Dear Insiders,
At the World Economic Forum in Davos this week, sombre politicians tell the world how they are surrounded by chaos. To see where the fires are burning, they should take a look on a world tourism map. After the terror attacks, Egypt has not settled. Instability and fluctuation on micro-markets are again the norm. Current reports by Moevenpick, Orascom and Steigenberger prove just as much.
Italy is also suffering, though here the chaos has a domestic cause: Hotels have fewer and fewer employees, more and more hotels are being offered for sale by auction and important legislation has not got off the ground.
IT trends and the OTAs are a thorn in the side of all concerned: The Austrian Hotelier Association found in one study in German-speaking Europe that not even half of all hotels consider themselves to be "digitally advanced". Put differently: Hoteliers still haven't understood distribution - and are still not using painstakingly collected guest data for attracting more guests, as they themselves admit. The OEHV also plans to take legal action against the OTAs.
Our three articles this week - on Egypt at present, Italy in review/outlook 2015/16 and on the OEHV annual congress - show just how challenging it has become to be a hotelier. What the sector needs now are charismatic ambassadors, effective lobbyists in Davos and at the heart of government... But I've never heard of there being such people in the hotel industry. Or do you know any?
One can cling to statistics with hope though: The "World Travel Trends Report 2015/16" expects further growth in city travel. But trend researchers raise a finger in caution: For the first time, they mention that popular destinations will suffer as a result of terrorism, and they also warn of the negative impact of mass tourism. New songs in paradise?
The news that Paris still has the best image of all of the world's cities is good. It's like balm for the soul of the city. Berlin and Amsterdam also come in under the top 10 for the first time. Michael Altewischer from Wellness-Hotels & Resorts didn't agree with the top 10 spa trends from the US. He provides his comments this week from a European perspective.
This and more in today's edition. Take a dip into the confusing and confused world of hotels. I think 2016 still has an awful lot of new explosive material waiting.
The next ITB will give an initial impression here. The "ITB Hospitality Day", which we will organise for the 11th time will this year focus on the topic of digitisation. More shortly when all participants are clear. We are also preparing our "ITB SPECIAL" which we provide free of charge at the trade fair itself and in Berlin hotels and of course also online. If you'd like to use this marketing platform - production of the high gloss magazine has not yet begun. Our joint stand "World of Hospitality" in Hall 9 will this year also include Al Jazeera Media Networks, as already in 2014. Two places for participation at the stand are still open, last opportunity for last-minute decision-makers. More on this on page 1.
Alumni of Cornell and EHL should also resevere Tuesday evening ahead of ITB for the traditional Get-Together at the Adlon Berlin! More on page 1.

Dear Insiders,
Happy New Year to all of you! But will it really be a happy year? We don't know as we don't have a crystal ball, too but looking back to 2015, we can see, which subjects will drag into this year or will even be intensified. I'm currently most worried about the issue of terror + tourism.
You are able to take legal action against questionable general terms and conditions of OTAs as well as Airbnb's arbitrariness; however, will the majority of travellers make a stand against terror in the long run? I believe that this lasting series of negative events will have an impact on the behaviour of leisure travellers. We have therefore given today's general industry review the title "A year of signals".
In Switzerland, it's about time to follow up the signals with concrete actions very quickly. Precisely one year ago, the francs/euro decoupling dragged the hotel industry down. Since then, the number of overnight stays has been decreasing. The situation has become dramatic for the small alpine hoteliers. Christoph Juen, disillusioned CEO of the industry association hotelleriesuisse, summarises the situation after 12 months and severely presses for the solidarity of hoteliers and tourism experts.
The European industry association HOTREC hopes for faster answers too, as it keeps fighting for the micro-structured hotel industry on many levels. CEO Christian de Barrin and Sarah Douag take stock of the lobby's successes in 2015 as well as continuing challenges such as OTAs, sharing economy and jobs.
In the meantime, the rejoicing in the investment industry knows no bounds: 2015 provides historic records concerning transactions, and the demand among investors – an increasing number of Asian investors is amongst them – maintains the cheerful mood at a high level. The message of the German Cartel Office on December 23, 2015 was not a joyous Christmas message for Booking.com: just like HRS, the OTA has to do without rate parity now. However, Booking is not willing to put up with this, as shown in two answers this week.
2016 continues to be as exciting as 2015 ended. We can only hope that some things will finally be clarified and get some structure... At least, we will stick to our resolution to provide you with solid background information and first-hand opinions! In 2016, we look forward to your many good suggestions again, dear readers. hospitalityInside is made for YOU. – The full editorial…

