Innovation

📱 November 18, 2025, in Atlanta, Georgia, USA: Shiji unveils Infrasys POS Move, enhancing mobile hospitality. This innovation allows hotel staff to serve guests anywhere (lobby, pool, restaurant) with iOS devices, enhancing service speed and connection. Initial trials processed hundreds of transactions within hours. Shiji, supporting over 91,000 hotels globally with 5,000 employees, focuses on seamless guest service. IPORT's hardware complements this system, ensuring operational reliability in diverse hospitality settings.

🏨 Jeddah is attracting international attention in Saudi Arabia with new major projects. Mandarin Oriental and Kerzner International are leading developments, enhancing the city's appeal as a key destination for hotel groups.

📈 Change management in the hotel industry involves structured methods to implement new processes and tech, enhancing operations and guest experiences. During the pandemic, adaptive hotels thrived. Challenges include staff resistance, tech integration issues, and operational constraints. Solutions: clear communication, staff engagement, tech investment, and standardized processes. Benefits: better guest experiences, employee retention, and profitability. Strategies include setting SMART goals, piloting changes, and celebrating milestones. Tools like Mews PMS aid successful transitions.

💸 [New York, 18 November 2025] Mews unveils Zero Dollar Authorization, enhancing hotel revenue protection and payment reliability. This feature allows instant card verification without charges. Lacey King from Staypineapple’s The Maxwell Hotel in Seattle highlights its efficiency. Mews also introduces Preauthorization via Payment Request. With over 12,500 clients in 85+ countries, Mews has raised $410 million and received accolades like Best PMS (2024, 2025) and Best Places to Work in Hotel Tech.

🏨 The Hotel Folk, a group of six privately run hotels in Suffolk, has seen its Net Promoter Score rise from 52 in 2021 to 63.5 in 2025. Embracing GuestRevu and AI-powered insights, they’ve improved guest feedback handling and personalisation. Centralised data allows for effective marketing and operational enhancements. AI aids in review management, improving response times and Google rankings, while refurbishment targeting enhances guest experience. The balance of technology and dedicated staff drives their success in hospitality.

✈️ Nov 18, 2025, Google launched a global expansion of its AI travel features. The Flight Deals tool now operates in 200+ countries and supports 60+ languages. Users can describe their travel plans, and AI offers the best fares. AI Mode’s Canvas generates itineraries using real-time data. In the U.S., AI handles restaurant, events, and wellness bookings. Future updates will allow hotel and flight bookings directly in AI Mode. Read more: TechCrunch

🛫 Nov 18, 2025, Europe: Chinese travelers are exploring longer, farther, and more diverse destinations. Trip.com reports a 20% increase in third-quarter outbound bookings, reaching 140% of 2019 levels. Europe, especially Iceland, Norway, Spain, Italy, and Germany, sees significant growth. Flights are at 88% of pre-pandemic capacity. Seniors spend three times more than younger travelers, while revenue from young travelers jumps due to concerts. AI tools like TripGenie enhance personalization with over 200% usage growth.

📈 Denver, CO – Cogwheel Analytics launched a new Market-Level Benchmarking feature for hotels to compare digital marketing performance in their geographic area. Available with a minimum of four hotels per MSA, it supports 630 hotels across 37 markets. The platform uses AI to aggregate data from over 44 sources, enhancing marketing strategies to boost revenue and market share. The initiative is in collaboration with Microsoft AI Co-Innovation Labs.