News & Stories
Berlin. The German government decided on 3 February 2021, to extend the VAT reduction on food in the catering industry until the end of 2022, which was introduced in the wake of the Corona pandemic. The industry went for more.
Frankfurt. Now the time has come: Deutsche Hospitality presents the group's loyalty program, which was actually supposed to be presented during the cancelled ITB 2020. The bonus program includes all five European brands, with an opening to the brands of the Chinese parent company to follow later.
Brussels. The Hotelstars Union revises the criteria for hotel classification for 17 member countries every five to six years. The most recent update took 1.5 years and reduced the catalogue from 270 to 247 criteria.
Amsterdam. While the star classification for hotels increasingly loses importance in times of digital guest evaluation platforms, the Booking.com online reservation portal has now introduced its own classification for holiday homes.
Vienna/Brussels. In recent years, guest reviews have replaced hotel stars in terms of importance. Behind the scenes, HOTREC, the umbrella organisation of the European hotel associations, and hotelstars.eu are currently working feverishly on agreements with the key online giants to revamp the hotel star categorisation system. Google is also involved. The aim is to find a common transparent solution for hoteliers and consumers, both online and offline.
Hong Kong/Hamburg. The School of Hotel and Tourism Management of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and the China Outbound Tourism Research Institute are joining hands to offer a new online training programme – the China Tourism Training. Its aim is to become the Global Standard Training in Chinese outbound tourism markets.
Berlin. The German Social Democratic Party in the coalition government suggested raising the reduced value-added tax for the lodging sector from 7 to 19 percent. It is not only the hotel association that is up in arms. The sector would then again be at a disadvantage compared to the rest of Europe.
San Francisco. Heading towards an IPO, the pressure is mounting for Airbnb to diversify its offerings and justify its mammoth valuation. Will the IPO be as overhyped as Uber's and other Unicorns? Meanwhile, Airbnb's market share is increasing in the world of hotel chains. New ideas like developing its own shows and films is spurring on fierce competition.
Vienna. Austria is seeking a unified, country-wide reporting obligation and mandatory registration for offers in the sharing economy. The country, whose main source of income is tourism, plans to make booking platforms as well as lessors responsible for fulfilling their duties. Politicians and hotel experts are closing ranks now for the draft bill.
Rome. Airbnb must collect and pay the 21% flat tax on short-term residential rentals, better known in Italy as "cedolare secca". The Administrative Court of First Instance of Latium rejected the request by the online portal for the right not to play the role of withholding agents, as the measure provides for.