Dear Insiders,

It's Christmas again! A hyper-dynamic year comes to an end, a year with ups and downs and with far-reaching circumstances. Only very rarely has this review been associated with so many negative, aggressive and threatening aspects as in 2015. However, I will write the industry review in our first issue in January as a large merger seems to be in the making, according to insider rumours.
This week, there was "only" the announcement of the final sale of B&B Hotels. But here, we are talking again about the mega sum of 850 to 900 million euros. In the aftermath of the merger of AccorHotels/FRHI, we were able to gather some new figures and interesting statements.
Members of the Accor family will not be able to forget this year easily: the attacks in Paris weighed heavily on everyone; internal projects such as the online platform of AccorHotels and the current merger kept them in further suspense. How are businesses able to manoeuvre through such waves?
t the end of this memorable year, I wanted to know from Eike Kraft, Vice President Communications at AccorHotels, what large and small crises mean for the communication in today's business and how crises can be nipped in the bud and controlled faster. Social media and their speed are the biggest "danger potential" in harming a business. Kraft: "In the online channels, everything is being discussed: from a fly in the ointment up to terrorism. The businesses have to rethink!"
The OTA industry is also consolidating and looking for new business segments at the same time, e.g. the sector of rental homes and houses. In the second part about OTA dynamics in the market, Sarah Douag reports that we should not only have our eye on western giants like Booking.com, Expedia, TripAdvisor and HRS, but also eastern ones, especially from China.
Since many hoteliers and hotel experts are railing against Airbnb, we found three, who experienced Airbnb & Co. in a "self-experiment" and were willing to talk about it: banker Uwe Niemann in New York with his family, hotelier Otto Lindner about an apartment in Tokyo, and the luxury brand consultant Claudia Roth about a rented villa in Bali.

With this easy reading and some colourful bits of news, we would like to take our leave into the winter break. Our office will be open again on January 11. And our next issue will be published on January 15, as usual!

In light of this very dynamic year, we would like to thank all our readers, business partners and our own staff members, authors, experts and translators very cordially. They helped us again to publish hundreds of interesting articles and realise many top-class events in the 10th year of HospitalityInside.

Merry Christmas and a happy New Year!
Yours, Maria Puetz-Willems & the hospitalityInside team

Dear Insiders,
The ticket into the luxury segment wasn't exactly cheap, but it obviously arrived more quickly than anticipated: AccorHotels can now extend its portfolio to include luxury legends with names like Fairmont and Raffles. And the ambitious Sébastien Bazin can finally take a step into a glamorous world populated by Arab sheikhs.
Both the Qataris and the Saudi Prince Alwaleed are, however, known to be meticulous businessmen and will look carefully at Bazin's plans - not only as owner of individual luxury hotels, but now also as influential Accor shareholders. Has Bazin perhaps let the wolf through the door here? Now, the ex-investment banker must prove his strategy and explain his mistakes as operations man to the most influential hotel investors in the world. That'll be exciting.
Of the three brands acquired - Fairmont, Raffles and Swissôtel - at first glance only Swissôtel would appear at risk of being absorbed by the Accor hotel brands. With respect to the other two, AccorHotels is more likely to bask in their renown. AccorHotels will now learn what real international luxury looks like...
I believe: The brands did not play the leading role, despite all the talk. It's a matter of market capitalisation. The two other - smaller - deals this week were quite different: Pandox bought 18 Leonardo hotel properties together with lease agreements and Louvre took on operations for the German Nordic Hotels. Also exciting.
The first part of two contributions on OTAs fits well with these mergers today: In this segment too, the one eats up the other and nobody cares about the business model from yesterday. Sarah Douag on the evolution of Expedia, Sabre, TripAdvisor, Priceline and Google.
And the "consolidation" of the big companies, is also having an impact on the small. The renowned US data research company Phocuswright analysed the distribution behaviour of American and European private hoteliers. And some very interesting findings came of it.
And figures once again - even if Expo Milan didn't want to publish these officially. Massimiliano Sarti has succeeded in estimating what the exhibition in Milan has done for Italy.
And in other news: Airbnb gains presence in Switzerland, AccorHotels and IHG increased security after the terror attacks. Karl Nueser hands over the reins at Nassauer Hof Wiesbaden to a younger team after 40 years, and Kneipp cures are now part of our intangible cultural heritage. At least we end on something positive today. – The full editorial …

