Expected to open in the second half of 2028, the property will offer more than a place to sleep. Guests will find an enclosed free-fall thrill ride high above the city, an observation deck more than 1,000 feet (around 305 metres) above Manhattan, a rooftop pool and a rooftop bar and lounge.

The project will be the first StandardX hotel in North America. Extell is the New York developer behind landmark towers such as Central Park Tower and One57, as well as the W Hotel Times Square. The building at 255 West 45th Street will combine hospitality, dining and entertainment, and it promises to change the city’s skyline.

The StandardX is the younger, more irreverent sibling of The Standard. That brand was founded in 1999 and has flagship hotels in New York, London and Bangkok, plus European addresses in Brussels and Ibiza. The idea behind the spin-off is simple: keep what makes a Standard hotel special and drop the rest. Rooms are simpler and service more relaxed, but the brand’s design sense and attitude remain intact. The hotel serves as a base, while the surrounding neighbourhood is the real attraction.

There is only one StandardX so far, in Melbourne’s creative Fitzroy district. The 125-room boutique hotel has a rooftop, several dining options and a busy events calendar that ranges from wine tastings to DJ sets. The format is designed to connect travellers with local life instead of keeping them inside the hotel.

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Times Square works on a very different scale, and Hyatt presents the new hotel as a one-off flagship, not a template for future StandardX openings. Its design will reflect New York’s theatrical character, with bold colours, sculptural shapes, and unexpected touches. The guestrooms will be expressive but uncomplicated. The public spaces will bring together design, music and the social energy The Standard is known for.

Restaurants, bars and nightlife venues will run from street level to the top of the building, and they are meant to attract New Yorkers as well as hotel guests. The aim is to bring the cultural spirit of The Standard, High Line and The Standard, East Village to a very different part of the city. Details on the dining and nightlife concepts and on creative collaborations will be announced later.

For Amar Lalvani, Chief Creative Officer at Hyatt, The StandardX takes The Standard’s core idea of being part of the city and makes it simpler and easier to access. “Usually, that means putting people in the middle of an interesting neighbourhood, with everything happening right outside the door. In Times Square, a lot of it will be happening right inside the building,” he said. “I love that. It’s energetic, theatrical and completely over the top. We want to embrace that, have some fun with it, and create something that could only happen in New York. And only right there.”

L’article The StandardX plans 1,800-room Times Square hotel with free-fall ride and sky-high pool est apparu en premier sur Travel Tomorrow.

The post office was designed by architect Louis Cloquet, who began its construction in 1898. With its pointed arches and carved stonework, mixing Neo-Gothic and Neo-Renaissance styles, it looks far older than it is.

Today, the building leads a double life. On the ground floor, the De Post shopping centre is open to everyone, with fashion, interior design and beauty shops, as well as places for breakfast, brunch or lunch.

Upstairs, 1898 The Post welcomes guests in 38 rooms overlooking the Graslei, Ghent’s historic quay on the river Leie. Opened in August 2017, the boutique hotel has since been awarded a MICHELIN Key.

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Yet a hotel was never the plan. When Geert De Paepe and Greet De Paepe-Kerkstoel bought the building in 2014, they intended to turn it into four large apartments. “We fell in love with the building,” Geert De Paepe told The Brussels Times. “We looked at the rhythm of the windows and started asking architects what else we could do. And we came across the idea of a hotel.”

Turning a protected landmark into a hotel was no easy task, though: the owners discovered that floors in the building’s three towers differed by as much as 20 centimetres. The result? No two rooms are alike.

Rather than hiding the building’s past, the hotel has made it its concept. Rooms are named after the post, from the 19-square-metre Stamp rooms to the Letters, the suites and the 65-square-metre Loft. The most striking is the Tower Suite, an octagonal duplex with 360-degree views over the city.

Inside, the same idea runs through the decor. Interior designer Geraldine Dohogne mixed antique pieces with deep green walls and marble, and hung drawings by Cloquet himself on the way to the reception. On the bedside tables, vintage postcards recall the building’s first job. Wherever possible, original features such as the window frames and staircases were kept.

