“Converging Forces – The Future is Hybrid by Design” — Source: HYB

The newly published The HOTEL Yearbook 2026 – Annual Edition, titled “Converging Forces – The Future is Hybrid by Design”, explores how hotel companies around the world are responding to a new operating reality shaped by powerful converging forces.

Technological acceleration, climate urgency, shifting guest expectations, labour market disruption and economic realignment are no longer distant trends. They are active dynamics that are reshaping hospitality in real time. The 2026 edition argues that the most resilient and forward looking hotel organisations are those that embrace hybridity by design: the intentional blending of digital and human, global and local, automation and empathy, standardisation and personalisation, growth and responsibility.

Converging forces are reshaping hospitality at every level. With this new edition, we wanted to move beyond buzzwords and look at how real hotel companies are designing hybrid business models that are resilient, profitable and responsible. Our contributors are not speculating from the sidelines; they write from the reality of leading change in their own organisations and markets. Henri Roelings, Publisher of The HOTEL Yearbook and Founder of Hospitality Net

This year's Annual Edition brings together a wide spectrum of themes that reflect how hospitality is being reshaped at the intersection of technology, people and purpose: from AI native operations, agentic systems and commercial reinvention in a changing digital and advertising landscape, to the enduring human advantage of strong leadership, evolved GM roles and reimagined training models.

Contributors explore intentional hybrids of humans and technology, closing the personalization gap, and redesigning communication so every touchpoint becomes a meaningful interaction rather than a “no reply” dead end. They look at hotels as platforms for presence, emotion and immersive social vibes, with F&B as an innovation lab and all inclusive concepts as fully connected experience ecosystems. New definitions of luxury emerge around cultural capital and storytelling, while brands rewrite their narratives for the next generation and question long standing standards and rating systems in an AI rich age. Underpinning all of this is a shift from sustainability to regenerative hospitality, embedding people, place and planet into the core of design, operations and long term strategy.

I am a big fan of The HOTEL Yearbook. It is the single publication I most look forward to every year before the holiday season. It brings together some of the sharpest minds in our industry and challenges us to think several moves ahead. This year’s focus on hybrid strategies in a time of converging forces could not be more timely. Max Starkov, hospitality technology strategist and contributing author to The HOTEL Yearbook 2026

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to all contributors, sponsors and partners of The HOTEL Yearbook 2026. Their expertise, time and trust make it possible to curate such a rich collection of perspectives and ideas, and their continued support allows the Yearbook to remain an independent, forward looking platform for the global hotel community. This edition is very much a collective achievement, reflecting the generosity of leaders who are willing to share their knowledge for the benefit of the wider industry.

The HOTEL Yearbook 2026 – Annual Edition is now available in online and PDF format at www.hotelyearbook.com. Further details about contributors, access options and previous editions can be found via www.hotelyearbook.com/editions/.

HYB 2026 Annual Edition

About The HOTEL yearbook (HYB)

The Hotel Yearbook is a family of publications that call upon a wide-ranging group of senior executives, analysts, consultants and opinion leaders from all over the world to ask, "What lies ahead for the global hotel industry?" In The Hotel Yearbook - whether it is the highly respected annual edition or any of the special editions focusing on such critically important themes as technology, talent development, or the digital world - our forward-looking contributors share with readers the key trends and developments that they believe could have an impact on the performance of the hotel industry in the future. For more information visit hotelyearbook.com.