Dear Insiders,
Whereas online check-in was very much the exception just a year ago, the number of hotels taking the plunge has meanwhile grown considerably. Now, the first hotels/hotel groups are even allowing their guests to open their room doors by smartphone. And already a third of guests are doing it! In five years, this IT service will be a must - everyone agrees. Susanne Stauss asked prizeotel, B&B, Lindner Hotels, the private hotel Schani Vienna and AccorHotels.
The hotel industry must think more about the "customer journey" and about the types of guests it has. The sector is still simply too slow. I once again noticed this at a media workshop on start-ups and innovative ideas. Three examples - the cruise portal Dreamlines, the good old Post bus and the Deutsche Bahn - report on their efforts to keep up with the trend in digitization and personalisation. If monoliths like the Deutsche Bahn can move here, it should certainly be possible for the more diverse and spontaneously creative hotel sector to look more closely at its guests needs. Or in networks or in partnerships perhaps...
Companies like Siteminder want to relieve the hotelier's burden, at least as far as spreading their booking channels goes. Sarah Douag describes the channel manager and its services.
The result of the autumn survey for the hospitalityInside INVESTMENT BAROMETER, which we conduct in collaboration with Union Investment, is extremely motivating. For the first time since the start of the survey two years ago, all sub-indices have revealed a clear movement upwards - the hotel real estate sector has never been so euphoric! A summary of results can be found on Page 1. Subscribers find an extended version in the magazine. Those who took part will receive the full analysis by e-mail.
In the news this week: The climate conference in Paris has brought some relief to Parisian hoteliers - as well as to Airbnb. But the P2P website now has a little competition. A new website also aims to bring together host and guest - but only within the framework of certain events. City tourism is also growing, but certain of Europe's cities still have a persistent need for beds, one study finds.
And last but not least: The joint stand "World of Hospitality" at ITB 2016 is taking shape. Would you like to benefit from our network in hall 9? Talk to us! – The full editorial…

Dear Insiders,
Paris, Brussels, Bamako: Rezidor CEO Wolfgang M. Neumann and his team have experienced tragic events. On Wednesday evening, Neumann returned from Bamako in Mali, Africa, where Islamic terrorists stormed the Radisson Blu on Friday and took hostages. 22 people died. At the same time, colleagues at the headquarters in Brussels saw the terror alarm level raised to high red after the wave of IS attacks in Paris. Both people as well as hotels in Paris are suffering.
I had a telephone conversation yesterday with a shocked Wolfgang Neumann: His account from Bamako, his reports on security, crisis-control and the fear experienced by staff should interest everybody. After all, terror can affect any one of us, every day and on each street corner.
Parallel to this, Sarah Douag asked Didier Ranchon, head of a risk management company based in Brussels, for his thoughts. He advises on the signals hoteliers and proprietors should pay attention to - and worries about the fact that in many internationally expanding hotel groups there are innumerable heads of department, but nobody responsible for security.
In Berlin last week, the third conference of "So!Apart" took place and is set to become the central event of the up-and-coming serviced apartment scene. The results presented are currently more a trend indication, but the benchmark has already been set.
We have recently looked a lot and critically at Airbnb. The Australian Murray Cox has made a job of criticising Airbnb and founded the "Anti-Airbnb" website: "Inside Airbnb". He analyses all statements from the company and its hosts - and comes to quite different results. Airbnb hates him for it. In an interview with us, Cox recounts how everything began, what his own research has revealed and why Airbnb under the guise of "sharing" had had a profound affect on the housing market.
Dear readers, would you also like to tell us about your experiences with Airbnb? As hotelier or hotel expert, you have an interesting viewpoint on experiences of this kind. We are planning such a story. Please send your experiences by the end of next week to maria@hospitalityInside.com.
The "merger of the week" comes this week from distribution: Sabre buys Trust. We have collected more opinions on the Marriott-Starwood merger, the US has issued a global travel warning, and the German Hotel Association has now taken legal action against Booking.com because the OTA allegedly reads eMails between hotels and customers.
Looking at these lines today, I ask myself: In what sort of world are we living?- The full editorial...