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The story now continues next door. In September, the owners opened 1898 Porter’s House in the former caretaker’s house, which had been their own home. Its four rooms range from the 21-square-metre Porter’s Room, inspired by the building’s postal past, to an 89-square-metre family suite with a sauna on its terrace. All come with marble bathrooms, and the two largest suites have private terraces with copper ice baths. The whole house can also be booked for up to ten guests.

At a time when travel is trying to reduce its impact, giving an old landmark a new purpose might be one of the most elegant answers. And you don’t need to book a room to see it: browse the shops downstairs, then head up to The Cobbler, the hotel’s cocktail bar, for a drink overlooking St Michael’s Bridge and the Graslei.

L’article How Ghent’s old post office found a new life in tourism est apparu en premier sur Travel Tomorrow.

The five-star property has attracted famous visitors, including Grace Kelly, Elizabeth Taylor and members of the Kennedy family. Its Mediterranean setting makes it an appealing backdrop for social media posts. However, Volant said returning guests also value its private atmosphere. “We have a lot of loyal, repeat guests who don’t see this hotel as a hotel; they see Hotel du Cap as their summer home,” she explained. “And as much as they appreciate having people in the restaurants and in the bars, they also want their summer home to remain private.”

The hotel’s website sets out its photography policy. “To preserve the peace and privacy of all our guests, photo shoots are not permitted on the property,” it states. Special requests require authorisation from management. The concierge team can review proposals and provide details of the hotel’s exclusive partner photographer. A restaurant reservation therefore does not automatically give visitors permission to use the grounds for a photoshoot.

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The restrictions do not mean every holiday photograph is forbidden. Volant explained that guests can take pictures along the Grande Allée, the hotel’s tree-lined promenade. However, they are asked to pause if other visitors enter the scene. Photography and phone calls are also restricted at the pool. The rules distinguish casual pictures from activities that interfere with other guests’ privacy.

Enforcing these boundaries can be difficult, particularly when staff must correct VIP guests. Volant acknowledged that saying no does not always come naturally in hospitality. Nevertheless, she said many guests have welcomed the approach. Some have even asked management to apply the rules more strictly. Their response suggests that being able to relax without unwanted photography is part of the experience they value.

Similar concerns have emerged beyond luxury hotels. The Hollies farm shop in Cheshire has introduced daytime restrictions on photography and filming. It gained attention after television personality Molly-Mae Hague shared images from there. London restaurateur Jeremy King has also publicly criticised influencers overrunning restaurants. Meanwhile, a shop on the US island of Nantucket attracted attention with a sign reading “no influencers”. These examples reflect different responses, ranging from limits on filming times to messages aimed directly at content creators.

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For hotels, the relationship with social media is more complicated than keeping cameras away. Photographs can introduce properties to potential visitors, and some businesses actively collaborate with influencers. Anna Fedou, chief marketing officer at hotel group Beaumier, said the company sometimes works with creators to promote its properties. These include Les Roches Rouges on the French coast. However, she stressed that the experience of people staying at the hotel comes first.

“We’re in the business of hospitality, not running photo studios,” Fedou said. “People travel from all over the world to experience the atmosphere, sense of space and feeling that make a hotel unique.” She added that protecting this experience is the hotel’s responsibility. According to Fedou, Beaumier does not have specific photography rules. Instead, it remains focused on guests’ comfort when accommodating content creation.

The debate also involves assumptions about how influencers earn money. Nicole Ocran, an influencer who founded the Creator Union to represent workers in the industry, said many posts are produced without payment. “They create content in the hope of courting brands and seeing who will bite,” she explained. Some receive complimentary stays in exchange for posts, while others hope to attract future partnerships. Ocran also acknowledged that creators can overstep when filming in public.

Fedou identified quieter shooting times as one way to avoid disturbing visitors. “Influencers will generally choose quieter moments for shooting content, to capture the space without disturbing others,” she said. She described Les Roches Rouges as having a relaxed atmosphere. Nevertheless, she stressed that the guest experience remains the priority.

