By Theodore Koumelis: Hotel prices in Dublin have increased by up to 173 per cent this St Patrick’s Day, according to the trivago Hotel Price Index (tHPI) reported monthly by hotel search website trivago.co.uk

By Jean Francois Mourier, CEO of REVPAR GURU: The hotel industry is constantly changing, and evolving as technology evolves. That means that our pricing strategies, operations and overall business goals need to change as well. But because it can be tough to stay on top of whats new, I have put together this quick overview of the top three new online sites that will have a big effect on hotels revenue management strategy and revenues.

By Market Metrix: Why do guests choose a particular hotel?  Experience.  As you might guess, location and price top the list. But assuming you’re operating a hotel, and not building one, there isn’t much you can do about location. Price, likewise, has a lot of constraints. Rate cutting is not sustainable. It may goose business in the short term, but can set unreasonable expectations and restrict future price increases.

By Alan Campbell: Once upon a time a famous boardwalk city decided that if they allowed gambling it would cure the allying city. The city officials pondered the idea and after much discussions and arguing with the powers to be, Atlantic City was about to be reborn. Land was acquired, sites where approved and the rush was on. Atlantic City was going to be next Las Vegas. This was of course their first mistake, one of many.

Across most of Earth, a tourist attraction that sees 35,000 visitors a year can safely be labelled sleepy. But when it's Antarctica, every footstep matters.

A new study from the Cornell Center for Hospitality Research (CHR) at the School of Hotel Administration examines the preferences of outbound travelers from Mainland China. As China's prosperity has increased, its citizens have become more interested in experiencing other cultures around the globe. As with travelers from any other nation, Chinese travelers seek high quality facilities and good service. Service excellence and customer satisfaction are the focus of the newest proceedings from the Cornell Hospitality Research Summit, which brought together service experts from industry and the universities. The new reports are available at no charge from the CHR.

By Valerie J. Wilson: It’s all about being unique and thinking of the details that no other hotels think of.

Bob Taylor: In our consulting practice we frequently encounter managers that proclaim empathy as a professional strength, only to discover their real talent is being a good listener. That’s great and important, but it isn’t the same thing as being empathetic. Expressing empathy requires us to actually engage the individual, talk to them, use real words and, dare I say it, send some non-verbal messages, too.

Julie Weed: Hotels are changing the way guests check in to their rooms, eliminating the traditional stop at the front desk to speed up, simplify and, in some cases, personalize the process.