing a 1,000-room resort into five distinct hotels achieved Forbes Five-Star status and 20% ADR growth. The Boca Raton's CEO explains the operational logic: smaller perceived scale enables the staffing ratios and service consistency that luxury certification requires, while the underlying asset remains a single resort. It is one of the more creative answers to the question of whether luxury can actually be scaled.

Most AI SEO packages sold to hotels are snake oil. HotelPORT cites Google's own documentation to dismantle the popular GEO tactics being sold to hotels, arguing that data quality and technical fundamentals outperform any AI-specific optimization gimmick. It is the second piece this week, after Tambourine's read of the Google GEO guide, to arrive at exactly the same conclusion.

People

Graham Rushin was appointed Deputy Chief Executive Officer, stepping into the second-most senior role in the organisation. Kara Glamore was named General Manager, Australia and New Zealand, taking on multi-market oversight across the region. Andreas Kohn was appointed Resort Commercial Director, joining a senior revenue and commercial leadership role at a resort property.

Properties

Elika Cave Suites Cappadocia, Curio Collection by Hilton opened, bringing Hilton's soft brand into one of Turkey's most distinctive destinations. Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge unveiled a renovated alpine experience as part of its new luxury positioning. Renaissance Austin Downtown completed its rebrand, repositioning one of the city's established properties. Four Seasons Hotel Sevilla was signed in the city's historic Plaza Nueva. The James Nautilus Miami Beach is set to open in late 2026.