L’article French Riviera hotel restricts photoshoots after visitors turn dining bookings into Instagram sessions est apparu en premier sur Travel Tomorrow.

The first of them opened in Jukkasjärvi, Swedish Lapland. ICEHOTEL started as an art exhibition made of ice and snow in 1989, before welcoming its first overnight guests a year later. Since then, the hotel has been rebuilt every winter with ice harvested from the nearby Torne River. When the season ends, the ice melts back into the river, an eternal cycle that makes every edition unique.

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This year, ICEHOTEL 37 opens on 11 December and will welcome guests until April 2027. Among the new art suites, The Cold Descent (by Edmund Chan and Tan Taitien) features an ice-cold pool as part of the artwork, while The Emperors Suite (by Dennis Taylor and Michelle Taylor) is filled with hand-sculpted emperor penguins. Meanwhile, the permanent wing, ICEHOTEL 365, celebrates its tenth anniversary and lets visitors enjoy ice and snow art all year round. Its newest addition is a podcast studio built entirely of ice and snow, which the hotel hopes will be the first of its kind in the world.

“There is something truly beautiful in the contrast between what is fleeting and what lives on. We have been recreating ICEHOTEL every winter for almost four decades, and every visit leaves behind new stories. The podcast studio gives us the opportunity to gather some of these stories and let more voices become part of ICEHOTEL’s ongoing history,” said Marie Herrey, CEO of ICEHOTEL.

Finland and Norway also offer a wide range of icy experiences. In fact, Norway is home to the world’s northernmost igloo hotel, the Sorrisniva Igloo Hotel near Alta. Every winter, 250 tonnes of ice and 7,000 cubic metres of snow are used to rebuild it around a new theme. Past themes have included Sami culture and the Vikings. From 20 December to 31 March, guests sleep on ice beds, then head out on snowmobile, husky or snowshoe excursions, chase the northern lights or discover Sami culture. For the romantics, Sorrisniva also has an Ice Chapel that hosts weddings and baptisms.

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In Rovaniemi, the gateway to Finnish Lapland, the Arctic SnowHotel has been rebuilt every winter since 2008. From 15 December to 31 March, around 20 snow rooms welcome up to 70 guests, alongside an Ice Restaurant with tables and benches carved from ice, an Ice Bar and an Ice Chapel. The hotel is also home to what it says is the world’s only snow sauna, where steam rises between walls of snow. If you prefer a warmer stay, you can book one of the 39 heated glass igloos, where an Aurora Alarm buzzes when the northern lights appear above your bed.

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Not ready to sleep at -5°C? Good news: all three hotels can also be visited during the day. An entrance ticket costs 395 NOK (≈ €38) at Sorrisniva, 325 SEK (≈ €29) at ICEHOTEL, and 35€ at the Arctic SnowHotel.

L’article Sleep on ice in three of Europe’s coolest hotels this winter est apparu en premier sur Travel Tomorrow.

Airbnb is calling time on guests being obliged to perform check-out chores that “take significant effort or would typically be performed by a cleaner” in a further step towards the “hotelification” of Airbnb stays.

The short-term letting giant has updated its community policy, specifying that guests should only be asked to do a limited set of household chores and should not have to perform end-of-stay tasks such as “stripping the bed, taking trash offsite, or washing and putting away dishes.”

In a statement, an Airbnb spokesperson explained: “House rules help guests understand what hosts expect, but we’ve heard from our community that they can be confusing, onerous, and hard to manage. So, we’ve redesigned them to make them easier to discover and clearer to set, alongside a new policy that keeps requests reasonable, with no surprises.”

Under the guidance, hosts cannot impose fines for unperformed check-out chores, and Airbnb says it will challenge any guest obligations that are not in the spirit of the policy. What’s more, any set “cleaning fees” can only cover a standard tidy-up between bookings.

Hosts will be able to appeal the rules if there are particularly good reasons for imposing a tidying rule. Examples could include the property being located in back country, where leaving trash out in the open can attract bears and pose a threat to wildlife, neighbours, owners, and passersby.

