HFTP® Acquires Leading Hospitality Industry Brands: Hospitality Upgrade, Hotel-Online, The CIO Summit and The Executive Vendor Summit
Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals | June 25, 2024
Industry Happenings
U.S. Senate, Fix Air Travel Before You Depart
U.S. Travel Association | July 24, 2023
WASHINGTON - U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Geoff Freeman issued the following statement on the urgent need for the U.S. Senate to markup its version of the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill and correct years of governmental failures: "While the Senate may be eager to fly home to start their August recess, millions of Americans have missed trips and lost time with family and friends this summer due to delays and cancellations caused by years of government inattention. The whole of the U.S. economy pays a price when a trip is delayed—or avoided entirely due to air travel hassles." "In fact, over half o...
Marriott International Announces the 2023 J. Willard Marriott Awards of Excellence Honorees
Marriott International, Inc. | July 20, 2023
Today, Marriott International announced the winners of the 2023 J. Willard Marriott Awards of Excellence. Established in 1987 and named after Marriott’s founder, the J. Willard Marriott Awards of Excellence honor the company’s finest associates who represent key characteristics: achievement, character, dedication, effort and perseverance. This year, Marriott will honor 10 associates for their tireless dedication to making a difference in the lives of guests, fellow associates and communities throughout the world. Additionally, four awards will be given honoring outstanding corporate citizenship, diversity and inclusion efforts, excelle...
U.S. Travel Industry Urges Support for FAA Reauthorization Bill Ahead of Critical House Vote
U.S. Travel Association | July 20, 2023
U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Geoff Freeman issued the following statement ahead of the U.S. House of Representatives passage of the bipartisan ‘Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act’ (H.R. 3935), otherwise known as the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill: “The United States requires a more modern, efficient and secure air travel system to meet increasing demand and grow the U.S. economy. The bipartisan House bill is a critical step in correcting years of federal underinvestment, which has left the system with 1,200 fewer air traffic controllers than a decade ago. “The bill inc...
AHLA Foundation Announces $500,000 in Grant Awards From No Room for Trafficking Survivor Fund
No Room for Trafficking | July 20, 2023
Inaugural grants underscore the hotel industry’s ongoing commitment and work to prevent human trafficking and support survivors WASHINGTON (July 20, 2023)-- AHLA Foundation has awarded $500,000 in inaugural No Room for Trafficking (NRFT) Survivor Fund grants to four community-based organizations that serve human trafficking survivors. The 2023 NRFT Survivor Fund grant recipients will provide and promote resources to build survivors’ stability and self-sufficiency—from childcare and housing to transportation, career training and employment opportunities. The 2023 grantees are: Safe House Project, Emergency Services Program ...
Women’s Participation in Travel & Tourism Critical to Growth of Global Sector
WTTC | July 19, 2023
Kigali, Rwanda: The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) reiterated the importance of women’s engagement in Travel & Tourism to catapult its growth and achieve a thriving and resilient sector at the Women Deliver Global Conference, in Kigali, Rwanda. Speaking at the conference today, Julia Simpson, WTTC President & CEO, emphasised the importance of promoting women's involvement in the sector and overcoming challenges for success in the business world. The event served as a platform to address the challenges faced by women in the Travel & Tourism sector and explore strategies to overcome them, aiming to inspire change ...
Five Trends Driving Gen Z’s Travel Choices
StudentUniverse | July 19, 2023
Waltham, Mass. (July 19, 2023) – Using insights from the recent State of Student Travel Report as well as owned data, StudentUniverse, a Flight Centre Travel Group company and the world’s largest student and youth travel marketplace, has outlined travel trends to watch amongst Gen Z travelers. Gen Z Travelers Are Keen On Vocational Travel Insights from the most recent State of Student Travel Report indicated that 87% of travelers aged 18-25 believe that working holidays would improve their career prospects with 78% indicating they would undertake such experiences if presented with the opportunity. With the closure of borders dur...
HSMAI 2023 Adrian Awards Open for Entries
HSMAI | July 18, 2023
McLean, VA (July 18, 2023) – The Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI) is now accepting entries for the 2023 Adrian Awards. The 67th annual Adrian Awards competition focuses on WanderLOVE, highlighting the stories of remarkable marketing and public relations campaigns, ads, earned media programs, experiential and digital experiences that spark a love for travel, igniting a desire for exploration in travelers around the world. Winners will be honored at the HSMAI Adrian Awards Celebration, returning to the New York Marriott Marquis, February 13, 2024. “HSMAI is honored to acknowledge the innovators withi...
Record-Setting Demand for H-2B Visas Amid Sustained Workforce Shortage
U.S. Travel Association | July 17, 2023
U.S. Travel Association Executive Vice President of Public Affairs and Policy Tori Emerson Barnes issued the following statement on the U.S. Department of Labor’s announcement that it received more H-2B visa applications for the year’s first-half allotment than total visas available: “The overwhelming demand for H-2B worker visas—the earliest the first-half cap has ever been met—is further proof that this highly successful program should expand to meet workforce demand. With nearly 10 million job openings across the U.S. economy, and 1.4 million in the leisure and hospitality sector alone, there are simply not enough American work...
