Experiences Are Inventory, Not a Feeling: A Conversation with Journey at ITB Berlin
Journey executives explain how hotels can generate 50% of revenue from non-room sources by treating experiences as bookable inventory rather than add-ons.
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Payments, AI Commerce, and Why Retail Went First: A Conversation with Stripe at ITB Berlin
Stripe's James Lemon discusses payment infrastructure challenges in hotels and why AI booking technology is more complex for travel than retail.
Intent, Representation, and the Future of Direct Booking: A Conversation with Aven Hospitality at ITB Berlin
Aven Hospitality's Mark Hollyhead discusses how AI-driven search shifts booking from filling forms to expressing intent, requiring hotels to control their own representation.
The Toggle Tax and the Invisible Lobby Boy: A Conversation with Access Hospitality at ITB Berlin
Access Hospitality's Champa Magesh argues system fragmentation hurts guest experience more than data quality, coining the "toggle tax" for staff switching between platforms.
One Platform, One Source of Truth: A Conversation with Access Hospitality at ITB Berlin
Access Hospitality's Navigator uses natural language AI to query unified hotel data, eliminating the need to toggle between multiple systems.
Social, Search, and the Fight for Direct Bookings: A Conversation with Cendyn and HOSPITALITY X at ITB Berlin
Cendyn's CEO and HOSPITALITY X Co-Founder discuss how social media evolved from brand awareness to direct conversion channel at ITB Berlin.
Friction, Wristbands, and Why Best-of-Breed Wins: A Conversation with TRYBE at ITB Berlin
TRYBE CEO discusses their wristband-based contactless system for spas, arguing specialized software with strong integrations beats all-in-one platforms.
The Regenerative Question: A Conversation with Willy Legrand at ITB Berlin
Dr. Willy Legrand discusses why 40 years of sustainability frameworks have failed to prevent environmental decline and explores regenerative tourism as a transformative alternative.
Meetings, Events, and a Ride in a Trabi: A Conversation with VenueSuite at ITB Berlin
VenueSuite announced demand-based pricing for meetings and events, applying room revenue management logic to meeting spaces with early results showing increased bookings on lower-demand dates.
Markos Chaidemenos of Canaves Collection on Family Leadership, Nature, and Sustainability
Markos Chaidemenos explains how Canaves Collection balances family leadership, environmental restraint, and operational discipline to create distinctive luxury experiences on Santorini.
Mark Owens on Colliers International and the New Economics of Hotel Deals
Colliers' Owens discusses how Covid shifted investment focus to experiential destinations, while tighter capital markets require owners to balance performance recovery with higher financing costs.
Namron Hospitality: Comfort, Design, and the Human Kind of Personalisation
Namron Hospitality did not start as a conventional hotel story. "I do not come from a background of hospitality," Yves Naman told Hospitality Net, tracing his path from business school in Canada to Mexico, where he fell in love with the country’s creativity and the way people host. "We were really amazed by the level of hospitality," he said, describing being cared for by Mexican friends "like last time I was taken care of like that was when I was born and my mother had me in her arms."
Swire Hotels: “Houses, Not Hotels” and the Art of Staying Different
Swire Hotels' managing director discusses the company's 'Houses, not Hotels' philosophy, expansion to 15-18 properties by 2030, and growth in Chinese domestic travel demand.
LodgIQ's CEO Vincent Ramelli on Reinventing Hospitality: Data, People and the Future of AI-Driven Hotels
Vincent Ramelli, CEO of LodgIQ, has been at the forefront of hotel technology for decades. In his recent interview for Hospitality Net, he reflects on a career that spans the early days of the internet, the rise of online distribution, and now the integration of generative AI into hotel operations.
Hilton Grand Vacations COO Gordon Gurnik on Innovating Timeshare Experiences and Expanding Global Horizons
Hospitality Net recently had the opportunity to speak with Gordon Gurnik, COO of Hilton Grand Vacations, about the company's evolution, innovations, and future plans. Gurnik explained that Hilton Grand Vacations is a standalone public company closely affiliated with Hilton Worldwide, managing over 720,000 members across more than 200 properties worldwide. The company prioritizes team member investment to reduce turnover and maintain high service standards, supporting seamless guest experiences. Hilton Grand Vacations is positioned as the world's largest timeshare company, committed to evolving with market trends and delivering value through technology and memorable vacations.