To avoid guests experiencing any uncertainty about what the expectations are, house rules must from now on be clearly visible on the listing page, as well as in the trips tab, and in all reservation reminders. They can include up to seven standard conditions, on the following: check-in and check-out hours, and any set “quiet” times, how many guests or pets are permitted in the property, smoking, and commercial use of imagery and film.

For guests, the improved clarity on what they can be asked to do at the end of a break is likely to bring some relief, especially for anyone with mobility issues, young children, or particularly tight schedules, for whom some tasks could represent a burden.

Meanwhile, for some hosts, the new guidance comes as a surprise. One Airbnber who has been renting out her UK family home occasionally for nearly two decades, as well as going on breaks in other Airbnbs, told Travel Tomorrow she had not yet been officially informed of the change. Her own list of end-of-stay tasks is published in the house guide she has written, which she does not think is visible to guests before they book. It includes “stripping the beds, putting used linen in the bath, and leaving the home as they found it” which she said she does not consider “unreasonable, especially as they are clearly staying in someone’s home and not a professional hospitality environment.” She added that her expectations are no more onerous than any house rules she has experienced elsewhere. She also noted that she had never had any complaints and always receives highly complimentary reviews about the “relaxed, trusting, home-from-home atmosphere” her property offers.

Yet, that view of Airbnb as providing a “home-from-home” seems increasingly under threat. After its emergence as a start-up “disruptor” to the traditional hospitality model in 2008, the latest development brings Airbnb further in line with classic competitors such as hotels and guest houses. It comes as local authorities and entities such as the European Union continue to review and tighten legislation about how short-term lets are governed, in a bid to protect both regional housing markets and the wider hospitality sector.

L’article Airbnb sets new limits on house rules and checkout chores est apparu en premier sur Travel Tomorrow.

The news follows a preliminary investigation, which included an analysis of the risk assessment reports submitted by Booking.com in 2026 and the preceding three years, information published in its transparency reports, and the company’s replies to the Commission’s formal requests for information sent on 23 September 2025 and 26 May 2026.

According to a European Commission spokesperson, the research revealed that the number of scams reported on Booking.com rose by 500 per cent between 2022 and 2024, with fraud totalling 4.2 billion euros in 2024. 

According to the European Commission, Booking.com may have breached the Digital Services Act (DSA) on three specific subjects.

Firstly, the Commission will examine whether the provider of Booking.com has properly identified and assessed the systemic risks linked to the dissemination of illegal content. Fake listings, such as for non-existent properties, impersonation fraud, and non-compliant accommodation offers may have negative effects on consumer protection. The investigation will also assess whether the platform has put in place effective measures to mitigate these risks, including by removing fraudulent and non-compliant listings.

Secondly, the investigation will determine whether the provider of Booking.com has diligently assessed and addressed the risks that phishing scams pose to consumers. The research will focus on risks related to the way reservation and guest data is shared with accommodation providers, and the design and functioning of Booking.com’s messaging service. The Commission will also examine whether the company has put in place sufficient safeguards to prevent data from being misused to carry out phishing and solicit fraudulent payments.

Finally, the Commission will investigate whether Booking.com complies with the DSA’s advertising transparency obligations. Accommodation providers can make their listings more visible in Booking.com’s search results by paying a higher commission but users should be able to clearly recognise that these ‘boosted listings’ are in fact advertisements. 

Booking a holiday should be exciting, not risky. Europeans deserve to book with confidence, knowing platforms are taking their safety seriously. We’ll make sure they live up to their responsibilities. More: https://t.co/PdRBQHxfJN https://t.co/PaxZGfGH6J

— European Commission (@EU_Commission) October 21, 2026

The Commission will also examine whether, for each advertisement shown on Booking.com, users can easily see who is behind, who paid for it, why they are seeing it and how they can change the settings that determine which ads they see. This matters as under the DSA, users are entitled to understand when, and on whose behalf, an ad is shown to them. Without this, they cannot tell whether a listing appears prominently because it matches their search or because the accommodation provider paid for that visibility.

