News - Hospitality Net

July 24

EU Fined Google €460M for Burying Hotel Search Rivals and Hotels Weren't One of Them, Accor Sells Essendi Stake for €975M, Kempinski Tel Aviv Turned Crisis Into Operating Philosophy

Friday closed the week with hospitality.today's analysis of the EU's €460M Google fine, arguing the ruling will reshape hotel search toward comparison sites and further sideline direct hotel links, Accor's sale of its ~30.7% Essendi stake to a Blackstone and Colony IM consortium for up to €975M, and The David Kempinski Tel Aviv GM on embedding resilience into hotel operations through COVID and post-October 7 conflict. Google's AI Max warning for hotels, the guest journey starting on TikTok, and renovations from Maui to the Maldives rounded out the session.

Hospitality Net

Opinion Article Operations & Strategy

July 24

Your wholesale contract still works. That's the problem

Wholesale contracts written for a simpler distribution era can't enforce opaque/package-only clauses across tens of thousands of downstream resellers, making renegotiation the only real protection.

By Markus Busch, Editor/Publisher, hospitality.today

Opinion Article Sales & Marketing

July 24

What I Learned Judging a Global Commercial Awards Program Most Sales Leaders Never Get Near

A judge for HSMAI Commercial Awards Asia Pacific 2026 shares what separates winning submissions: evidence of durable systems over individual heroics, honest friction, and outcome-linked metrics.

By Muhammad Tanveer, Author - The Sales Leadership Brief (Linkedin Newsletter), The Sales Leadership Brief

Singapore, Singapore

Opinion Article Sales & Marketing

July 24

The Hotel Guest Journey No Longer Starts with Google

Travelers now discover hotels via TikTok, Instagram, and AI tools like ChatGPT before ever reaching a hotel website, forcing marketers to build presence across multiple platforms.

By Debbie Miller, Digital Marketing and Communications Professional and member of Cayuga Hospitality Consultants, Cayuga Hospitality Consultants

Opinion Article Sales & Marketing

July 24

Google, Take the Wheel (And the Budget): Navigating Ads’ Hands-Off Future for Hotels

The article warns individually branded hotels against adopting Google's AI Max, citing risks of irrelevant keyword matching and misdirected traffic to competitor properties under shared brand URL structures.

By Kylie Chen, Director of Paid Strategy, Cogwheel Marketing & Analytics

United States

Opinion Article Development

July 24

Better Decisions, Better Developments: How Feasibility and Design Protect Capital and Improve Project Outcomes

A strategic case for integrating feasibility analysis and design early in hospitality development, showing how aligned decisions reduce execution risk, improve returns, and prevent costly post-opening repositioning.

By Adam Zarczynski and Jason Sorci

Opinion Article Sales & Marketing

July 24

Increase Hotel Revenue, without the Operational Stress

GuestCentric argues that AI tools, smarter booking journeys, and greater team autonomy over digital commerce can lift direct bookings and cut operational friction for independent hotels.

By Melissa Rodrigues, Lead Content Manager, GuestCentric Systems

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Lighthouse

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Press Release Wellness & Wellbeing

July 24

GOCO Hospitality Enters Ambitious New Chapter with Indigo8 Appointment and Fivelements Launch

GOCO Hospitality appoints Indigo8 for UK PR and launches Fivelements as a global consumer wellness brand, with new destinations in Koh Samui and Montenegro planned.

GOCO Hospitality

United Kingdom

Press Release Development

July 24

Accor signs a definitive binding agreement on the sale of its stake in Essendi

Accor sells its ~30.7% stake in Essendi to a Blackstone and Colony IM consortium for up to €975M, with hotels converting to 20-year franchise contracts and €500M returned to shareholders via buyback.

Accor and Essendi (formerly Accor Invest)

Podcast Technology

July 24

Celtic Collection invests in digital transformation

Recorded at the Hoteliers' Voice Stratford-Upon-Avon roundtable, the episode features Celtic Collection, Kings Court Hotel, Oracle, and HOSPA on cloud migration, tech investment priorities, and future-ready hotel operations.

