News & Stories
Vienna. Big bang at Vienna's famous Hotel Sacher: Sacher Hotels laid off 140 employees on 15 September. The turnover of the model company is declining massively. One of the reasons for this is the lack of the MICE market. Overall, a gloomy scenario is emerging in Austria for this segment. And for two days now, Vienna has also been a risk area: cancellations just keep rolling in.
Munich. The Salzburg Festival revealed that large cultural events with more than 76,000 guests are possible. The IFA trade show in Berlin or the first medical and real estate conventions have already taken place successfully in various cities. "MICE is back again", is the hope of participants, organisers and venues. And especially the hotel industry could see this as a possible straw for the fall, where disastrous figures regarding occupancy are expected in many locations. This requires a lot of trust in modified MICE concepts now, especially many sales activities for specific security concepts.
Milan. According to Mastercard data on digital transactions, Italy is the G20 country that in July recorded the greatest recovery in travel and entertainment expenses. Notwithstanding that, the past summer has been a real nightmare for the country's tourism industry, hotels included as data compiled by ISTAT and Assoturismo Confesercenti and Confindustria Alberghi show.
Hamburg. International tourism will have to be different after the Covid-19 pandemic is brought under control, and Chinese travellers as the biggest outbound tourism source market will have to be in the lead for changes in the 2020s. A new publication shows a way how a return to customer orientation can provide a new paradigm of successful organisation of the – not only – Chinese outbound tourism. Hotels offering quality will find a way to connect to the new travellers in "family style".
Vienna. Cheers over the "Corona Summer" 2020 are only very occasional in Austria. Foreign guests are obvious in their absence almost everywhere. This year, the locals dominate the holiday scene. The lake regions benefited most and masses of day trippers caused controversy at crowded destinations.
Berlin/Madrid. Since Wednesday evening, 2.9., the German government has now also been warning against travelling to the Canary Islands, thus placing the whole country under the curse of the travel warning. The Germans' favourite destination is thus taboo and is dealing a heavy blow to tourism. Yesterday evening there was a press conference with representatives of hotel chains, tour operators and politicians. Furthermore, hospitalityInside interviewed two hoteliers on Tenerife and Mallorca about their situation.
Paris. As has been the case across much of Europe, hotels in secondary and resort locations in France have outperformed those in the country’s leading city, Paris, since the end of the lockdown period in late spring, which coincided with beginning of the summer holiday season.
Augsburg. Finally we’re able to travel again... Like millions, both in Germany and in other countries, hospitalityInside correspondents also set out to make their summer trips. They enjoyed their holidays in Germany, Austria, Luxembourg, Italy and Spain and at the same time observed how corona is affecting hotels and destinations. Their experiences provide a clear picture of the chaos as regards the implementation of hygiene rules - from perfectionism to pure sloppiness.
Berlin. German holiday bookings are picking up, but only at extremely short notice and are far from making up for any losses. Among the destinations, Spain and Greece are the most popular destinations.
Newton. The pandemic provokes the first public disputes between owners and operators: a US trust puts IHG under pressure and demands its rents, or 103 hotels lose their contracts. In Amsterdam, the leaseholder of the W Hotel has obtained a preliminary ruling against the owner Deka Immobilien for rent reduction; the outcome is still open, however.