Market Trends

🚄 Accor and LVMH are reviving the Orient Express, not just as a train but as a luxury lifestyle platform with trains, hotels, and yachts. Accor acquired sole ownership in 2022, with plans including the La Dolce Vita train (2025) and L’Orient Express (2026). Key hotels in Rome and Venice open in 2025 and 2026, respectively. The Corinthian yacht, launching in 2026, features 54 suites. This strategy aims to reposition Orient Express as a leader in heritage-based luxury travel.

📈 NYU IHIF conference revealed that data can hinder hotel performance if not collected and analyzed correctly. Misaligned incentives within hotel teams can affect profitability. Josiah Mackenzie, VP of marketing at Actabl, emphasizes the need for strategic data use to enhance profitability and team alignment. Leaders must overcome "analysis paralysis," focusing on actionable insights rather than vanity metrics, to drive results. Mackenzie’s experience spans over 15 years in leading hotel data projects globally.

🏨 Crestline Hotels & Resorts, led by CEO James Carroll since 2010, is celebrating its 25th anniversary in Fairfax, Virginia. Initially part of Marriott, it spun off in 2000 and now manages over 120 hotels. In 2023, Crestline added The Delphi in Los Angeles to its portfolio. Despite a 17.5% drop in global hotel transactions in 2025, Crestline's growth persists, managing 25 hotels for Apple Hospitality REIT. Key investments include expanding its digital team and hiring a VP of F&B.

💼 BWH Hotels and Choice Hotels prioritize trust with franchisees through transparent communication and support. 🗓️ In 2024, Choice University saw nearly 2 million course completions, boosting LTR scores by 1.4 points. 🏆 Both brands emphasize franchisee success via learning resources, innovation, and recognition. 🌐 Multi-channel communication, including newsletters, webinars, and an online portal, ensures franchisee engagement. 🤝 Franchisee Tanna Zywina highlights BWH’s collaborative structure, enhancing relationships and hotel performance.

🏠 Soho House, founded in London in 1995 by Nick Jones, turns 30 this year. It returns to private ownership under MCR Hotels, with Ashton Kutcher joining the board. The brand once symbolized exclusivity and creativity but faced challenges with overexpansion, a 30% membership rise since 2021, diluted quality, and a 45% stock drop. Going private aims to restore its iconicity, focusing on intimacy, creativity, and belonging, as advised by Nicky Della Mote.

🏠 The Inn at Loch Tummel in Pitlochry, Scotland, is marketed by Graham + Sibbald for over £525,000. Built in the 1800s, it features six refurbished en-suite bedrooms, a restaurant, a bar, and an outdoor terrace overlooking Loch Tummel. Additional facilities include a two-bedroom owner’s flat and two staff caravans. Located near Queen’s View, current ownership has been since March 2016. The site combines heritage with strong business potential.

✈️ SAP Concur's 2025 Global Business Travel Survey highlights that 89% of business travelers, 93% of travel managers, and 90% of CFOs anticipate their travel budgets to increase or remain stable. In the first half of 2025, global business travel volume rose by 2.6% from 2024. Airfare prices averaged $1,681 in Q1 and $1,684 in Q2 2025. The US, Germany, and the UK are the top international destinations, with the US accounting for 15.3% of all international business trips.

📅 July 2025 in Arlington, Virginia: The U.S. hotel industry faced declines compared to July 2024. Occupancy dropped to 68.2% (a decrease of 1.0%), ADR fell to $161.90 (down 0.1%), and RevPAR decreased to $110.37 (down 1.1%). New York City had the highest occupancy among the Top 25 Markets at 85.2% (down 1.1%), while New Orleans and Phoenix recorded the lowest, at 53.9% and 55.3% respectively.