Innovation

🏨 HEDNA's Global Distribution Conference returns September 15–17, 2026, at Altis Grand Hotel, Lisbon. Industry leaders will explore AI-driven search impacts on hotel distribution. Highlights include sessions on zero-click guests, AI legalities with Bartholomäus Regenhardt, and intermediary roles. HEDNA President Lisa Murphy emphasizes the importance of gathering the full value chain. Attendees gain strategies to enhance commercial performance. More details and registration at hedna.org/hedna-lisbon-2026.

Think about the last hotel that genuinely surprised you. Not the one with the perfect mattress or the biggest breakfast bar. The one where something happened that you were still talking about a week later. Eric Jafari is building AENDRE, a company that acquires, develops and operates wellness and lifestyle brands. His argument is that too few hotels deliver the surprise and delight that guests deserve, and that lifestyle hotels – once the leaders in this area – have become complacent. On the latest episode of Matt Talks Hospitality, Eric – who also co-founded Locke, edyn and Birch – spoke to Mews CEO Matt Welle about the state of lifestyle hospitality and the importance of wellness and technology if the segment is to have a comeback. How lifestyle hotels got diluted It’s not that hotel design got worse. When the major groups worked out that the same 25 square meters in a lifestyle hotel can generate much more than the equivalent space in a traditional hotel, they hired the same design studios and used the same palette favored by original lifestyle hotels. The visual gap narrowed to almost nothing. This homogenization makes it harder for guests to discern which are true lifestyle hotels and which are clones. Eric also argues that the widespread use of loyalty programs has made it harder for customers to justify paying a premium for more interesting and unique stays. The pull of the points is strong. All of this has diluted what lifestyle hotels can be. Often, they’re now described as “inoffensive” by guests. But inoffensive is what happens when every decision gets optimized without thought or creativity. Nothing is wrong, nobody complains and nothing stands out. As Eric puts it, "The magic happens when we make mistakes." Wellness is not the spa The clearest gap Eric identifies is wellness – and how badly the industry has misread it. "When hoteliers hear the word wellness, they immediately turn to someone sitting by a pool waiting for their massage," he says. The guest he's building for defines it as roughly the opposite. Think saunas with fifty strangers doing breath work before an ice bath. Running clubs and fitness communities. Cooling mattresses and organic food. "It's communal. It's loud." It also doesn't switch off when people travel. The average international visitor to London now stays more than five nights, long enough for tiny gyms and treatment rooms labeled "spa" to become a real problem. Eric extends the door policy to these spaces. If the locals don't want your gym, your sauna, your meditation class, why would a guest choose your hotel for them? Beautiful design is table stakes. The crowd is the product. "Magic happens with energy. Energy happens with people." The wellness market is scattered. Healthy food store at one end of town, mindfulness studio at the other, the gym somewhere else again. Nobody has put the whole day under one roof, but a hotel with a restaurant, gym, spa and a rooftop is closer to

Key Points Engine is acquiring TMC Options Travel (~$408M gross sales volume) to move upmarket from unmanaged, self-booking travelers toward larger managed corporate accounts. The acquisition will fuel an AI-native…

Key Points Engine is acquiring TMC Options Travel (~$408M gross sales volume) to move upmarket from unmanaged, self-booking travelers toward larger managed corporate accounts. The acquisition will fuel an AI-native…

This sponsored content was created in collaboration with a Skift partner. Brand awareness has always provided a degree of protection in travel. Large global hotel companies benefit from years of…

"Where's the nearest street food market?" "I'd love to try oden and dim sum. Which places do locals usually visit?" Questions like these are quite familiar at hotel concierge desks. While guests still ask for landmark recommendations, many are equally curious about neighbourhood bakeries, family-run eateries and local food markets. They are looking for experiences that reflect the everyday rhythms of a destination. Helping guests discover local life does not always require elaborate programmes. At GCSTIMES, it begins with the small details that accompany every stay. The key card is one such touchpoint. Every guest receives it at check-in, carries it throughout their stay and often keeps it as a souvenir. As an access credential, it also represents the hotel's identity and offers an opportunity to introduce the destination from the very first interaction. Some hotels are rethinking what an access credential can communicate. At GCSTIMES, a wooden key card featuring illustrations inspired by local food culture, for example, introduces regional flavours before guests even venture outside. Designed to double as a refrigerator magnet after check-out, it also serves as a lasting reminder of the destination and the experiences associated with it. As hotels continue to refine the guest journey, access credentials can incorporate elements that support both usability and storytelling, including: FSC-certified materials that reflect environmental responsibility; Local food-inspired graphics celebrating regional culinary traditions; Wayfinding cues that encourage guests to explore nearby neighbourhoods and attractions; Accessibility features, such as tactile elements or high-contrast designs; Branding that expresses the property's personality and sense of place. Authentic local experiences are shaped by a series of thoughtful interactions. A concierge's recommendation, a neighbourhood map, or even a key card can encourage guests to explore the places where residents eat, shop and gather. When each touchpoint reflects the destination's character, the hotel becomes a guide to local life from the moment guests check in.

📅 Planners, informed by AI, assess venues based on trust signals like clear content and images, impacting revenue. A survey of 900+ event professionals highlights the importance of building credibility before engagement. Cvent, founded in 1999 and headquartered in Tysons, Virginia, employs over 5,000 people and serves 24,000+ customers globally as of December 31, 2024. Diana Tamboly, based in London, oversees marketing for Cvent’s European operations, focusing on the hospitality sector.

You’re looking for a needle in a haystack. Advance is the magnet. We built Advance, our demand intelligence tool, to give teams access to valuable insights in seconds not hours,…

💼 Accor reported a 2.2% increase in RevPAR for the first half of 2026, with an EBITDA rise of 6.5% to €563 million and a full-year outlook of €1.26 to €1.29 billion. TravelAI acquired Sonder, relaunching it as an AI-powered urban stay guide. Latin America's hotel pipeline reached 759 projects, with early planning up 22%. The Access Group acquired Talent Funnel, managing 75,000 hires annually. Venice's Hotel Danieli reopened as a Four Seasons Hotel.

🛫 BCD Travel invests in AMGINE, enhancing AI solutions for corporate travel. This strategic partnership, announced today, boosts BCD’s AI-powered services like group-air management and email automation. Stephan Baars, BCD’s CEO, highlights the focus on innovation and flexibility. BCD's AI strategy integrates their platform with AMGINE’s tech, optimizing efficiency. Yannis Karmis notes significant productivity gains, while Greg Apple emphasizes the benefits of integrating AI into existing systems for smarter travel experiences.