Ryan Haynes, Director/Lead Consultant, Hoteliers' Voice Podcast/ Haynes MarComs Ltd

Stratford-upon-Avon, United Kingdom

Opinion Article Human Resources

July 24

Role Asymmetry: The Weight of Guest-Facing Roles

The article introduces "role asymmetry" as a framework explaining the unequal psychological burden placed on guest-facing hospitality staff, and outlines four pillars to help leaders build supportive cultures: perspective, authority, psychological safety, and psychological skills.

By Miranda Allison, Experience Designer & Founder, Pretty Darn Delightful

Opinion Article Technology

July 24

Who Controls the Controls?

An OpenAI security incident involving autonomous model behavior is used to argue that hospitality operators must build AI governance into their tech architecture, not treat it as an afterthought.

By Terence Ronson, Founder & Managing Director, Pertlink Limited

Opinion Article Food & Beverage

July 24

Cultural Food Deserts: An Overlooked Revenue Opportunity in The Hotel Industry

A former Texas hotel GM argues that serving kosher and halal dietary needs gave his property a 500%+ RevPAR advantage over competitors on low-demand weekends, and outlines how other hotels can replicate this strategy.

By Justin Taillon, Professor & Department Head, Highline College

United States

Press Release Development

July 23

Marriott International Signs Dual Agreement with Catalonia Hotels & Resorts to Bring All-Inclusive Properties to Jamaica and Tanzania

Marriott signed deals with Catalonia Hotels & Resorts for a 522-room property in Montego Bay opening 2028 and a 271-room Autograph Collection resort in Zanzibar opening 2027.

Marriott and Catalonia Hotels & Resorts

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Mews

Press Release Development

July 23

WorldHotels™ Advances Global Portfolio with New Luxury Hotels and Strategic Expansion WorldHotels™

WorldHotels reports 40+ hotels in development across Vietnam, South Korea, Portugal, India, Costa Rica and Europe, building on roughly 100 hotel additions in 2025.

WorldHotels Collection and BWH Hotels

Press Release Development

July 23

Crescent Hotels & Resorts Welcomes Hilton Short Hills to its Portfolio

Crescent Hotels & Resorts adds the 314-room Hilton Short Hills in New Jersey, expanding its footprint in the Greater New York market near Newark Liberty Airport and major corporate corridors.

Crescent

Short Hills, United States

Press Release Markets & Performance

July 23

U.S. hotel results for week ending 18 July

U.S. hotel RevPAR rose 6.3% year-over-year for the week of 12-18 July 2026, with NYC leading gains as the World Cup final eve drove ADR up 105% on Saturday night.

CoStar

United States

Press Release Markets & Performance

July 23

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts Reports Strong Second Quarter Results

Wyndham posted Q2 2026 net income of $102M (up 17% YoY), with U.S. RevPAR up 2%, adjusted EBITDA up 9% to $212M, and a record pipeline of 261,000 rooms.

July 23

Frictionless Check-In Runs Into a Safety Question, US Pipeline Points to 832 Openings in 2028

Thursday turns to the limits of smooth service. A roundtable asks whether removing friction from the guest journey has also removed safeguards, and makes the case for ID checks and staff who are empowered to act. Lodging Econometrics counts 5,975 US projects in the pipeline and forecasts 832 openings in 2028. And an op-ed argues personalization stops working the moment it becomes policy.

Hospitality Net

Press Release Food & Beverage

July 23

Cooking with Chris: Three Generations, One Bowl of Wontons

Hilton CEO Chris Nassetta visits Waldorf Astoria Shanghai Qiantan to prepare wontons with F&B Director Mandela Zhu, whose family has a three-generation connection to Hilton.

Hilton

Shanghai, China

Markets & Performance Yesterday

Guest Experience Benchmark Report Q2 2026 Overview

Global GRI hit a record 87.3% in Q2 2026, with 3-star hotels improving fastest, Asia leading regionally, and review response speed emerging as a core reputation driver.

Shiji

Sales & Marketing 2 days ago

Hotel social moves into the boardroom: Hospitality Social Media Summit brings a two-day commercial programme to London this September

A two-day executive programme at Chicago Booth London on 3-4 September 2026, focused on building commercial social media strategies, frameworks, and assets for hospitality brands.

Kordie

Wellness & Wellbeing 2 days ago

Star-bathing: Finding Wellness Under the Night Sky

Booking.com data shows 62% of travelers consider dark-sky destinations, with star-bathing topping planned activities, creating a niche wellness opportunity for resorts and eco-lodges.