Track lastminute.com (SWX: LMN) in one place. This hub aggregates the latest news and product moves around the European OTA group, curated by 10 Minutes News. Follow a well-known name in online travel.
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How hotels turn data overload into profit growth
30 June 2026Hotels have more data than ever before, but more data doesn’t always lead to better decisions. In this episode of Hotel Moment, Karen Stephens sits down with Jeff Michael , Area Director of Revenue Management at Sage Hospitality Group, to discuss why commercial teams often get stuck in reporting instead of taking action. Together, they explore how hotels can align revenue, sales, and marketing around profitability, use AI to make guest lifetime value more actionable, and turn data into a…
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Google’s Universal Commerce Protocol Set to Transform Hotel Booking with AI, Impacting Distribution Strategies for Hoteliers
19 June 2026🛌 In an episode of Hotel Moment, hosts Karen Stephens and Dylan Cole discuss the impact of Google’s expansion into hotel booking with its Universal Commerce Protocol. The next 12 months are crucial for hotel distribution. AI-powered search and agent-to-agent booking are transforming the landscape. Hotels must focus on AI discoverability, clean data, and direct booking strategies. Karen Stephens, with over 25 years in hospitality tech, leads Revinate’s marketing efforts and hosts the podcast.
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Google Expands Hotel Booking with Universal Commerce Protocol, Revolutionizing AI-Driven Hotel Discovery and Distribution
19 June 2026🛒 Hosts Karen Stephens and Dylan Cole explore Google’s expansion into hotel bookings through its Universal Commerce Protocol on ‘Hotel Moment.’ They discuss AI’s impact on hotel bookings and the upcoming 12 crucial months for hotel distribution. Key themes include AI-powered search, OTA roles, and strategies for hotels to enhance discoverability and trust. Karen, with 25 years in hospitality tech, has led Revinate’s marketing efforts, achieving a record-breaking booking quarter in Q4 2023.
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Lastminute.com to Cut 25% of Workforce, Reinvest €16 Million in AI-Powered Travel Technology by 2027
18 June 2026📈 On June 17, 2026, Lastminute.com announced a 25% workforce reduction across multiple countries by the end of 2026, saving €16 million annually from 2027. This restructuring supports the transition to an AI-powered travel platform, emphasizing data infrastructure and AI expertise. Operating in over 35 countries, the company aims to automate flight-hotel package assembly, reducing reliance on human curation and prioritizing data-driven decision-making for hotel inventory inclusion.
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Wilhelm Luxem Discusses Integrating Technology to Enhance Service in Luxury Hotels on Hotel Moment Podcast
17 June 2026🏨 In a conversation on Hotel Moment, Wilhelm Luxem, with a 50-year career in luxury hospitality, emphasizes technology’s role in enhancing service. His approach includes a two-week training rule and addressing the demand for personalized experiences, aiming to maintain authentic human connections. Karen Stephens, Revinate’s Chief Marketing Officer with over 25 years in hospitality tech, hosts the podcast. In her current role, she led Revinate to its highest booking quarter in Q4 2023.
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AI Search Reshapes Hotel Discovery: Starwood Hotels Focuses on Direct Bookings and Guest Loyalty in AI-Driven World
4 June 2026In this episode of Hotel Moment, Karen Stephens, Revinate’s Chief Marketing Officer, and Jarrett Tomback, Starwood Hotels’ VP of Digital Strategy and CRM, discuss AI’s impact on hotel discovery, direct bookings, and guest loyalty. They focus on creating data foundations that enhance visibility in an AI-driven world. Karen, with over 25 years in global hospitality technology, emphasizes that while data boosts recommendations, storytelling secures bookings. Jarrett highlights the importance of becoming a primary data source for AI platforms. 💻
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Top Luxury Hotels Should Focus on Revenue Growth Over Cost-Cutting to Enhance Brand and Guest Experience
1 June 2026🏨 In 2026, Dylan Cole and Karen Stephens discuss luxury hotel management challenges on the Hotel Moment podcast. Cost-cutting is a pitfall for luxury brands, say Dylan, Revinate’s Managing Director in Europe, and Robert-Jan Woltering, Managing Director at De L’Europe Amsterdam. The focus should be on maximizing top-line revenue rather than reducing expenses. Karen, with over 25 years in global hospitality technology, emphasizes strategic partnerships and brand growth. She led Revinate to its highest booking quarter in Q4 2023.