HSMAI Hosts Record-Breaking Commercial Strategy Week
HSMAI | July 17, 2023
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: McLean, VA (July 17, 2023) – The Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International’s (HSMAI) Commercial Strategy Week took place in Toronto on June 26-29, 2023, hosting nearly 1,000 industry professionals over the course of the week. The week saw record-breaking attendance as the innovative events blended marketing, revenue optimization, and other commercial functions, reflecting new and evolving commercial strategies being deployed by many hotel companies. The Marketing Strategy Conference had over 600 registered attendees, which was a 34% increase over last year’s record of 445 participants. Nearly th...
AHLA Foundation Establishes No Room for Trafficking Advisory
AHLA Foundation | July 17, 2023
WASHINGTON (July 13, 2023) – The AHLA Foundation today announced its inaugural No Room for Trafficking (NRFT) Advisory Council, which includes top leaders from across the hotel and lodging industry. AHLA Foundation’s No Room for Trafficking program aims to unite the industry around collective anti-trafficking efforts that meet the needs of today’s hospitality employers, employees, and the communities they serve. In their role, NRFT Advisory Council members help champion and shape the hotel industry’s unified efforts to support human trafficking survivors with critical resources on their path toward empowerment and self-sufficie...
Tourism for Sustainable Development in the Spotlight at UN High-Level Forum Event
UNWTO | July 13, 2023
This week will bring tourism back to the United Nations headquarters to emphasize the sector’s unique position to accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Reflecting the unprecedented relevance of tourism on the UN agenda, UNWTO together with the Ministry of Tourism and Sport, Republic of Croatia and support from Ministry of Tourism, India, Chair of the G20 Tourism Working Group will gather leaders from the public and private sectors for a high level roundtable at the official side event on “Economic, Social, and Environmental Sustainability in Tourism" which will be held on Friday 14 July within the framewor...
Travel + Leisure Announces Winners of 2023 World’s Best Awards Revealing the Top Cities, Islands, Hotels, Cruise Lines and More
Travel + Leisure | July 11, 2023
NEW YORK, July 11, 2023 -- Travel + Leisure announces the best travel destinations and organizations across the globe, according to the results of the 2023 World's Best Awards' reader survey. The 28th edition of the World's Best Awards highlight the leaders in travel, including top cities, islands, hotels, cruise lines, airlines, airports and more. The complete survey results are available now on TravelandLeisure.com and in the August issue of Travel + Leisure, on newsstands July 21. Spanning 122 category lists, this year's survey results yielded many surprises, including a new airline claiming the #1 spot for Best I...
From Solo Travel to ‘Pay-Cations,’ Young Americans Lead 2023 Travel Trends With Wellness at the Forefront
Allianz Partners | July 11, 2023
RICHMOND, Va., July 11, 2023 -- Allianz Partners USA, the travel insurance and assistance company known for popularizing the term "micro-cation" in 2019 has identified yet another travel trend making waves amongst Americans. Allianz Partners' 15th Annual Vacation Confidence Index* has revealed that around three in 10 Americans will choose to work remotely from a vacation destination in 2023, an intentional move that goes beyond "bleisure" travel that blends working time with vacation. The new work-from-a-vacation-destination travel trend, which Allianz Partners is calling a 'pay-cation,' has been encouraged by fle...
Hospitality Innovator BluIP® Receives the AHLA Technology Acceleration Award
BluIP | July 11, 2023
LAS VEGAS, NV — JULY 11, 2023 — The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA), the largest hotel association in the U.S. representing all segments of the industry nationwide, has announced BluIP as a recipient of the organization’s inaugural AHLA Technology Acceleration Award. The annual AHLA Technology Acceleration Award recognizes companies that have taken specific steps to advance innovation in hospitality. This year, the award showcased companies that have adopted HTNG Express, a new solution that shortens the process for post-booking hotel property management system integrations from months to just days. To be consider...
Trip.com Sees 145% Flight Booking Surge From US to UK
Trip.com | July 7, 2023
LONDON, July 7, 2023 -- Leading travel service provider Trip.com has seen remarkable flight and hotel bookings growth from outbound US travellers to the UK and the rest of Europe. Despite high global inflation, long-haul travel sentiment from US travellers to Europe is improving. Trip.com flight booking data reveals a remarkable year-over-year increase of 145% from the US to the UK in the first half of this year. This surge in air travel highlights the growing demand for transatlantic travel and the increasing interest of American travellers in exploring various European destinations. Trip.com hotel bookings for the UK reveal tha...
HSMAI Foundation Announces Mike Dimond 2023 Student Career Success Grant Recipients
HSMAI Foundation | July 7, 2023
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: McLean, VA (July 7, 2023) – The Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International Foundation is proud to announce this year’s recipients of the Mike Dimond Student Career Success Grant. This prestigious program supports degree-seeking students who plan to pursue careers in hospitality. The 2023 Mike Dimond Student Career Success Grant awardees are Eleanor Brillo, Mayu Miyata, and Yana Kyrylyuk. Eleanor Brillo received her B.S. in Tourism Development and Management from Arizona State University and expects to receive an M.A. in Sustainable Tourism from Arizona State University in 2024. Sh...