“Europeans should be able to book their holidays without fear of being scammed. The Digital Services Act sets clear responsibilities on platforms to address these risks, and we must ensure that the leading booking platform in Europe takes those responsibilities seriously,” said Henna Virkkunen, Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, in a statement.

Now that the formal proceedings have been opened, the Commission will carry out an in-depth investigation while it will also be able to take further enforcement steps, such as interim measures and non-compliance decisions. Moreover, through the investigation, the Commission is empowered to accept commitments offered by Booking.com to remedy the matters subject to the proceedings.

If the Commission finds Booking.com to have broken the rules and if the platform refuses to change its policies, the Commission could impose fines amounting to up to 6% of the company’s turnover.

L’article European Commission launches investigation into Booking.com over fraud and scam allegations est apparu en premier sur Travel Tomorrow.

For travellers who have long associated a New York stay with tea beneath the Palm Court’s stained-glass ceiling or an arrival beside Central Park, a familiar ritual is about to disappear for several years. The Plaza Hotel is scheduled to close in January 2027 for at least four years as specialists restore the exterior of the landmark building.

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Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, which operates the property, says the scale and complexity of the façade project make a shutdown necessary. Precise details — including the cost and the full programme of work — have not yet been released. Planning must account for preservation rules, long-term care of the structure and coordination with the building’s various stakeholders.

The temporary loss will be felt far beyond the guest rooms. The Palm Court, restaurants and celebrated event spaces are expected to go dark, disrupting weddings and other bookings already in the calendar. Questions also remain for owners of the Plaza’s 181 condominium residences, with no public clarity yet on whether residents will need to leave during construction. The property also contains 282 hotel rooms.

For the workforce, the closure brings a different kind of uncertainty. The Hotel & Gaming Trades Council says 378 union members will be entitled to return to their roles at the same rate of pay when the hotel reopens. That commitment offers a measure of continuity, though it does not erase the impact of a four-year interruption at one of Manhattan’s best-known hospitality employers.

The Plaza Hotel in NYC is closing for four years to restore its historic facade. Turns out even the most iconic hotels need a facelift – some facades just don’t age as gracefully as the celebrities who’ve checked in over the years! #PlazaHotel #NewYork #WorldNews https://t.co/sVJgMPu3RA

— Aishik Dutta (@aishikdutta8) October 17, 2026

Opened almost 120 years ago, on 1 October 1907, the 18-storey Plaza occupies a cinematic corner of Fifth Avenue and Central Park South. Architect Henry Janeway Hardenbergh conceived the building in an exuberant French Renaissance-inspired style, giving New York a chateau-like landmark on the scale of a small skyscraper. Over the decades it has hosted prominent visitors from F. Scot Fitxgerald to guest and one-time owner, Donald Trump. It has changed hands repeatedly, while renovations and a partial conversion to condominiums have reshaped its use.

The hotel’s cultural profile is inseparable from its sense of theatre: afternoon tea, grand ballrooms and ornate interiors have made it both an accommodation choice and a destination in its own right. Its closure will therefore remove more than luxury inventory from the city. It will temporarily shutter a destination woven into New York’s visitor mythology, from glamorous arrivals to its memorable appearances on TV and in the movies.

Visitors planning trips from 2027 onward should: confirm reservations and event arrangements early, and look elsewhere for the classic Plaza experience during the works. For New York, the long pause is an unusually visible reminder that architectural icons demand patient, expensive stewardship. If the project succeeds, the reward will be a renewed façade ready to frame the hotel’s next chapter—even if travellers must wait several seasons to see it.

L’article New York Plaza hotel to close for four year landmark restoration est apparu en premier sur Travel Tomorrow.

At 2,620 metres above sea level, Hôtellerie des Laquets does not so much sit in the French Pyrenees as hover over them. Reopened after nearly three decades of silence, the 16-room retreat occupies a restored 1930s building below the Pic du Midi observatory, with ridgelines, lakes, and shifting cloud banks filling the windows. Its altitude makes it France’s highest hotel, but the greater distinction is the sense of quiet exclusivity: once the daytime crowds depart, the mountain settles into stillness.

