By Alison Gregor: In the last two decades, Las Vegas has become synonymous with colossal hotels where checking out can take longer than a leisurely lunch. But a new lodging prototype is coming to town: the branded boutique hotel, which is typically small and intimate, offering patrons more personalized service.

By Chris Mumford, Doug Rosen: In a service business such as hotels, signing up new dots on the map leads to the inevitable questions of 'how will we staff these hotels?' With such rapid expansion come significant human capital implications. Larger hotel chains obviously have some advantages in that they have the ability to transfer existing staff and knowledge from other hotels, there are well developed support structures in place, and their global brand names carry influence and trust. This article will focus on those companies with portfolios ranging in size from a handful to a few hundred hotels; companies that are more limited in the resources available to them to fight the human capital challenges that international growth brings.

By Nancy Trejos: Hotels to guests: Put down your iPads and SmartPhones. There's something much more visually appealing to distract you in hotel lobbies these days.

Nobody said it was going to be easy for online travel businesses and it isn’t. EyeforTravel has been hearing from some of our top speakers at this year’s Travel Distribution Summit Europe to find out what keeps them on their toes and awake at night.

By Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic: Research suggests that even if we let people decide how much they should earn, they would probably not enjoy their job more. Even those who highlight the motivational effects of money accept that pay alone is not sufficient. The basic questions are: Does money make our jobs more enjoyable? Or can higher salaries actually demotivate us?

By Katie Morell: Sam Shank says entrepreneurs must be fearless. Shank has certainly learned a lot, persevering through numerous rejections from venture capitalists to start Hotel Tonight, which produces a smartphone app that allows users to book hotels for about $100 a night with less than 24 hours’ notice. Though the company is only a little more than 2 years old, it already has more than $35 million in funding and 100 employees in its San Francisco office.

The two-island nation of Antigua and Barbuda has earned the distinction of being home to the Caribbean’s most expensive hotel. In a new survey conducted by CaribbeanResorts.net, Barbuda’s Lighthouse Bay Resort landed in the number one spot as the costliest luxury resort.

By Debbie Dubrow: Face painting, puzzles, and sand castles? Please! That's so '90s. The kids' club at 2013 Gold List property, Chiang Mai's Mandarin Oriental Dhara Dhevi ups its game (and puts other clubs to shame) with activities like rice planting, water buffalo riding, and muay thai (kickboxing).

By Melissa Tizi: When it comes to global tourism growth, Asia still takes the lead with China making a record 83 million outbound trips in 2012, 20 per cent more than the previous year. According to the World Tourism Organisation, the figures also showed that spending has increased by 42 per cent, a five-fold increase from a decade earlier. What can we expect from the travel patterns and demands of the new luxury travellers?