News & Events

Experiential travel and hotel stays have been the buzz of the past few years, and top the agendas of many hotel brand operators. Lenders now are also paying attention to the demand for hotel experiences, according to executives who spoke at the recent Gulf & Indian Ocean Hotel Investors’ Summit in Ras al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates.

Article by Terence Baker for HNN

From Dublin, Sao Paolo, Brussels, London and other cities around the world, international visitors spilled into U.S. airports Monday in joyous celebrations that marked the end of a pandemic-related travel ban that kept them separated from loved ones for more than 18 months.

Article by Lori Aratani and Ian Duncan for The Washington Post

Worldwide business travel spending looks set to rise by more than a quarter this year and reach two thirds of pre-pandemic levels by 2022, according to the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC). The forecast comes in a major new WTTC report in collaboration with McKinsey & Company.

Article by Guest Contributor for wttc.org

The Biden administration will lift travel restrictions at the borders with Canada and Mexico starting in November for fully vaccinated travelers, reopening the doors of the United States to tourists and separated family members who have been sealed out of the country during the pandemic.

Article by Zolan Kanno-Youngs & Emily Cochrane for the New York Times

SkiftX unpacks how 5G can impact every dimension of the hotel experience, from customer convenience and deeper guest personalization, to amazing entertainment resources, enhanced meetings and events, and streamlined operations industry-wide.

Article by Guest Contributor for Skift

Online travel agency Booking Holdings Inc said on Wednesday its quarterly revenue more than tripled and trounced estimates, driven by strong demand in Europe and the United States as more people planned their long-delayed getaways. 

Article by Shreyasee Raj for Reuters

IHG Hotels & Resorts CEO Keith Barr sees plenty of interest in moving ahead with new-build construction for hotels despite the tight lending market. Financing for new hotels dried up in the worst months of the pandemic, leading many hotel executives — Barr included — to promote the idea of signing new brand deals with the owners of existing hotels, also known as a conversion.

Article by Cameron Spence for Skift

The U.K. continues to lead Europe in hotel performance recovery, due almost exclusively to domestic demand. Take a quick look at the U.K.’s recent performance timeline as well as occupancy on the books for the coming months as the country further eases restrictions.

Article by Guest Contributor for STR

A coalition of 24 trade organizations representing a large and diverse swath of the U.S. economy is renewing urgent calls to lift restrictions on international visitation to the United States and released a policy blueprint for reopening borders safely.

Article by Guest Contributor for HospitalityNet

The nation’s two largest hotel and lodging associations, the Asian American Hotel Owners Association (AAHOA) and the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA), announced the creation of the American Hospitality Alliance (AHA) at the International Society of Hotel Associations’ summer meeting.

Article by Guest Contributor for AHLA