Beyond Price: The Future of Hotel Upselling and Cross-Selling
In this insightful interview, Scott Dahl and Mercedes Blanco discuss the evolving landscape of upselling and cross-selling in the hotel industry heading into 2026. They highlight how traveler preferences have shifted away from just prices and views toward meaningful, personalized experiences, emphasizing the emotional story behind offers. Mercedes shares her extensive expertise in digital marketing and hospitality technology, underscoring the fast-paced integration of AI in enhancing guest experiences, marketing strategies, and direct booking channels.
Tech-Enabled Hospitality: Humanity, Innovation, and the Future Guest Experience
Jessica Gillingham, founder and CEO of Abode Worldwide, joins Simone Puorto for an engaging discussion about her recent book, "Tech-Enabled Hospitality." As a seasoned communicator with nearly a decade of experience in the hospitality and short-term rental technology space, Jessica explores the profound transformation underway in the industry, where technology is reshaping both operational delivery and the very nature of guest experiences. Her work brings together insights from over thirty-eight leaders in technology and hospitality, giving the book a rich, multifaceted perspective.
Health Is the New Wealth: How Equinox Hotels Is Redefining Luxury Through High-Performance Living
This interview with the visionary Chris Norton, CEO of Equinox Hotels, explores how the brand is redefining modern luxury hospitality through a foundation of health, wellness and high-performance living. His team's leadership is helping make Equinox Hotels a platform for a new generation of travelers who prioritize longevity and vitality by looking for those brands that can meet this lifestyle. Health really is the new wealth. With the utmost attention to detail with the development and launch of the brand's first hotel in New York, Equinox Hotels is creating experiences that elevate guests' physical and mental well-being across every single in-room and onsite amenity.
Building the Future of Hospitality: An Interview with Niko Karstikko, Co-Founder & CEO of Bob W
This interview features Niko Karstikko, the Co-Founder & Group CEO of Bob W, an innovative hospitality company blending the comfort and consistency of hotels with the authentic local experience and affordability of short-stay rentals, designed for modern, tech-savvy travelers who mix business and leisure stays. Founded in 2017-2018, Bob W operates in commercial properties under appropriate legal frameworks and emphasizes scalability, flexibility, and sustainability through technology - such as app-enabled self-service amenities, partnerships with local gyms and restaurants, and a tech stack for guest and operational services. Their average stay length is about 4 nights and they have expanded across 19 cities in 11 European countries
Beyond Luxury: Ori Kafri’s Vision of Human-Centered Hospitality at J.K. Place
Ori Kafri introduces J.K. Place as a family-founded boutique hotel brand that defines "boutique" not by design trends, but by personal, tailor-made hospitality. With three intimate properties in Capri, Rome, Paris, and soon Milan, each averaging around 30 rooms, Kafri describes the brand"s essence as creating "homes" rather than hotels - spaces where guests feel personally known and individually cared for. He contrasts J.K."s approach to larger hotel chains, which he likens to luxury fashion houses, while J.K. Place aspires to be the "tailor-made suit" - a bespoke experience built through genuine human connection.
Up in the air, loyalty on the ground: A conversation with Ellis Connolly
There is nothing cheap about loyalty. I wrote those words years ago while evoking Ryan Bingham and his manic pilgrimage through miles and tiers, and I still believe them today. Because the true loyalty currency is not plastic or points. Loyalty is, instead, measured in attention, presence, memory, and the feeling of being recognized.
Hotel Cybersecurity in 2025 Emphasizes the Human Stack
Cybersecurity in 2025 for hotels is a game of Russian roulette. Odds are you’ll be safe most of the time, but then there’s the outside chance that it’s game over. The risks are far too great, and this is a topic that deserves constant and close study.
Emailing at the Right Tempo for Fewer Cart Abandonments and More Winbacks
Email fatigue is a clear and present problem for practically everyone under the sun who isn’t a monk abstaining from the temptations of the internet. All of us are opted in to blanket, impersonal newsletters that pile up in our inboxes, with this digital noise only further compounded by junk texts, social media direct messages, and telemarketers.
A Single Device, Endless Possibilities: Shiji’s IPORT Integration for Hotels
Shiji Group’s latest IPORT integration is redefining what all-in-one devices can deliver for the hospitality sector. Moving beyond traditional food and beverage solutions, the company has developed a hardware-agnostic platform designed to support workflows across an entire property – from POS and PMS to reputation management and HR applications.