Astotel Group, Maurice Hurand Hotels and BPI have followed in AccorHotel’sÊfootsteps, investing in hotel technology as the future of hotel management, and offer 750,000 EUR late seed-funding to RoomChecking, a hotel communications, housekeeping, and maintenance system startup.
A comeback from Japanese visitors boosts HawaiiÕs tourism spending
A comeback from the Japan visitor market helped boost statewide March tourism numbers, including the industry’s highest monthly spending increase since December 2012. Statewide March arrivals rose 2 per cent year-over-year to 802,802 visitors, who spent a healthy $1.4 billion, up 12 per cent from the prior year, according to visitor data released Friday by the Hawai’i Tourism Authority.
Government urged to review recruitment for hospitality industry post-Brexit
Luxury hotel group Hyatt has warned “life could become very difficult” for the UK hospitality industry after Brexit if access to foreign workers is restricted. Peter Fulton, the firm’s Europe chief, has urged the government to ensure the sector can still draw on a depth of overseas talent, warning the number of British people working in London’s restaurants and hotels was “relatively small”.
Emaar Hospitality Group sets new industry model in hotel management contracts
Emaar Hospitality Group, the hospitality and leisure business of Emaar Properties PJSC, has introduced an industry-defining model for hotel management agreements. This is a marked departure from the prevalent fee structure in the hospitality sector, where hotel operators receive a base fee as a percentage of gross revenue and an incentive fee based on the gross operating profit.
Marriott makes big push for modular construction
Marriott International expects to sign 50 hotel deals that will involve modular construction by its approved vendors, underscoring the growing appeal of prefabrication, the company told 1,300 North American hotel owners and developers attending its Select Brand ownersÕ meeting.
Poortiers launch portal to further sustainable hotelkeeping
A new initiative calling for accountability around sustainability in travel was launched on Earth Day on April 22. NOWÕs mission is to create a global community of consumers who are passionate about travel and want to help tackle the environmental and social challenges facing our planet. NOW Transforming Hospitality is a legacy project created by hotel industry stalwarts Onno and Alexa Poortier.
TripAdvisor enters instant booking partnership with IHG
TripAdvisor has entered a partnership with IHG to include all of the companyÕs hotel brands in the TripAdvisor instant booking marketplace. In the coming months, consumers will be able to instantly book rooms at IHG properties directly, without leaving the TripAdvisor website or app.
PolyU study finds package tours limit tourist satisfaction
Package tours can result in low tourist satisfaction even though they are economically advantageous, according to a recently published study done by Assistant Professor Markus Schuckert, Professor Haiyan Song and Dean Kaye Chon of the School of Hotel and Tourism Management (SHTM) at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) and a co-researcher. The researchers explain that dissatisfaction with package tours arises from the information asymmetry between tour operators and customers in emerging markets.
With tourist season around the corner, MaineÕs hospitality industry is facing a crisis
Stripping the linens off a trundle bed as surf from the Atlantic Ocean crashed outside the picture window, Sarah Diment was doing triple duty last week at The Beachmere Inn. Last Friday morning the inn owner was the housekeeper andÊthe night before she worked the front desk, whileÊlater she interviewed possible hires to step into the lodging industry.
Powerful tools added to Facebook apps kit for hotels
Social media marketing for hotels is ever changing and mobile usage is becoming the norm for searches and social interaction. At the forefront of these changes is Facebook Mobile Apps. With more than 1.65 billion active users, this global social media giant has changed the way people communicate and engage with each other. So itÕs a natural progression that Facebook recently introduced the mobile app version of their two popular features, Facebook Events and Facebook Recommendations.