Dear Insiders,
Following the - for everyone - unexpected acquisition of Starwood Hotels by Marriott last Monday, we asked a merger experienced consultant and business partners of Starwood for their assessment of the mega-deal: 30 brands don't make sense for anybody, and the fact that the world's biggest chain has been created in no way means that Big Marriott will now expand faster around the world. Outside the US, both chains quickly reached their limits. The merger itself followed on the basis of a tough stock-market calculation, its "charm" is to be found in increasing efficiency through economies of scale - currently the uniquely sweet prospect for owners and investors. One expert estimates that 3 to 5 years will pass before Marriott has digested Starwood.
The terror in Paris last week has been a source of bitter suffering to many people. Tourism reacted immediately: Occupancy in hotels fell sharply and significantly. Two days before the attacks, Airbnb held its annual convention in Paris. Meanwhile, a study on New York has revealed how much damage the OTA for private apartments does to the hotel sector. Airbnb describes the study as wrong. At the same time, European hotel associations have now mobilised the EU and have put forward their own 10-point plan. The situation remains tense. A current summary.
New times and framework conditions should also be reflected in operator contracts. How much insight these should give investors was discussed by a panel at the Expo Real. This contribution today concludes our coverage of Expo Real.
Our releases today include interesting fact on global transactions, a new study on the "smart home" and an analysis of which a brand switch can bring. The latter fits excellently with our big topic Marriott-Starwood. - The full editorial…

Dear Insiders,
As announced last Friday, Reto Wittwer is braced for a legal counterattack: After Kempinski Hotels brought fraud charges against its former CEO last week, Reto Wittwer on Wednesday filed charges of his own against current CEO Alejandro Bernabé and Supervisory Board member Michael Selby for false accusations, slander and defamation. Now, Wittwer's lawyer speaks and the second public prosecutor has opened investigations.
Our Kempinski story last week produced a broad echo. We thank our readers for their comments, which reveal one thing above all else: a shaking of heads and astonishment at how senior managers treat each other.
Rumours are also rife with respect to many allegedly imminent mergers and acquisitions. Of course, the big names are involved: Starwood, Hyatt, Accor, Fairmont, Jin Jiang… Sarah Douag tests the rumours for their truth and asked a neutral hospitality professor from Toronto what mergers would make sense.
Such deals always mean miraculous sums of money for shareholders, hidden behind the harmless sounding words "value increase". That this can only be achieved in day-to-day operations through fine operational changes though was illustrated by a talkround at the Expo Real attended by top managers from Yotel, Premier Inn, Kempinski and Cedar Capital.
Against a backdrop of share and real estate deals, this talkround in October once again shows that the hotel industry is helpless against the aggressive moves of large listed players.
Our colleague from Milan, Massimiliano Sarto, also used the Expo Real to ask exhibitors about their plans for Italy. The conclusion: Everyone is looking for a way into the hotel industry, but it's incredibly difficult to get a foothold. Despite various approaches and concepts.
Booking.com reported this week that classic hotels account for only 30 percent of its portfolio. A holiday apartment report fits well with this. According to the report, Germans meanwhile largely tend to book this type of accommodation online. With regard to the appeal of hotel real estate in general, an investor survey conducted by the ZIA in Berlin provides some interesting figures and questions. - The full editorial …

