News & Stories

Munich. "We have arrived at Travel Charme,” Dr Christian Hirmer says, Co-Shareholder at Hirmer Group, based in Munich. As of January 2018, the successful German resort hotel group has been owned by the German-wide specialist for men's fashion. Hotel real estate was already part of its diversified corporate empire, now though, Hirmer will also assume operating business. After the first year, initial synergies and changes for the resort brand are beginning to become clear. The brand will in future show its new face in the former noble spa location Bad Gastein, Austria where Hirmer will bring back to life a dilapidated hotel ensemble – and so also the location itself.

Matera. The year of Matera as the European Capital of Culture has just begun under the motto "Open Future". The programme of the Italian UNESCO heritage destination, that shares its 2019 ECOC title with the Bulgarian city of Plovdiv, has a special focus on social and cultural inclusion and collaborative innovation: both considered as founding elements of the Europe of tomorrow. In Matera, the City of Stones, alternative accommodation has become strong. But the local Federalberghi President is convinced of benefiting from the title. At the same time, EU statistics among cities awarded the title in the past show an extreme range of effects on the destinations.

Athens. The Hellenic hospitality industry keeps on following the path it commenced in 2017 and closed another very positive year. All KPIs increased significantly, occupancy drove up room rates. Tour operators are the most dominant hotel room providers but local chains are catching up.

London. The average rate performance of Lisbon's hotels increased significantly over the past four years, driven by international visitors. As a result, Lisbon, one of the oldest cities in Europe, was the fastest-growing market in 2017 and 2018 in terms of value, according to the HVS European Hotel Valuation Index. Future investments are expected.

Vienna. The exchangeability of concepts has also begun among holiday hotels. This is reflected in the definition of the "Alpine Lifestyle". Thomas Reisenzahn, Managing Director of the Prodinger Tourismus consulting company in Vienna, has worked with hoteliers and experts on a study analysing 150 hotels. According to the study, 40% of alpine mountain hotels were just freeloaders.

New York, Rockville. The direct online booking of conferences and groups is a technological challenge on which all hotel chains and MICE providers are working at full speed. Now American Express Global Business Travel and Choice presented their new solutions for smaller events.

London. It is still uncertain, if the Brexit will come and how it will take place, but British nationalists expect that the Brexit will lead to economic success – without any serious empiric analyses. In reality, the British tourism industry already feels the first negative impacts of the Brexit discussion, and this includes the investment as well as the operator perspective. Or not? Which market observation predominates? How do hospitality businesses see, experience and feel the current situation? Otus, CBRE, Christie & Co, Cedar Capital Partners, the industry association UKHospitality, IHG, Hilton and the Oetker Collection answered our snap poll.

Zurich. The Helvetian hotel industry has overcome the "vale of tears", which lasted several years: More visitors are coming back to Switzerland – as well as more hotel chains, which have started their expansion to Switzerland or are accelerating it. They are all hoping for a high occupancy rate at good room rates, as well as investors. However, it is becoming obvious that many investors are financing properties and concepts "blindly" in Switzerland – as already apparent in Germany. They like to block out the consequences of a massively increasing room offer as well as the high operational costs in Switzerland. A summary of the development.

Zurich. It's the end of November, the skies are grey and it's raining. A perfect time for wellness. On the Zurich hotel façade, the two words "The Resort" are illuminated after the hotel name. "a-ja. The Resort." That's a statement. Inside, a very friendly member of staff greets the arriving guest. The rest is a matter of taste. The German hotel group a-ja Resorts currently operates four resorts on the Baltic coast, all under the motto "Holiday... without the superfluous extras". The fifth a-ja is the first city resort – a budget wellness hotel in the very centre of expensive Switzerland, and at the heart of expensive Zurich. What's the concept, where is the experience? We go in search of answers on the ground.

London. With just 70 days until Britain leaves the EU, Prime Minister Theresa May’s plan has been rejected by a massive 230 votes in the House of Commons. The defeat is the largest for a government in modern history, but the Prime Minister is not ready to quit. May will submit a new plan on Monday, but the outcome of a no-deal Brexit is pending. Uncertainty has created huge frustrations among business leaders who are asking for time to get prepared. The hotel association UKHospitality is calling for clarity and warns that a bad deal will seriously harm the sector. Numbers are already down.