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Arrival holds the promise of drama. Guests ride the public cable car from La Mongie to the Pic du Midi summit at 2,877 metres, then transfer to a small private cable car for the descent to the hotel. The journey reinforces the feeling that this is not a conventional resort, but a high-altitude refuge reimagined for comfort. Access remains dependent on mountain conditions and cable-car operations, so flexibility is an essential item on the packing list.

The original inn was built between 1930 and 1933 to accommodate scientists and visitors, with tourism helping to support astronomical work at the summit. Its fortunes faded after transport links changed, and it closed in the 1990s. The revival preserves the historic shell and its distinctive vaulted interiors while introducing a contemporary extension. Inside, stone, pale timber, wool and locally sourced details create a restrained alpine mood; a fire-lit lounge, piano, and panoramic dining room encourage guests to linger rather than chase a packed itinerary.

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The bedrooms are designed around the landscape. Those in the newer wing have broad windows that turn the Pyrenean chain into living scenery, while careful soundproofing heightens the cocooned atmosphere. One accessible room also expands overnight access to the Pic du Midi for travellers with limited mobility. This is a small hotel rather than a sprawling complex, and its low room count suits the intimate, contemplative experience.

After dark, the location becomes the headline. The property lies within the Pic du Midi International Dark Sky Reserve, where reduced light pollution can reveal an exceptionally clear celestial display. Hotel stays include access to the summit’s museum and planetarium programming, linking the pleasure of stargazing with the science behind it. Clouds may occasionally obscure the heavens, but even then, the weather provides its own theatre, sweeping across the terraces and briefly erasing the peaks.

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Food will add to the evenings’ sense of occasion. The dinner offering has been developed with Michelin-starred Toulouse chef Stéphane Tournié and is prepared by the Pic du Midi team, bringing sophisticated regional cooking to an improbably remote dining room. A sauna and steam room are due to add another layer of indulgence from December 2026, particularly welcome after time outdoors in thin, chilly air.

Laquets will not appeal to travellers seeking spontaneity, nightlife, or easy road access. Its pleasures are quieter: sunrise spreading colour across the mountains, dinner interrupted by a sudden clearing of cloud, and the rare luxury of looking up at the stars without an urban glow polluting the view. By restoring a landmark that once served both science and tourism, the hotel offers more than altitude-led bragging rights. It creates a memorable threshold between the public spectacle of the Pic du Midi and the private hush of the Pyrenees after hours.

L’article France’s highest hotel reopens in the Pyrenees after major renovation est apparu en premier sur Travel Tomorrow.

The accommodation is a bothy, a simple cottage or shelter, with a living area heated by a solid-fuel stove. Inside, there is a raised, open-plan sleeping area and a separate bathroom with a shower, wash basin and toilet facilities. However, the building has no connection to mains electricity. According to the estate agent managing the sale, previous owners used a small wind turbine and diesel generator, but buyers would need to arrange their own power supply. Anyone hoping to upgrade the accommodation would also need the necessary planning permission and other approvals.

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Beyond the building, Hildasay has a rugged coastline, two freshwater lochs, the Scottish term for lakes, and gently rising ground. Its highest point reaches approximately 32 metres, with views across the surrounding sea and islands. Birdlife changes with the seasons, while the shores also offer opportunities to observe coastal and marine wildlife. “Its scale and unspoilt character create a genuine sense of escape, with open landscapes and uninterrupted views across the surrounding waters,” said a spokesperson for Kelvin Anderson estate agents. The landscape is a central part of the island’s appeal, with its open spaces contrasting with the modest accommodation.

Hildasay was once home to a small working community, with around 30 residents recorded in 1891. Granite quarrying and herring curing, the process of preserving fish with salt, were important local industries. Workers extracted the island’s distinctive red-green granite and transported it to the harbour along a purpose-built railway. According to the estate agent, the stone was shipped to destinations reportedly as far away as Australia. Large abandoned granite blocks and traces of the railway remain visible, showing how different the island’s landscape would have looked when these industries were active.