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AI Transforms Hotel Booking and Guest Engagement, Emphasizing Human Experience in New Era of Travel Discovery
27 May 2026🗺 In Q4 2023, Karen Stephens, CMO at Revinate, discusses with Aaron Miller, VP of CRM at Highgate, how AI is transforming hotel searches. As travelers use AI tools like ChatGPT, hotels are pivoting towards AI-driven discovery and personalization. Despite AI advancements, maintaining a personal guest experience remains crucial. Karen, with over 25 years in hospitality tech and 11 years at Revinate, emphasizes that successful hotels will harness AI for smarter, human-like guest experiences that promote direct bookings.
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Hotels Can Achieve Long-Term Revenue Growth by Adapting Strategies During Major Events Like FIFA, Says Expert
30 April 2026🏨 Adam Mogelonsky discusses how hotels can leverage global events like FIFA beyond short-term demand spikes. The focus is on building strategies for sustained revenue through direct booking optimization and data capture. Key points include mastering rate strategies, balancing refundable and non-refundable rates, and utilizing the voice channel for growth. Karen Stephens, Revinate’s CMO, with over 25 years in global hospitality technology, hosts the podcast. She emphasizes long-term growth and strategic partnerships.
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Revinate and Casa de Campo Highlight Unified Guest Data’s Role in Boosting Hotel Repeat Revenue
28 April 2026📈 In 2026, leading hotels focus on unifying guest data to boost revenue and loyalty, as shared by Bailey Yeats (Revinate) and Gitti Hernandez (Casa de Campo) on Hotel Moment. They highlight the importance of a clean database to enhance guest recognition and create Ultra VIP segments. Karen Stephens, Revinate’s Chief Marketing Officer, leverages her 25 years in hospitality technology, having led the company to its highest booking quarter in Q4 2023.
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Booking Site to Close on June 2; Last Day for Bookings is May 15, Company Confirms
17 April 2026📅 Bookings can be made through May 15, with the site closing on June 2, as per the company announcement.
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Ecommpay Report Identifies £16.5 Billion Revenue Potential for UK Travel Industry Through Improved Payment Strategies
11 March 2026🛰 With a staggering cart abandonment rate of 81.7% in e-commerce, the UK travel sector could unlock £16.5 billion by optimizing payment strategies. Ecommpay’s report analyzed 2025 payment stacks of top OTAs like Booking.com and Airbnb, identifying gaps and innovations. Mobile-first experiences and flexible payment options like BNPL and open banking are crucial. Enhancing payment processes can boost conversion rates, trust, and revenue for travel brands.
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Recast: Why regenerative tourism is the future of hospitality
29 January 2026🏨 Karen Stephens and Aradhana Khowala discuss the future of tourism on the Hotel Moment Podcast. Aradhana, with two decades of experience across 85 countries, emphasizes the shift from sustainability to regenerative tourism, advocating for industries to give back more than they take. She critiques current travel AI as “lipstick on legacy” and highlights the need for systemic change in tourism. Amid global instability, tourism faces challenges, with lost revenues and reduced bookings impacting local economies.
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Australia, 2026, and hospitality: What’s actually changing?
22 January 2026📰 Australia 2026: Hospitality trends reveal high operating costs, strong domestic travel, and a mix of properties. The focus is on personalization using real-time guest data to enhance bookings and on-property spending. Unified tech stacks are vital due to staff shortages, while privacy remains crucial amid recent data breaches. Revinate’s platform supports over 12,500 hotels driving $17.2 billion in direct revenue. Strategies prioritize guest experience and real-time data utilization over merely increasing tech tools.
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lastminute.com launches MCP server for…
21 January 2026✈️ European OTA lastminute.com has launched its first Model Context Protocol (MCP) Server for flights, built entirely in-house. This marks the first step in their multi-year AI infrastructure roadmap. The company aims to enhance scalability and AI capabilities as part of a three-year strategic plan. The MCP Server is now available on the Anthropic Marketplace for developers. CEO Alessandro Petazzi emphasizes AI as a strategic asset to improve customer experience and operational efficiency.
