Innovation

📚 San Francisco, 16 September 2025—Hospitable launches Hospitable Academy, offering free, expert-led courses for short-term rental hosts and property managers to enhance skills globally. The first course, by Matthew Krueger, covers transitioning from long-term to short-term rentals with a six-chapter, 18-lesson structure. Designed to boost income and improve guest experiences, the Academy is accessible worldwide, aligning with Hospitable's mission of combining technology and education for industry growth.

📰 Shiji and Amadeus announce a strategic partnership, transforming the hospitality industry with access to top-tier technology across PMS, POS, CRS, sales & catering, and operations. This collaboration offers a unified vendor experience, enhancing service delivery for thousands of hotel F&B outlets globally. This initiative is guided by Shiji's mission to deliver superior hospitality tech and Amadeus's best-in-class solutions, marked by gratitude towards Paco Pérez-Lozao Rüter and the Amadeus team.

📷 Vanshikha Dhar explains why virtual tours are crucial for hoteliers as first impressions occur online. On September 15, 2025, a blog post by Hotelogix highlights how travelers prefer exploring and experiencing hotel properties virtually before booking. This growing trend in hospitality emphasizes the need for hotels to offer more than static photos on their websites. By utilizing virtual tours, hotels can provide an immersive experience, enhancing customer engagement and potentially increasing bookings.

📱 September 13, 2025 – Hotelogix Blog highlights the top 5 mobile-first hotel management systems for on-the-go managers. These platforms allow efficient management of bookings, housekeeping, and financials remotely, ensuring control even when off-site. Authored by Vanshikha Dhar, this article emphasizes the importance of mobile solutions in hospitality, catering to modern needs and enhancing operational flexibility. Explore the best options to keep your hotel operations seamless from any location.

🛅 Great Wolf Lodge completed a nationwide rollout of Virdee-powered check-in kiosks across its 22 indoor water park resorts. These kiosks, equipped with RFID wristband dispensers, handle over one million annual check-ins. Approximately 50% of guests use these systems, peaking at 70% on busy days. Virdee supports 38,000 monthly Room Ready Notifications, enhancing guest experiences by allowing early check-ins. The initiative aims to reduce congestion, improve guest satisfaction, and boost upsell revenue while enhancing front desk operations.

📶 Travel companies in 2025 are using AI for billing, affecting rental cars, hotels, and airlines. Hertz employs AI to detect car damage, but errors occur. Airlines use AI for dynamic pricing, causing prices to fluctuate based on user data. Consumers can counter AI by documenting car conditions, using private browsing, and disputing charges. AI may increase travel costs significantly, so vigilance is crucial. These AI systems operate largely without transparency, making consumer protection challenging.

🏨 2025 hospitality faces challenges due to 82% hotel staffing shortages, impacting operations and revenues. AI-powered Customer Experience (CX) ecosystems transform service, integrating AI Agents resolving 80% of queries, Customer Data Platforms for personalized interactions, and Customer Experience Platforms enhancing reputation. Hotels leveraging this ecosystem see 140% higher spend from satisfied guests and 3.9 times more bookings from positive reviews. TrustYou’s AI boosts direct bookings, guest satisfaction, and reputation through seamless service integration.

🌎 Experiential travel company Not In The Guidebooks (NITGB) partners with TProfile to streamline booking processes for agents. The integration allows for instant access to itineraries, CRM management, and live analytics, enhancing customer satisfaction. TProfile collaborates with over 70 travel brands across the UK, US, Canada, and Ireland. Debbie Sowden from NITGB highlights reduced admin tasks, while Bhavneeta Taylor of TProfile emphasizes improved proposal delivery. This collaboration supports experience-focused travel needs.

💻 Perth Airport, in collaboration with Amadeus, is implementing Australia's first fully-automated departure process using advanced biometric technology. Initiated in 2015, this upgrade features 95 self-service check-in kiosks and replaces nearly 40 traditional counters with bag drop units. Since 2022, biometrics have been trialed, enabling travelers to check in and board using face scans instead of passports. This technology enhances efficiency and supports airport growth, catering to more passengers without expanding physical space.