For years, the hospitality industry has been talking about personalization. Today, personalization is no longer optional; it is a critical differentiator

Amid accelerated digital transformation, rising cost pressure and increasing guest expectations, the company positions its latest PMS innovations as a response

Reading Time: 2 minutesUAE: In a joint venture with Manchester City, Ohana Development is building branded residences for the football club on Yas Island, with sales scheduled to launch on 1 March 2026.
The post Manchester City Residences Yas Island to launch sales 1st March appeared first on Boutique Hotel News.

Reading Time: < 1 minuteUS: Outdoor boutique hotel brand Trailborn has appointed Paul Eckert as chief operating officer, who joins from Davidson Hospitality Group. 
The post Trailborn names Eckert as chief operating officer appeared first on Boutique Hotel News.

Miami, Florida—AAHOA (Asian American Hotel Owners Association) brought the 2026 Helping Young Professionals Evolve (HYPE) Conference to Miami, Florida, gathering young hospitality leaders for two days of education, networking, and professional development. Attendees explored strategies for leadership, operations, and growth while connecting with peers and industry experts. The HYPE Conference is AAHOA’s annual program focused on leadership development and professional growth for the next generation of hotel owners, operators, and industry professionals. The 2026 conference […]
The post AAHOA Shares Details of 2026 HYPE Conference appeared first on LODGING Magazine.

MOAB, Utah—Red Cliffs Lodge Moab announces an extensive, property-wide renovation. Taking place over much of the last year, the project included a completely redesigned lodge, a new signature restaurant and cocktail lounge, Ember, and a new look and feel to the 40 creekside and 39 riverfront suites. An overhaul of 31 riverfront cabins, the final phase of the project, is currently underway. “Resting along the Colorado River, each guestroom looks out over moving water and glowing red rock—a setting that feels almost unreal in its beauty,” said Stina […]
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Hotel executives at a recent industry event discussed the advantages and challenges of asset-heavy ownership models compared to asset-light strategies, focusing on control, flexibility, investment returns, and risk management in a volatile economic environment.

Tourism and hospitality are people‑intensive industries where every decision unfolds in close contact with communities, guests, employees, and partners. Success depends on the subtle, often invisible work of managing relationships, in other words, work shaped by emotions and expectations. Yet while these human dynamics sit at the heart of the sector, they remain surprisingly understudied and undervalued in mainstream management thinking.

India, 20th February 2026: RateGain Travel Technologies Limited (NSE: RATEGAIN), a global leader of AI-powered SaaS solutions for the travel and hospitality industry, today announced that UNO, RateGain’s direct commerce platform for hotels, has integrated global payment platform Stripe to strengthen cross-border payment capabilities within the UNO Booking Engine. As travelers increasingly expect seamless, secure, and flexible ways to pay when booking hotels online, checkout experience has emerged as a critical driver of conversion and trust, particularly for hotels serving an international guest base. This partnership addresses one of the most critical moments in the booking journey: payment completion. Stripe enables businesses to accept, process, and manage online payments securely across currencies and geographies. With a strong global presence, Stripe allows UNO to embed enterprise-grade payment capabilities directly into the booking journey, supporting multiple payment methods such as cards and digital wallets, while ensuring flexibility, reliability and compliance across markets. The UNO Booking Engine is designed to help hotels grow direct bookings by delivering a seamless, brand-owned booking experience that builds guest confidence from discovery to payment. By integrating Stripe into the UNO Booking Engine, hotels can better serve international travelers booking from different countries and payment environments, without adding operational complexity. The result is a smoother checkout experience that helps reduce drop-offs, improve payment completion, and strengthen direct relationships between hotels and their guests. “The most successful hotel brands today are prioritizing the checkout experience as a core part of their direct booking strategy,” said Ashish Sikka, Business Head, UNO Platforms, RateGain. “With Stripe integrated into the UNO Booking Engine, hotels can confidently serve global demand while maintaining full control of their direct channel, from discovery to payment.” Integrating Stripe further advances UNO’s Direct Stack vision, bringing together demand, booking, distribution, and payments into a single, scalable platform designed to help hotels compete more effectively, reduce reliance on intermediaries, and grow their direct business globally. About RateGain RateGain Travel Technologies Limited is a global provider of AI-powered SaaS solutions for travel and hospitality that works with 13,000+ customers and 700+ partners in 160+ countries helping them accelerate revenue generation through acquisition, retention, and wallet share expansion. RateGain today is one of the world’s largest processors of electronic transactions, price points, and travel intent data helping revenue management, distribution and marketing teams across hotels, airlines, meta-search companies, package providers, car rentals, travel management companies, cruises and ferries drive better outcomes for their business. Founded in 2004 and headquartered in India, today RateGain works with 33 of the Top 40 Hotel Chains, 4 of the Top 5 Airlines, 7 of the Top 10 Car Rentals, and all leading OTAs and metasearch websites, including 25 Global Fortune 500 companies, in unlocking new revenue every day. Media Contact Aastha Khurana | media@rategain.com
The post RateGain’s UNO Booking Engine Integrates Stripe to Strengthen Direct Booking Payments for Hotels Globally appeared first on RateGain.

