Dear Insider,

Change is here, holiday patterns are collapsing... These are the headlines of the two articles about the current summer season. Four authors describe the mood in eight countries (Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Spain, Italy, France, Belgium and the Netherlands). No country is cheering, the positive news is always followed by a "but". Germany is moving backwards, which was to be expected. Italians are looking forward to summer, but the mountains are taking over from the beaches. Spain remains the sunshine of Europe, France gets a cold shower.

What moved me: The Spaniards and the French complain that they can no longer afford an island holiday in their own country. Is this the next trigger for even more protests against tourism? One thing has bothered me for a long while: Time and again, associations such as hotel groups draw comparisons between 2025 and pre-Covid. Hello! This no longer works. Today, the hotel industry operates in a completely different environment; an environment that in 2019 certainly could not have even been imagined. Let’s put an end to these illogical conclusions! Brilliant figures in large volumes secure the show, but not the profit backstage.

In Italy, international hotel investors are already channelling their capital into fewer and new segments, e.g. outdoor tourism, new types of hostels, branded residences and serviced apartments. In a nutshell: They invest for those on a smaller budget as well as for the bulging wallets of the wealthy. Capital follows the social divide. Massimiliano Sarti on the latest real estate trend in his home country.

The hotel pipelines in Italy will therefore be stocked differently; in the global hotel development pipeline, luxury hotels are leading the way and setting new records. Meanwhile, the Viennese hotel industry is fighting against a drastically increased tourism tax, which is set to rise from 3.2 to 8.5 percent. Associations and entrepreneurs are boiling with rage. The state wants to cash in, but only in the hotel industry, not in other sectors. The protest has at least achieved an initial concession.

After all the big, bare trends of today, it's fun to chat with Michaela Reitterer, the well-known hotel entrepreneur behind the sustainable Boutiquehotel Stadthalle Wien, and Johannes Eckelmann from the small Cocoon Group in Munich. Both are creative entrepreneurs; they didn't know each other, but they think alike, and she has now handed over her life's work to him. Both are committed family entrepreneurs and owner-operators. Listening to them is simply good for you. A snapshot.

Austrians were also the drivers of online reviews in tourism. The European Commission has now published a new code of conduct. You can find details on this in the public Marketplace, as well as the interesting TÜV analysis on how customers use their smartphones sustainably, among other things. Do you always buy a new device or are you "ready for repair"?

A futurologist from Austria, who will be attending the Quality Reservation event "Redebedarf" at the end of October, presents himself like a rock star. QR boss Caro Brauer interviewed him in advance. A contribution from our content partner.

We say goodbye today with Bavarian beer and the beer connoisseurs who will be competing in the World Beer Sommelier Championships this weekend. Enjoy the training session! On 20 September, the 190th Oktoberfest will begin in Munich. Cheers!

Yours, Maria Pütz-Willems
Editor-in-Chief