News & Stories

Munich. The range goes from low budget to luxury budget, and it is the minor details that make the difference. It is all the more astonishing to see what little details make a profitable hotel out of a bare 1 to 2-star product. Low-cost accommodation has entered the minds of investors, operators and travellers like no other segment over the past few years. In the meantime, budget hotels have even become a fund issue. PKF hotelexperts Muenchen, in cooperation with hospitalityInside.com has now analysed the development of this special real estate, its key figures, sample calculations and economic comparative data. The recently completed report on "Budget Hotels in Germany" is the first of its kind that deals with figures and facts of this booming segment in such a detailed way.

Augsburg. The keyword "News Mix" will bring to you tiny bits of news about considerable events of the past week. The following companies and destinations are mentioned today: Euro Ejendomme, Dusit International/Preferred Hotel Group, InterContinental, Lloyd Fonds, Minotel, Precise Hotel Collection, Sol Meliá, Travel Charme, Vienna International.

Geneva. Switzerland, Austria and Germany have the most attractive environments for developing the travel and tourism industry, according to the third annual Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report, released by the World Economic Forum. France, Canada, Spain, Sweden, the United States, Australia and Singapore complete the top ten in the report 2009.

Berlin. Global tourism is falling. The year 2008 with almost a billion international trips will probably be the last record year for a while. Never has the world travelled as much as it did in 2008. For 924 million international trips, over 800 billion EUR were spent. 2007 saw growth of 7%. This exactly corresponded to average growth over the last four years. Up until the start of the economic downturn in the last quarter, such an increase was also expected for 2008.

Berlin. The launch of the new lifestyle brand from Hilton Hotels Corporation was announced at the International Hotel Investment Forum in Berlin last Tuesday. The new brand is called Denizen, an uncommonly used word for citizen, and is the12th brand in the Hilton portfolio.

Berlin. The slump in sales seen by German hotels in the fourth quarter of 2008 and bleak future perspectives of recovery have caused concern throughout the industry. These were the findings of a survey of 50 hoteliers conducted by Treugast International Institute of Applied Sciences. Nevertheless, there is cause for hope. Given the high quality on offer and the increased demand for holidays at home, German holiday tourism may profit from these developments - as the TII Trend Report to be presented at this week's ITB shows.

Berlin. In Germany, after a hopeful start into the year of 2008, the business indicators took a severe hit, especially in the fourth quarter. In particular, conference hotels and hotels in major cities with a clientele of international business travellers have to expect further losses. "Even if Germany remains a popular destination for foreign and national guests, the losses cannot be compensated by the resort hotel industry in total," explained Fritz G. Dreesen, Chairman of the German Hotel Association, at the association's annual press conference in Berlin on Tuesday.

Port Luis. The Mauritius based hotel group Constance Hotels Experience will expand further in the Indian Ocean. In addition to the two new hotels on the Maldives, the group will open a new resort in the Seychelles at the beginning of 2010. The property, Ephelia Resort, will be the biggest hotel on the islands. The group is investing huge sums in the projects. At the moment, everything is still in the construction phase, but in one hotel ratings platform "guests" already gush with praise for their stay in the Hotel Ephelia!