Market Trends

📚 May 5th at 8:30 a.m., Las Vegas sees the fourth annual Women in Design Awards at the HD Expo + Conference. Six honorees include Grace Escaño-Maniatis, leading design at Auberge Collection, Amy Jakubowski at Gensler, and Suchi Reddy, founder of Reddymade. These women, shaping the hospitality sector, emphasize sustainability, human-centered design, and innovative solutions. Key projects span from Waldorf Astoria New York to Google’s NYC store, showcasing their global impact.

🚀 Stratview Research predicts space tourism will accelerate, hitting USD 19.12 billion by 2032, up from USD 1.05 billion in 2024. North America leads due to a mature aerospace ecosystem. Key players include Blue Origin, Virgin Galactic, and SpaceX. Sub-orbital and orbital flights will grow, with orbital expected to expand fastest. Influences include media and high-net-worth individuals. Blue Origin paused flights in 2026, but forecasts remain positive, with projections of USD 20.1 billion in 2033 and USD 62.1 billion by 2036.

🏨 2025 saw hotel transactions rise as interest rates stabilized, especially in secondary and primary U.S. cities. Transaction volume increased in Q3 2025, with a focus on properties under $25 million. Interest rates, expected to fall below 7%, influenced buying strategies. In 2026, market optimism prevails, with a strategic shift towards fundamentals over volume. Branding and performance trends shape valuations, while renovation decisions impact sale prices. Sellers should carefully assess timing, pricing, and renovation strategies to align with market conditions.

🏨 Emily Johnson, founder of Elevate Wellness Collective, explains why hotels often misinterpret wellness, focusing beyond spas to include mental and emotional well-being. She argues for integrating wellness into design and operations strategies, not as a standalone amenity. This discussion is part of Hospitality Daily, supported by Mews, a hospitality operating system. For more on AI and hotel tech, listen to Richard Valtr's insights. Transform these ideas into actionable strategies for your team!

🛫 In 2026, agentic AI transforms travel: 39% of U.S. travelers use AI for trip planning, up from 28% last year. General search usage drops from 51% in 2024 to 36% in 2025, while ChatGPT use triples. 83% of travel businesses use generative AI, with 88% seeing benefits. 61% of executives are scaling agentic AI, shifting from exploration to execution. Major platforms race to capture agentic bookings, as AI becomes a core competitive driver.

🏨 Hotels, over 30 years, equated loyalty with transactions, using points and tiers rather than genuine recognition, leading to a transactional, not loyal, relationship. Independent hotels, like John Sutton's Journey, focus on genuine guest understanding, not just data collection. Loyalty should be about recognition and care, not just points. Sutton, previously from a $10B tech firm, promotes hospitality's original promise: making guests feel known. Points attract; care retains.