News & Stories
Rockville. Franchisor Choice Hotels International announced a major addition to its leisure offerings with the expansion of the Vacation Rentals by Choice Hotels brand. The brand now offers access to more than 20,000 new properties in 35 of the top United States vacation destinations.
Brussels. The European Travel Information and Authorization System is about to become a reality. It will apply to over 30 million people who travel to the EU every year without a visa. After Brexit, British citizens wanting to enter the Schengen area will have to show credentials and pay a fee. The impact on their favorite destinations is still to be determined.
Dubai. Dubai's hotel industry is growing and growing. Because demand is also now rising, average occupancy is healthy, though revenue per available room is a nightmare. Two years before the EXPO at the Arabian Travel Market last week, things were oddly silent. 2019 will presumably also fail to help RevPAR: The early Ramadan will paralyse the hotel industry longer than usual. Then there’ll be the Expo – and after that? "The hotel industry is set to experience a rollercoaster ride over the coming years. This is something everyone needs to prepare for,” one well-known area manager stated. After 2007/2008, Dubai now stands on the edge of its second crisis – on straitened conditions.
Warsaw. Poland is in the positive headlines, at least in terms of tourism. Of the CEE countries, Poland no doubt offers the most interesting prospects for chain expansion. As a relatively large country, Poland is quite decentralised with a number of important regional cities which creates demand for hotels, especially to serve domestic business travellers. The Polish Orbis chain plays a very specific role in the CEE development. Orbis in facts and figures.
Dubai. The 25th anniversary of the Arabian Travel Market in Dubai provided the reason for the positive review. Yet many trade fair participants refuse to look in the opposite direction, ahead and directly into the eyes of the slump, now expected from many, following the Expo 2020. Pessimism, after all, is looked on poorly in this city. And of course it's on the site of the trade fair that Happiness Street begins. The city continues to boom, its managers still talk of the future, and seldom about the current challenges. This year, they were able to gloss over these with ease, e.g. with discussions about travel in the future and the new disruptive power of one unique new system, the Hyperloop.
London. The business travel market outperformed its forecast. Expenses for conferences, meetings and company events developed better than estimated, the outlook remains optimistic for 2018. The question of hotel content is crucial for the companies booking.
Think big
Cannes. The mood at the IHIF Berlin and the MIPIM in Cannes were similar: Both investment events showed that the money is still flowing, though the question as to the duration o the boom is being asked ever more often. That across the globe the hotel industry is still planning, building, buying and selling at speed – none of this, so it was said, has anything to do with a bubble. It sounded like a mantra. One study revealed: Institutional investors are planning to invest more in the hotel industry. At the same time, the fair was once again a showroom for the next global projects, technology trends included.
Berlin. ITB Berlin 2018 recorded a five-percent increase in the number of deals compared to previous year and excellent forecasts with respect to the next few months: The international travel industry dynamically heads towards a fantastic record year. This is Messe Berlin's emotional summary of ITB 2018.
Pyeongchang. Whilst Europeans take their decision to host the Olympic Games on the back of a costs and benefit analysis – and generally reject the possibility as a result – in South Korea, very different considerations are in play: Budgets and the nature of the games are not anything like as important as the possibility of rapprochement with North Korea and the image gain that could result. Our Austria correspondent Fred Fettner attended the Games last week in Pyeongchang not only as a accredited journalist but also to provide moral support to his son, Manuel – ski jumper on the Austrian team and one of 2,920 athletes from 92 countries. He reports on his observations of the tourist infrastructure, on his experience in Austria House, on the huge sponsor presence, on the miserable camping accommodation offered at below freezing temperatures as well as on unexpected friendships and the sheer joy of the Games.
Mestre. From a traditional company, running two family-owned hotels in Jesolo and Mestre, to a structured group, backed by international funds along with an organizational framework set up to win the challenges of the global market… The case of the H.n.h. Hotels and Resorts is not really new. Especially as they wish to develop from a smaller to a bigger scale. In the Italian hospitality world, this decisive step can't really be taken for granted. One year ago, French capital allowed the company to move on. H.n.h is a white label company working with international franchise brands in its city locations but operating hotels itself at the seaside. CEO Luca Boccato has a very clear understanding of agreements and conditions.