Industry Professionals Celebrate 2023 HITEC Return to Toronto
HFTP | July 5, 2023
The Hospitality Industry Technology Exposition and Conference (HITEC®) celebrated its return to Toronto hosting over 4,500 attendees at the Metro Toronto Convention Center from June 26-29. Produced by Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®) for more than 50 years, the event showcases the industry's latest technology innovations from over 325 exhibitors and provides a top-notch education program with dozens of specialty topic and general sessions. “We’re proud to say that HITEC once again confirmed its essential role in the hospitality technology community meeting space,” said HFTP CEO Frank Wolfe, CAE. “At...
AHLA, Questex Host Successful New Event: The Hospitality Show
AHLA | June 30, 2023
LAS VEGAS (June 30, 2023) —The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) and Questex this week debuted The Hospitality Show (The Show) at The Venetian® Resort Las Vegas June 27-29, completing a highly successful inaugural year for the event, which drew more than 3,500 attendees and 300 vendors. The Show is a brand-new operations and technology event, created in partnership by The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) and Questex, uniquely designed for the entire hospitality ecosystem to help hotels operate more efficiently and profitably. “We set very high standards for what we wanted to achieve with the first year o...
The J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation and Marriott International Join Together to Grow the AHLA Foundation’s Survivor Fund
Marriott International, Inc. | June 29, 2023
The J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation and Marriott International announced a $550,000 combined contribution to support the AHLA Foundation’s No Room for Trafficking (NRFT) Survivor Fund, as part of the hotel industry’s longstanding, united commitment to combat human trafficking. This contribution increases the NRFT Survivor Fund to $3.4 million since its launch less than a year ago and will be used for grants to community-based organizations that provide financial support and stability to human trafficking survivors. “Human trafficking is a profound violation of human rights and fundamentally contradicts the core values tha...
The Hospitality Show Welcomes Thousands of Attendees, Holds First Full Day of Programming
AHLA | June 29, 2023
LAS VEGAS (June 29, 2023) — Today, Wednesday, June 28, The Hospitality Show (The Show), taking place at The Venetian® Resort Las Vegas, held its first full day of programming, welcoming thousands of attendees and featuring and over 300 exhibitors showcasing the latest in hospitality operations and technology solutions. The Show is a brand-new operations and technology event, created in partnership by The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) and Questex, uniquely designed for the entire hospitality ecosystem to help hotels operate more efficiently and profitably. The Show keynote speaker and Athletic Greens COO and President...
Record-Setting July Fourth Travel Weekend Should Spur Congressional Action on FAA
U.S. Travel Association | June 28, 2023
WASHINGTON (June 28, 2023)—Ahead of what the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) predicts will be the busiest travel day of the record-setting July 4 holiday weekend, U.S. Travel Association Executive Vice President of Public Affairs and Policy Tori Emerson Barnes issued the following statement on the urgent need for Congress to address FAA staffing and funding shortages through the agency’s reauthorization bill: “U.S. airlines have hired more than 55,000 new workers since 2022 to help stave off delays, yet we need an act of Congress and FAA policy changes just to hire 1,800 air traffic controllers per year and ensure they are st...
World Travel & Tourism Council & UNWTO Sign Historic MOU
June 22, 2023
Goa, India: In an historic first, the world’s two leading Travel & Tourism organisations representing the global public and private sectors agreed to work together across a number of key objectives. The Memorandum of Understanding, signed today by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) and the World Tourism Organization of the United Nations (UNWTO) at the G20 Ministerial meeting (Goa, India), focused on advancing public-private sector cooperation at the global level whilst promoting job creation, talent development and business opportunities around the world. Together, WTTC and UNWTO will promote tourism in the global and na...
Enabling the Differently Abled in the Hospitality Sector
Mandeep S. Lamba | June 20, 2023
By Mandeep Lamba, Dipti Mohan, Dhwani Gupta Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) have now become a business priority for most organizations across industries, as multiple research studies have shown that it not only boosts creativity, innovation, and employee morale but also productivity and bottom line while helping the world to move towards a more equalized economy. Organizations are taking active steps to make their workplaces more diverse and inclusive by focusing on recruiting people of different genders, ethnicity, cultures, nationalities, sexual orientation, and identities. Empowering differently-abled people through employment oppor...
Marriott International Commits to Hiring More Than 3,000 Refugees Globally by 2026
Marriott International, Inc. | June 20, 2023
Today, on World Refugee Day, Marriott International announced it has committed to hiring more than 1,500 refugees throughout its European region by 2026. This follows Marriott’s commitment to hire over 1,500 refugees by 2025 in the United States. Marriott President and CEO Anthony Capuano announced Marriott’s hiring commitment during the Tent Partnership for Refugees European Business Summit this week. “At Marriott International, we believe in being a force for good and making a positive and sustainable impact in the communities where we do business,” said Capuano. “Across Europe, this has included support for refugees from Ukr...
