Kate Harden-England

🏖️ FitMont, a global payment orchestration platform, revealed survey findings on European online travel booking habits, highlighting that 1 in 10 travelers faced refund issues on canceled holidays. 67% rarely review policies pre-booking, 33% are deterred by hidden fees, 14% are loyal due to rewards, 20% find travel booking more complicated than retail, and 25% prefer transparent cost companies. Seamless payment options like Apple Pay and Klarna may enhance travel firms' appeal, particularly among younger demographics, by simplifying the booking process and being upfront about costs.

✈ European low-cost airline Ryanair has partnered with Trip.com, a leading travel service provider, to expand its "Approved OTA" program. Trip.com Group's platforms, including TrainPal and Vayama, now offer Ryanair's low-fare flights. This follows Ryanair's previous partnerships with lastminute.com, On the Beach, Tui, Loveholidays, Kiwi.com, and Etraveli earlier in the year. The deal ensures Trip.com customers have direct access to bookings and essential flight information without extra verification. Bookings through Trip.com will begin in the coming weeks.

💸 Profitroom is offering free digital health checks for hoteliers amid 100,000 hospitality vacancies as reported by the Office for National Statistics. The "Profitroom On Tour" events run from September 9-12, targeting areas with high job vacancies like hospitality, trailing service industries, human health, social work, wholesale, and retail trade. Stops include St Michaels Resort, Cornwall (Sept 9, 5pm); Woolacombe Bay Hotel, Devon (Sept 10, 5pm); Stratton House Hotel, Cotswolds (Sept 11, 5pm); The Great House, Sonning (Sept 12, 6pm). Insights from tech experts aim to help optimize digital presence and boost operations against staffing challenges.

🏨 BWH Hotels, encompassing WorldHotels, Best Western Hotels & Resorts, and SureStay Hotels, partners with Canary Technologies to implement an AI-driven Guest Management System. The system integrates tools like Smart Checkout, Mobile Check-In, and Guest Messaging to personalize and enhance the guest experience. Larry Cuculic, president and CEO of BWH Hotels, aims to modernize guest services aligning with today's tech-savvy travelers. Harman Singh Narula, CEO of Canary, emphasizes the necessity of digital touchpoints in hospitality.