29 January 2026 - 10 Minutes News for Hoteliers - Page 8

3 min

Future Hospitality Summit Saudi Arabia announces first speakers for 2026 edition

📅 FHS Saudi Arabia, 2026 edition, will occur at Mandarin Oriental Al Faisaliah, Riyadh, from April 20-22. Over 1,100 global hospitality leaders, including CEOs from Al Khozama and Taiba Investments, will attend. The summit, focusing on investment opportunities across Saudi Arabia, will host presentations and panel debates on six tracks. With $1.6 billion in business opportunities and 11 significant announcements last year, the event aims to forge partnerships and shape Saudi Arabia's hospitality future.

6 min

Own the Right Guest: The New Luxury Resort Strategy

🏨 In luxury hospitality, targeting "Modern Affluent Travelers" is key. The strategy focuses on hyper-personalization, shifting from selling commodities to emotional outcomes like sanctuary and transformation. High Net Worth Individuals (HNWI) value exclusive experiences over price, emphasizing direct relationships over intermediaries. Execution pillars include creating upstream demand, leveraging first-party data, and enhancing direct booking with exclusive perks. Long-term success lies in owning customer relationships, not renting them from online travel agencies (OTAs).

7 min

Optimising Your Hotel’s Online Listings

📈 In 2024, Europe’s Digital Markets Act designated Booking.com as a “gatekeeper," allowing hotels to offer better deals on their websites. OTAs enhance visibility through the "billboard effect" and influence AI-driven searches. Google Hotels integrates directly into search results, boosting recognition. Accurate listings, appealing visuals, and strategic pricing encourage direct bookings and trust. OTAs are evolving from necessary evils to essential discovery channels, supporting both initial exposure and long-term guest loyalty.

2 min

Is your hotel’s most-forgotten amenity actually your best branding tool?

📝 GCSTIMES, a pioneer in sustainable development since 2011, operates five centers in China, US, UAE, France, and Australia, with 14 subsidiaries globally. Serving over 140 countries and supporting 100,000+ hospitality groups, they focus on sustainable solutions, including eco-friendly products like wheat straw–based pens. Their brand portfolio includes GCS, AUROkeys, Xenyra, and Glint Spot, which provide sustainable smart cards and cultural gifts, promoting a thoughtful guest experience bridging work and rest.

2 min

Accor Launches ALL Accor in ChatGPT for…

💻 Accor deploys its ALL Accor app on ChatGPT from 29 January 2026, enabling hotel searches and bookings. Available in 20+ languages, users can compare rates and book via the ALL Accor website, maintaining loyalty benefits. This app, distinct from Accor's mobile app, enhances user experience and aligns with evolving consumer habits. Alix Boulnois, Accor's Chief Commercial, Digital & Tech Officer, highlights this as a strategic move for market leadership, echoing transformations in the hospitality industry.

2 min

How limiting AI Agents capabilities could…

📈 AI agents now handle end-to-end travel bookings, challenging the need to confirm user humanity. 38% of consumers use AI in purchases, per a DataDome report. Risks include account fraud, stock hoarding, and loyalty program abuse. A new solution involves real-time identity verification to discern legitimate AI from malicious bots. DataDome found 80% of agents aren't properly identified, necessitating behavioral analysis. The travel industry must adapt to these changes to maintain customer trust and security.

2 min

S4BT launches Trevium: a unified financial…

🛫 S4BT launches Trevium, a unified financial infrastructure for business travel, enhancing payment, invoicing, VAT, and reporting processes. Trevium integrates seamlessly with existing systems through its modular API-first architecture, allowing S4BT clients immediate access without additional registration. CEO Ziad Minkara emphasizes the importance of mastering travel flows. The platform reduces manual data entry, improves data quality, enhances compliance, and integrates sustainability data for CO₂ reporting, aligning with CSR and European regulations.

2 min

Google launches City Guide and Comic…

📰 Google introduced City Guide and Comic Postcards to its Arts & Culture app, tested in 11 cities: Rome, Paris, Barcelona, Istanbul, Osaka, Berlin, Madrid, San Francisco, London, Tokyo, and New York. City Guide offers personalized attraction suggestions, while Comic Postcards turns photos into comic strips using AI. Users can tailor experiences through categories like visual arts and history. These features enhance cultural exploration, enabling users to discover 'live moments' and lesser-known sites via Android and iOS.

Input your search keywords and press Enter.