Dear Insiders,
When Kempinski accused its former CEO Reto Wittwer of fraud publicly via press release on Monday, I was very astonished about the aggressiveness of this otherwise rather quiet and discrete hotel group. Therefore, hospitalityInside.com refrained from "Breaking News" and enquired instead. At the same time, I got out my research notes from the last 12 months. And yesterday, I was able to talk to Reto Wittwer.
After this public affront, he is no longer keeping silent: "I will take all possible legal action against these allegations!" he announced. One year ago, he did not retire – as announced back then – but was fired. And not in Geneva but, with good reason, in Abu Dhabi. There, in the Emirates Palace, a Hollywood-style showdown took place.
Showdown in Abu Dhabi, premiere in Munich: Nobu was there and opened its first restaurant in Germany, the Matsuhisa in the refurbished Mandarin Oriental Hotel. A culinary world-class brand in the society world of Munich! An exciting premiere. The old "Rafael Hotel" is no longer recognisable anyway. With its new design and the culinary art of the Japanese celebrity chef, a class enters Germany's 5-star hotel world, which is able to hold its own against comparisons like London and Paris. Courtesy of sushi!
In Germany, Lindner Hotels are definitely among the large and creative chains, eager to try out new things. One year ago, they presented their second brand "me and all", but the cool design concept was not convincing. Since then, the concept has been scrutinised repeatedly, and now Lindner's COO Andreas Kroekel is able to present a casual urban-style, cosy and warm boutique hotel concept. And five locations on top of it.
Every week, there is movement in the world of IT and investment: London remains the hotspot for hotel investments, OTA Expedia is currently buying the holiday home provider HomeAway with all brands, Design Hoteliers are now able to join Starwood's loyalty programme SPG, and the Spanish Paradores have opened up to franchise.
Our autumn survey on the "Investment Barometer" in collaboration with Union Investment will close down in two days, on Sunday! Your opinion is still important to us! Two minutes, a few clicks: Participants will receive the full analysis. – The full editorial…

Dear Insiders,
Starwood will be able to tell its sales story in many parts one day – nearly every week, media reveal new "morsels": Now, Hyatt is apparently bidding with one of three Chinese groups for the lifestyle hotel company. In a scenario à la Jin Jiang+Starwood, for example, the clash of cultures would be inevitable; Starwood executives have wrinkled their noses at this idea for a long time now. Hyatt would clearly be the better option. However, the shareholders take little heed of this: Starwood's share price has already increased through these speculations alone. The poker story is well underway.
Small groups are also profiting from the current global voraciousness: even the small Austrian and widely unknown Koller family was able to sell its 10 hotels to US investment giants, simply because they could offer sexy properties. This deal speaks for little interest in hotel operations.
Financial jugglers are herding the hotel industry – no longer discretely and sporadically, but overwhelmingly and aggressively. And they are already changing micro market structures, as the Koller example shows.
Funds are also changing the market. Now, Commerz Real is participating, hiring hotel experts, launching a mega special fund for hotels and already wants to buy projects in the planning phase. CEO Robert Bambach explains in an interview why he regards hotels as sexy properties all of a sudden.
Every hotel property needs a concept. A panel discussion at Expo Real's hotel conference showed what it means to invest in "lifestyle hotels". Fred Fettner suggests the meaning in his slightly sarcastic statement: "A room style for each lifestyle." However, the change and dynamics in the market are no longer reversible: Dirk Bakker at Colliers Int. summarises the current trends in his Expo Real keynote. His message between the lines was very simple: You have to question yourself and you have to adapt or you will be overrun. See financial jugglers.
The Italian hotel market is currently driven by completely different and dry facts: the booking channels are changing, which is clearly shown in the increased demand for Agriturismo and Sharing Economy. Cheap and individual is "in" and Italians have not yet overcome the hotel crisis by a long shot. Analysis of an encouraging Italian summer.
Our autumn survey on the "Investment Barometer" in collaboration with Union Investment is still underway for another 9 days! Your opinion is important to us! Participants will receive the full analysis.
More colourful news rounds off today's issue, and I wish you a good read! – The full editorial...