India, 18th February 2026: RateGain Travel Technologies Limited (NSE: RATEGAIN), a global leader in AI-powered SaaS solutions for the travel and hospitality industry, today announced that Sojern, its recently acquired digital marketing platform built for hospitality, has launched the “State of Destination Marketing 2026” Report. The report examines how destination marketing organizations (DMOs) are navigating economic pressure, rising performance expectations, and accelerating AI-driven change across the travel industry. Based on insights from more than 350 DMOs worldwide, the report finds that the ability to measure economic impact ranks as the top strategic priority in this year’s survey, ahead of metrics such as visitation and engagement, as destination marketers face growing scrutiny to demonstrate tangible return on investment. The findings point to a broader shift toward performance-led marketing, with accountability and measurable outcomes increasingly central to destination strategy. “Destination marketers are under more pressure than ever to show measurable impact,” said Mark Rabe, CEO of Sojern. “This year’s report shows how DMOs are rising to that challenge—rethinking success metrics, investing more intentionally, and adapting their strategies to stay visible as AI reshapes discovery. At Sojern, we’re proud to support destinations globally as they navigate this moment of change with confidence and clarity.” From Visibility to Value: Performance Takes Center Stage The ability to measure economic impact ranks above traditional measures such as visitation and engagement in DMOs strategic priorities. As budgets tighten, the question facing marketers has become more direct: Is this driving the business forward?  Globally, conversion and ROI metrics (72%), economic impact data (72%) and customer engagement data (41%) are now the most important proof points for stakeholders. In North America, 79% of DMOs prioritize hotel room nights and direct revenue over brand awareness. In Europe, where longer-term brand building still matters for 51% of DMOs, performance nevertheless comes first amid growing financial uncertainty, with 31% of DMOs saying their funding is at risk. In the Middle East, Asia, and Africa (AMEA), 88% of DMOs say conversion is the most important metric. The Funnel Isn’t Linear, and Strategy Isn’t Either  DMOs are evenly split between stage-specific (47%) and full-funnel (47%) campaign strategies, but priorities vary by region. In North America, performance dominates: 51% of DMOs focus primarily on mid-and lower-funnel activity, with 31% now citing conversions as their main goal, up from 15% last year. Globally, focus on awareness has dropped sharply, from 59% in 2025 to 25% in 2026, raising questions about the long-term impact of underinvesting in brand visibility. AI Is Changing Discovery—And DMOS Are Responding AI is no longer a future concern. More than half of DMOs (51%) say they are concerned or actively preparing for AI-driven search disruption, and 31% expect their website to become a “source of truth” for AI-generated answers. Adoption is accelerating. Two-thirds of DMOs (66%) now use AI to support content creation, while use of AI for data analysis and insights jumped from 28% to 51% in just one year. Still, maturity remains uneven: 16% say they are not using AI at all. Personalization, Data, and the Resource Gap Despite growing intent, personalization progress has stalled. Only 9% of DMOs describe their advertising as “advanced,” while the share reporting only basic personalization rose from 14% to 22% year over year. Data is widely trusted but underutilized. DMOs say it delivers the most value during planning (45%), and post-campaign reporting (44%), yet just 7% say it plays the most valuable role during live campaign execution. Demographic data (74%) remains the dominant targeting input globally, while Europe leans more heavily into audience and foot traffic data. AMEA leads in more advanced tactics, with 78% using behavioral and destination insights and 56% using psychographic data to personalize at scale. Channels Reset, Not Replaced Paid social remains the most widely used digital channel, with 88% of DMOs investing globally. Instagram and Facebook continue to anchor social strategies (97% and 90% adoption, respectively), while YouTube usage has grown to 55%, reflecting its role across inspiration and consideration. Channel strategies are becoming more selective. Display advertising usage fell from 75% in 2025 to 45% in 2026, while TikTok adoption declined from 49% to 28%, signaling a sharper focus on channels that more clearly support performance. While fewer teams now prioritize Connected TV (CTV) as a primary channel, 58% of DMOs still say CTV is somewhat to critically important within their overall media mix. Why Co-Op Still Matters  Co-op marketing remains a critical lever. Eighty percent of DMOs run co-op campaigns, primarily to reach wider audiences (70%), increase total investment (64%), and share costs (63%). However, complexity remains a barrier, with 27% of DMOs citing partner management as too difficult for lean teams. This year’s report was produced in partnership with Dynata and supported by Brand USA, the U.S. Travel Association, Destinations International, Destination Canada, the European Travel Commission, City DNA, the Caribbean Tourism Organization and the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA). To view the full findings and survey methodology, download the “State of Destination Marketing 2026” report here. About RateGain RateGain Travel Technologies Limited is a global provider of AI-powered SaaS solutions for travel and hospitality that works with 13,000+ customers and 700+ partners in 160+ countries helping them accelerate revenue generation through acquisition, retention, and wallet share expansion. RateGain today is one of the world’s largest processors of electronic transactions, price points, and travel intent data helping revenue management, distribution and marketing teams across hotels, airlines, meta-search companies, package providers, car rentals, travel management companies, cruises and ferries drive better outcomes for their business. Founded in 2004 and headquartered in India, today RateGain works with 33 of the Top 40 Hotel Chains, 4 of the Top 5 Airlines, 7 of the Top 10 Car Rentals, and all leading OTAs and metasearch websites, including 25 Global Fortune 500 companies, in unlocking new revenue every day. About Sojern Sojern is the leading AI-powered marketing platform built for hospitality, designed to boost growth and profitability for the travel industry. The Sojern marketing platform is a set of easy-to-use
The post RateGain Highlights Findings from Sojern’s 2026 State of Destination Marketing Report: Measuring Economic Impact Ranks as DMOs’ Top Priority Amid AI Disruption appeared first on RateGain.

