Q3 hotel earnings show U.S. RevPAR slipping, group and government travel weakening, and 2025 forecasts flattening across Hilton, IHG, and Wyndham, while Accor remains the lone bright spot.
Save Your Way (AKA Give your customer away)
Hotels.com’s new “Save Your Way” feature lets OTAs give big “loyalty” discounts funded by hotels—while keeping the customer, data, and relationship for themselves.
Shutdowns, Sick Days, and a Billion Bucks a Week
The federal shutdown is costing the U.S. travel sector $1B a week, and with Canadian and other international arrivals plunging, Hawaiʻi faces mounting headwinds despite parks and airports remaining open.
From Enshittification to Bifurcation
Two forces define today’s hotel scene: enshittification, the decline in value, and bifurcation, the widening gap between travelers. Which side is your property on?
Ace in the Hole: Prince Hotels Goes Lifestyle
Seibu Prince Hotels is acquiring Ace Hotels for $90M, adding nine properties and fresh lifestyle cred to the brand.
Recession-Proof, or Just Enshittified?
Luxury hotels are thriving while the mid-market weakens. Hawaiʻi luxury RevPAR is up 9% YTD, raising questions about inequality in travel demand.
Brand USA’s Shrinking Stage
Brand USA slashes 15% of staff after funding drops from $100M to $20M. With inbound tourism at 80% of 2019 levels, politics, not branding, is the issue.
ADA Demand Letters: Pay Up or Lawyer Up
ADA demand letters are big business, but as Zarco Hotels showed, compliant hotels don’t have to pay up, fight back and you can even recover legal fees.
DirectBooker: “Direct” Bookings… Via Someone Else
DirectBooker wants to “fix” OTA dependence by becoming yet another middleman, feeding hotel data into ChatGPT and Gemini, just as Airbnb ramps up its own hotel push.
Market Update: Recovery Stalls, Promos Rise, Luxury Holds, Midscale Struggles
Q2 results show the hotel upswing has ended: flat U.S. RevPAR, softer demand, and cautious forecasts from Expedia, Marriott, Airbnb, and STR point to a tougher lodging cycle ahead.