More recently, Hildasay became known through the story of Chris Lewis, who was walking the UK coastline when the pandemic interrupted his journey. He had been staying in a tent on Shetland’s mainland when lockdown restrictions began. Lewis was given permission to move into the island’s accommodation with his dog Jet and spent around three months there. His stay later featured in his book, Finding Hildasay: How One Man Walked the UK’s Coastline and Found Hope and Happiness. The book brought wider attention to an island that had long lost its permanent community.

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Hildasay follows other Scottish islands previously advertised for sale, although the facilities included have varied considerably. In 2022, Pladda was listed for €350,000, with a five-bedroom house, a helipad and a lighthouse dating from the 1790s. Its accommodation nevertheless needed renovation before it could be lived in again. A year earlier, Càrn Deas in the Summer Isles was advertised from €59,000, but had no housing, water supply or electricity. Both listings illustrate why an island’s asking price tells only part of the story about what a buyer would take on.

L’article Scottish island goes on sale for €414,000, but what would living there involve? est apparu en premier sur Travel Tomorrow.

Vassilikos, representing the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels (HCH), will continue leading HOTREC for another two years. Morten Thorvaldsen, from the Norwegian Hospitality Association (NHO Reiseliv), was also re-elected Vice-President, while Adrian Cummins, representing the Restaurants Association of Ireland (RAI), will remain Treasurer.

The newly elected Executive Committee includes eight representatives from national hospitality associations across Europe: Hans Kant from the Netherlands, Ludo Geurden from Belgium, Ramon Estalella from Spain, Markus Luthe from Germany, Roberto Calugi from Italy, Elisabeth Haglund from Sweden, Simona Constantinescu from Romania and François Gauthier from France.

“It is a great honour to have the confidence of HOTREC members for a third consecutive mandate as President,” Vassilikos said, highlighting the contribution of millions of hospitality entrepreneurs and employees to European economies and local communities.

“At a time of great geopolitical turbulence and rapid economic, technological and regulatory change, our responsibility is to ensure that our joint voice is heard clearly and strongly at European level,” he added.

Alongside the Executive Committee, HOTREC members elected representatives to its Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee and Financial Committee for 2027-2028.

Sami Nisametdin, representing the Finnish Hospitality Association (MaRa), was re-elected Chair of the Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee. He will work alongside representatives from Italy, Romania, Sweden and Denmark. Meanwhile, Bernard Zenzerović from Croatia and Jóhannes Þór Skúlason from Iceland will serve on the Financial Committee.

HOTREC members are scheduled to meet again for the organisation’s 94th General Assembly in Santorini, Greece, from 21 to 23 April 2027.

The elections come as Europe’s hospitality industry continues to navigate challenges related to competitiveness, digitalisation, sustainability, labour shortages and an evolving EU regulatory environment. 

During the meeting in Vilnius, HOTREC members discussed key developments shaping European tourism, including energy efficiency, digital payments, distribution and the European digital identity wallet. The agenda also covered recent EU policy developments, the future of restaurants and gastronomy, and ways to strengthen the hospitality sector’s resilience.

Marie Audren, Director General of HOTREC, emphasised the importance of translating industry concerns into European policy action.

“Our priority remains clear: turning the realities faced by hospitality businesses into practical European policy solutions. Together, we will continue defending competitiveness, supporting a sustainable and innovative sector, and ensuring that tourism remains firmly on the European agenda,” she said.

Against this backdrop, the association is calling for firm EU action to ensure fair and transparent digital markets and create a level playing field for hospitality businesses across Europe. A recent HOTREC study highlighted growing concerns over market concentration, revealing that Booking Holdings and Expedia Group together account for more than 85% of Europe’s online travel agency (OTA) bookings.

L’article HOTREC announces European hospitality leadership for 2027-2028 est apparu en premier sur Travel Tomorrow.