Hotel Designs
The Hoxton, Shoreditch enters a new era
The Hoxton, Shoreditch enters a new era
Pauline Brettell.

Hotel Designs
The Ickworth – reimagined and reopening
The Ickworth – reimagined and reopening
Pauline Brettell.

Celebrating 50 years in business, Metro Hotels has also revealed how SiteMinder has helped the brand achieve incredible revenue results.

What are hotel back office operations? Hotel back office operations are the administrative, financial and technical functions that power a hotel behind the scenes. Unlike the front desk, back office departments don’t interact with guests. They’re instead responsible for the essential workflows that ensure the hotel is profitable and compliant, like payroll, procurement and financial […]

The hotel sits on a quiet street in the Garden District, offering a serene alternative to the French Quarter's lively vibe.

Quinn’s Hot Springs in Paradise offers riverside soaking pools, mineral-rich waters, and cozy cabins.

CHICAGO, IL – February 27, 2026 – Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE: H) announced World of Hyatt is serving up the next chapter of its tennis story by welcoming back professional tennis star...

CHICAGO (February 25, 2026) — World of Hyatt today announced a thoughtful update to the program, including its published award chart, reinforcing its commitment to transparency, predictability...

Humor-driven strategy reframes booking stress as a branding opportunity in an overcrowded travel market

Now the world’s third-largest TMC following CWT’s absorption into Amex GBT, the group gains scale and momentum in a resilient corporate travel market

Quick Answer Caribbean: Cruise September–early December for the lowest fares (just watch for hurricane season). Mediterranean: April–May and September–October offer warm weather at shoulder-season prices. Alaska: May and September sailings can save you 20–40% over peak summer. All destinations: Book during wave season (January–March) for the steepest promotions across every cruise line. Cruising is easily […]

From Chicago’s green river to New York’s historic parade, these cities go all in for St. Patrick’s Day. TL;DR Chicago, IL: Watch the Chicago River turn green, then hit one of the biggest parades in the U.S. New York City, NY: Catch the iconic Fifth Avenue parade on March 17 and soak up nonstop Irish […]