News & Stories

Munich. Exactly a week ago, Munich experienced its first state of emergency as a gunman rampaged through the Olympia Shopping Mall. For 8.5 hours, the situation remained unclear. Police used Twitter to give warnings and instructions and both Twitter and Facebook lit up with calls to Open Doors... hoteliers and private individuals offered passers-by and tourists a place to rest in safety until they were able to continue on their way. How did people react in this chaotic situation? Reporting are: Axel Ludwig, Managing Director of Kempinski Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten at the centre of the shopping district on Maximilianstrasse; Johannes Eckelmann, CEO of Cocoon and Buddy Hotels, located in the immediate vicinity of Munich Central Station; Frank Heller, General Manager of Rocco Forte The Charles close to Munich Central Station, Eike Kraft, Communications expert at AccorHotels and Alexander Bieber, Area Manager of Starwood Hotels.

Ras Al Khaimah. The target is: 1 million visitors by the end of 2018. In 2015, 740,383 guests travelled to Ras Al Khaimah. The fourth largest emirate of the United Arab Emirates is now touring its source markets to implement its new tourism strategy. And that is: We are not Dubai.

Nice. After the terrorist attack on the famous Promenade des Anglais in Nice, hoteliers are now facing a wave of cancellations. Foreign visitors are obviously concerned about their safety. Experts believe many tourists will start thinking of France as a risky destination.

Tehran. Will lifted sanctions concerning Iran's nuclear transparency set off a "tourism gold rush"? The industry's isolation from the global hospitality and tourism market over the past 30 years has left most of Tehran's hotels old, outdated and in desperate need of improvement says a report from TRI Consulting, not only in terms of refurbishments and renovation, but also from the perspective of knowledge and expertise of international hotel developers and operators. This presents an immediate opportunity for international hotel operators through the rebranding of existing properties, which presents a number of advantages including immediate penetration, market leader positioning and direct cash flows from an existing hotel asset. French AccorHotels, Spanish Meliá and Arabian Rotana Hotels talk about Iran as a new strategic market.

Paris. Carlson Wagonlit Travel warns business travel managers: The merger between Marriott and Starwood will change travel buying forever. Get prepared for tough negotiations said Scott Brennan, CWT EVP and Head of Global Supplier Management. The new hotel giant will have nearly a third of the corporate travel hotel spend, and even more than half in some places.

Frankfurt/San Francisco. American Express Global Business Travel announced a commercial agreement with Airbnb for Business. The partnership will allow GBT clients to book accommodation on Airbnb for their business travelers.

Paris. The EURO Cup is over and last Sunday, France, the host country, lost the final against Portugal, which was crowned the new EUROpean champion. From a business point of view, the tournament gave a breath of fresh air to the hospitality industry, which has been struggling since the Paris terrorist attacks last November.

Hannover/Le Morne. During the winter season 2016/17 TUI is expanding in Asia with its own hotel brands TUI Blue, RIU, Sensimar, Family Life and Best Family and is enhancing its 3-star and apartment segment. Furthermore a TUI study reveals figures of client booking behaviours.

Frankfurt. German businesses never spent more on business trips as in 2015. Expenses rose about 3.4% compared to the previous year and reached a peak of 50.9 billion euros. This trend is not going to continue though. 

Paris. Despite the EURO Cup, French hoteliers are disappointed: The capital reports occupancy levels which are 20% lower compared to the same period last year.