Italian hotel investment hit €1.3bn in H1 2026, 53% above the 10-year average, while RevPAR grew 11.3%, ranking Italy among Europe's top performers, boosted by Milan's Winter Olympics effect.
Ask Alibaba, Not Google.200 million. That's how many AI-native orders ran through Alibaba's Qwen app during Spring Festival alone. Fliggy's AI-driven bookings jumped 800% year-over-year in that same window, with attraction-ticket conversion now matching OTAs that have run for two decades.
Google's agentic booking will flourish if its conversational AI collapses hours of travel research into simple, secure Google Pay transactions backed by major hotel and OTA partners. However, it will fizzle if consumer anxiety over high-cost bookings prevents users from trusting an AI agent without traditional visual validation, or if strict global regulations like the EU's DMA permanently limit its market footprint.
I believe “this time is different.” Both “Book on Google” and agentic booking are not MoR and instead route bookings to the end service providers (OTA or direct). So clearly, the question is why would travelers be comfortable “submitting” bookings directly to AI, but not BoG?With BoG, Google tried to close the loop and become a semi-transactional layer.
Marriott and Townhouse Hotels signed a deal to affiliate eight Dutch properties with Series by Marriott and Tribute Portfolio, marking the first Series by Marriott entry into the Netherlands.
Madrid's F1 debut drew 350,000 fans but hotels hit only ~70% occupancy, exposing how wholesale allotments, late cut-offs, and rigid rate floors blocked revenue capture despite record ADR.
Following an extensive renovation, Four Points Flex Køge is now ready to welcome guests with modernised rooms, new studio apartments with private kitchen facilities, and a new lounge that serves as the hotel’s central gathering point.
Whitbread acquires two Future Inns properties in Bristol and Plymouth for 292 rooms, with conversion to Premier Inn format targeted for completion by mid-December 2026.
Hilton (NYSE: HLT) today announced the signing of the 199-room Tempo by Hilton Munich Airport Arena, which will open on the MUNICH ARENA campus in 2029, alongside the arena itself.
Leonardo Hotels Central Europe restructures its development team to manage 28 new hotels in 2026 and ~20 acquisitions in 2027, backed by an 800M-1B euro investment partnership.
Ruby, an urban lifestyle hotel and part of IHG Hotels & Resorts, opens Ruby Lilou in Marseille, marking the brand's debut in France. Opening alongside Ruby Workspaces in France, Ruby Yani introduces Ruby Workspaces to the French market. Inspired by Marseille's distinctive blend of Mediterranean ease and rebellious creativity, Ruby Lilou reflects the brand's signature approach to creating hotels deeply connected to their destination.
Leonardo Hotels adds 735 rooms across Germany by acquiring three former Revo hotels in Munich, Hanover, and Braunschweig, marking its first presence in Braunschweig.
The Hoxton is heading to Hamburg. Opening in summer 2027, The Hoxton, Hamburg will be the brand's second hotel in Germany and third in the German-speaking region, following Berlin and Vienna. Founded in London in 2006 and celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, The Hoxton is known for its neighbourhood-rooted approach and community-led programming. The upcoming Hamburg debut marks the next step in the brand's European growth, with openings also planned in Oslo and Madrid next year.
Over the years, I’ve seen that the most successful technology partnerships rarely start with technology. They start with a clear understanding that change is needed and a shared vision for where the organization wants to go. The hotel groups that get the greatest value from technology are usually those that are willing to challenge the status quo and bring the right people together to make informed decisions.Equally important is leadership.
This resonates deeply after decades in hospitality technology. The strongest outcomes come from genuine partnerships—not merely contracts.As a P&L owner, I’ve seen that distinction from both sides. Some clients generate meaningful revenue but create a disproportionate drain on resources or dominate a roadmap in ways that do not serve the broader customer community.
In my experience running a boutique technology firm, choosing the right client matters as much as the client choosing the right vendor. Our scarcest resource is not scale. It is attention.The clients we go the extra mile for are clear about the problem they are solving, give us the real decision-makers, decide with discipline, and treat the relationship as a partnership rather than a transaction.
Italy leads Southern Europe in occupancy at 51.2% in H1 2026, with foreign traveller spend up 4.8% YoY in June, but the article shifts focus to what drives hotel profitability below the top line.
Radisson Hotel Group adds four Radisson Blu properties in Stockholm and Copenhagen to its Verified Net Zero portfolio, bringing the total to nine hotels across the Nordics and UK toward a 2030 target of 100.
Minor Hotels, a global hotel owner and operator with more than 640 properties across 67 countries, has signed a management agreement to operate Dukes London at 35 St James's Place. The landmark property will join the newly launched Minor Reserve Collection, marking the luxury brand's debut in the UK.
HOSPA appoints Ryan Haynes as Head of Industry Engagement to lead programme development for the National Hotel Marketing Conference 2027, scheduled for 27 May at Hilton at St George's Park.
The Ski Lodge is a new 36-room boutique hotel in the centre of Verbier, opening December 2026 with two ideas at its heart: a luxurious spa, and somewhere exciting to be after dark. The state-of-the-art spa has an indoor swimming pool, cold plunge, sauna, hammam and a relaxation area; The Listening Room, the hotel's bar, is open to guests and locals alike until late, with cocktails and DJs on the weekend. At The Peak, Peruvian-born chef Mario Paiva brings a taste of the Americas to Verbier, with an NYC brasserie-style menu.
WTTC's 26th Global Summit in Valletta, Malta, under the theme FUTU[RE]SET, convenes 100+ speakers including ministers, CEOs, and former heads of state across eight strategic priorities for travel and tourism.
Ennismore, the fastest-growing lifestyle hospitality company, together with LIMM and Società Rinascimento Valori, are delighted to announce the signing of Delano Puglia, marking the brand's first property in Italy. Set to open in 2028, the resort will introduce Delano's inimitable blend of effortless elegance and cultural energy to one of Italy's most compelling coastal regions.
IHG Hotels & Resorts (IHG), one of the world’s leading hotel companies, announces the signing of a Kimpton property in Rome, bringing its Luxury & Lifestyle brand to the Italian capital. Expected to open in 2029, the hotel is owned by Castello Sgr’s Rome Hotel Development Fund, whose sole investor is 1AM Rome Prime Real Estate Development Fund. Castello Sgr is a leading Italian asset management company specialising in alternative investment funds, primarily in real estate.