David Eisen - 10 Minutes News for Hoteliers

7 min

Independent hotels turn to affiliations or soft brands for exposure. It’s a welcome addition for lodging companies and rep groups.

🏨 Soft brands have surged in popularity as lodging companies like Hilton, Marriott, and Preferred Hotels & Resorts grow collections of independent hotels. As of 2023, Hilton’s Curio Collection is set to open its 200th hotel, and The Luxury Collection in Madrid reopened in 2025 after renovation. These brands offer independence with global sales platforms and loyalty programs. Preferred Hotels boasts over 600 hotels worldwide. LHW and Relais & Châteaux maintain exclusivity, accepting only 5% of membership inquiries.

7 min

All-around game: Kurt Alexander leads the multidimensional Omni Hotels & Resorts

🏨 Duke University's basketball program, led by Coach K for nearly 45 years, influences Kurt Alexander, president of Omni Hotels & Resorts. Omni, a vertically integrated company, operates around 50 properties, including the newly opened 801-room Omni Fort Lauderdale (December 2025). Celebrating 30 years under TRT Holdings, Omni is expanding with projects in Texas, North Carolina, and Mexico. Omni prioritizes guest experience over rapid expansion, with a $170 million renovation completed at The Omni Homestead in Virginia.

4 min

Trio of investors bet big on The Big Apple with Intercontinental Times Square buy

💸 Three investment groups—Gencom, Argent Ventures, and Highgate—acquired the InterContinental New York Times Square, a 607-room, 34-story hotel, for $230 million, or approximately $379,000 per room. The sale involved a $190-million loan from Monroe Capital. The hotel, opened in July 2010, features 20,000 square feet of meeting space and plans for renovations. Highgate will manage the hotel under a franchise agreement, and Eastdil Secured facilitated the transaction.

2 min

At Great Wolf Lodge, guests can now buy unlimited fun

🏊 Unlimited waterpark fun at Great Wolf Lodge starts at $65 per person with the new Season Pass. Valid from January 2026 to April 2026, it’s available at Perryville, Md.; Webster, Texas; Atlanta; and Naples. Weekday passes are $65, while anytime passes are $269. The demand for day passes has increased by 25% over the past two years. More than 50% of day-pass users expressed interest in a multi-day option, leading to the introduction of this pass for flexible family enjoyment.

3 min

Hilton isn’t building a cruise ship. But its loyalty members can soon earn and burn on one.

🛢 Hilton, in collaboration with Explora Journeys, will allow Hilton Honors members to earn and use points for cruises starting summer 2026 in the Mediterranean, Northern Europe, and the Caribbean. Explora Journeys plans a fleet of six ships by 2028. A limited-time offer till June 7, 2026, includes 100,000 bonus points per suite and up to $/€400 Journey Experience Credits. AAA projects 21.7 million Americans will cruise in 2026, an increase of 4.5% from 2025. Hilton Honors has 235 million members.

2 min

Waterford Hotel Group, Maverick Hotels get together

📊 Waterford Hotel Group and Maverick Hotels & Restaurants announced a merger in December 2025 to consolidate over 50 properties, enhancing growth and operational efficiency. Based in New England and Chicago, the merger aims to expand brand diversity and geographic reach. Waterford operates nine hotels in Connecticut and six in Louisiana. The merger promises new career opportunities and aims for minimal disruption during a year-long integration, strengthening their competitive edge in the hospitality sector.

5 min

Paid in full: For hotels, what’s the point of sale?

💵 Hotels leverage advanced POS systems to enhance guest experiences and boost revenues. Toast's POS, with features like the Toast Go 3 device, integrates with the PMS for seamless operations. Agilysys emphasizes mobile payments, offering Agilysys Pay for secure transactions. Shiji Group’s Infrasys POS focuses on user-friendly interfaces and reliability. FreedomPay uses AI for sales boosts and supports mobile payments. Oracle's Simphony processes 6.3 billion transactions annually, integrates with Opera PMS, and enhances service efficiency.

3 min

Japan’s Mori Trust just acquired one of New York’s preemiment luxury hotels

🏠 New York City, 1624: Hudson Yards opened in 2019. 📍 35 Hudson Yards, a 92-story mixed-use skyscraper, includes the 212-room Equinox Hotel. 💰 Rooms can cost over $1,000 per night. Mori Trust bought the hotel's first 38 floors for $541 million. 🔝 Equinox Hotel features wellness amenities and a Sleep Lab. 🌍 Mori Trust also owns properties in Manhattan and other U.S. cities. In March 2024, Equinox secured $1.8 billion for loans and growth. 🏝️ Equinox Hotels is expanding to Anguilla.

2 min

BodyHoliday taking its wellness-centric ethos to Europe as it bulks up leadership

🏖 BodyHoliday Algarve, a wellness resort in Portugal's Eastern Algarve, opens in 2029. Just 45 minutes from Faro Airport, it spans 26 acres with 175 accommodations and a 40,000-square-foot Wellness Center. The $9 trillion wellness economy by 2028 fuels this expansion. SunSwept Resorts' executive team, including COO Indu Brar and CFO Jean-Charles Denis, leads the project. The resort features a FIFA-standard soccer field and diverse wellness programs, designed by London's Gensler.

3 min

The CEO of Mandarin Oriental is no Luddite. But luxury hospitality is built on connection, not algorithms, he writes.

🏨 Mandarin Oriental aims to more than double its global footprint within the next decade, having already added seven properties in two years and with 30 more developments underway. Laurent Kleitman, appointed group CEO in September 2023, emphasizes that luxury hospitality hinges on human connection rather than technology. The industry is projected to grow nearly 10% annually over the next five years. The "Rising Fans" program supports career development, fostering talent in a digital-first world.

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