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Cloudbeds partners with Jumbonline to expand global distribution for hotels
19 January 2026💻 Cloudbeds, based in San Diego, partners with Jumbonline to enhance hotel distribution globally. The integration offers access to Jumbonline’s network of over 2,500 travel agents and 3,000 clients, including TUI and Lastminute.com. Hotels benefit from visibility across 37 destinations, with Jumbonline processing up to one billion searches daily. Real-time synchronization reduces overbookings. Founded in 2012, Cloudbeds operates in 150 countries with accolades from 2021-2026. Jumbonline connects 120,000 hotels, using a high-performance API.
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European hoteliers: Here are your 2026 hospitality trends
14 January 2026🌐 Revinate Europe Managing Director, Dylan Cole, discusses 2026 hospitality trends in Europe. Key trends include hyperpersonalization, unified tech stacks, real-time decision-making, and cybersecurity. Different regions face unique challenges: UK & Ireland focus on margins; DACH emphasizes data privacy; Northern Europe demands high personalization; Southern Europe enhances in-stay revenue. Tech stacks simplify operations across Europe. Real-time data is crucial for adapting to fast-changing guest behavior. Privacy and trust are essential for brand integrity and guest loyalty.
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Shoulder season starts to rival summer…
15 December 2025🗺️ Departure growth at lastminute.com soared in 2025, with increases of 7% in September, 12% in October, and 23% in November, marking November as the fastest-growing month. Shoulder season travel now constitutes 19% of annual trips, reaching 58% of summer’s peak size. Top destinations include Mallorca, Tenerife, Crete, Amsterdam, and Barcelona. Notably, bookings to London surged 30% during late November, coinciding with Radiohead’s concerts. Beach breaks account for 60% of autumn travel.
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Travel firms named among ‘top challenger…
17 October 2025🗺️ Ryanair, Airbnb, easyJet, lastminute.com, and Booking.com are among the UK’s top challenger brands, as per the Trouble Making 100 Report. Ryanair ranked 3rd, easyJet 53rd, lastminute.com 70th, Airbnb 18th, and Booking.com 72nd. The report uses consumer perspectives, awareness scores, and ad spend data from the past 18 months, narrowing 400 brands to 100. Virgin also made the list, but not specifically for its travel brands.
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Media agency Forward launches new creative…
11 September 2025🌐 Forward, part of lastminute.com, has launched a new creative production division enhancing its end-to-end travel industry services. This expansion integrates their media and insights strategies, aiming to combat fragmented strategies and improve campaign consistency. Creativity drives 50% of campaign success, prompting 65% of marketers to focus more on quality. Forward’s team includes creatives and digital producers, supported by external filmmakers, working with clients like the Abu Dhabi Tourism Board and American Express to deliver data-driven advertising solutions.
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Boatscribe secures fix-figure investment…
9 September 2025This article was written by Travolution. Click here to read the original article Yacht rental platform aims to make yachting mainstream Yacht rental marketplace Boatscribe has raised a six-figure investment
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The Untapped Goldmine: Why Regional OTAs Could Be Your Hotel’s Secret to Higher Occupancy
3 September 2025📰 Asia, Middle East, and Europe are seeing a rise in regional OTAs like Traveloka, MakeMyTrip, Goibibo, and HRS. These platforms target specific markets, increasing visibility and conversion rates. STAAH connects to over 2,000 OTAs, enabling seamless management of global and regional channels. Real-time updates, dynamic pricing, and integration with PMS make it efficient for hotels to manage multiple platforms, ensuring significant reach and relevance without additional workload.
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Tourism Innovation Summit is back for its…
22 July 2025🗺 Tourism Innovation Summit (TIS) occurs on October 22-24, 2025, at FIBES Seville. Over 8,000 professionals will attend, with 400 experts across five auditoriums. The summit addresses digitalization, sustainability, and traveler profiles. Key speakers include CEOs from Lastminute.com and WeRoad. 200 companies will exhibit tech solutions, and South Korea will be the guest country. Events like the Tourism Innovation Awards and Touristech Startup Fest will highlight disruptive projects. Registration is open.
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Tourism Industry: Everything You Need to Know About Tourism
16 May 2025This article was written by Revfine. Click here to read the original article The tourism industry, also known as the travel industry, is linked to people traveling to other locations,
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The ultimate guide to Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) for 2025
13 February 2025This article was written by Mews. Click here to read the original article What are OTAs for hotels? OTAs (Online Travel Agencies) are third-party platforms where travelers can search, compare,
