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💰 Hotel workers' union strikes for three days until January 1st, protesting employers' proposed 5.5% salary increase for 2025, deemed inadequate—a mere €53 raise matching projected inflation rates. Union demands a €75 increase on the regional minimum wage of €915. Union president Adolfo Freitas criticizes the offer, underscoring Madeira's lackluster worker appreciation despite its strong tourism performance in 2024.

🏠 Located 10 minutes from Vannes, an 18th-century château and its dependencies have been renovated to launch a new, ambitious resort concept, offering various accommodations such as farmhouses for families, dormitory lofts for children, and exquisite rooms and suites in the château. From spring 2025, environmentally-friendly lodges and yurts will be available. The Mezo also welcomes external guests for events like signature lobster brunches, Friday afterworks, wine tastings, yoga retreats, and evening events with upcoming concerts by Pierpoljak in October, Jazz Chamber Orchestra in November, SolaR in December, and Irma and Keziah Jones in early 2025.

🏖 Notre-Dame de Paris is set to reopen on December 8, 2024, expecting 15 million visitors with a 2500-person capacity. Mews, a hospitality startup valued at over $1 billion, secured another nine-figure funding round, seven months post a $110 million round. Google Gemini's AI app launched in France for Android users, with iOS availability in weeks. Travelsoft's multiple European travel tech acquisitions aim to lead in distribution. Summer travelers used Apple AirTags to track lost luggage in transit. An immersive VR exhibition at the National Museum of Natural History runs from October 14, 2023, to June 16, 2024.

📌 En France, dès le 1er janvier, une loi transpartisane réduira les abattements fiscaux et renforcera les restrictions sur les locations saisonnières, donnant aux municipalités un pouvoir accru sur le marché touristique. Booking actualisera son système de notation client dès le 1er janvier, privilégiant les avis récents et les variations saisonnières. Les changements d'Airbnb dans les conditions d'annulation, prévus pour le 6 juin 2024, ont suscité des théories conspirationnistes, bien que visant à clarifier les politiques d'annulation. Selon Expedia, les voyageurs consacrent 303 minutes sur 45 jours et visitent 277 pages web avant de réserver. Booking et Expedia annoncent des licenciements massifs malgré des résultats financiers en hausse, Booking prévoyant de supprimer 700 à 1600 postes et Expedia 1500 postes, afin de réinvestir dans le marketing et l'acquisition de nouveaux clients.

🚢 The cruise industry is innovating with cutting-edge ships and unique concepts, targeting ultra-luxury, design, and glamour. After COVID-19, the industry bounced back, introducing ships like Royal Carribean's "Icon of The Seas," measuring 365 meters long with 2,805 cabins, 40 restaurants, and a 17-meter high waterfall. Cunard's "Queen Anne" features interiors by renowned designer Sybille de Margerie, reflecting a chic aesthetic. MSC Cruises introduced the "MSC Yacht Club," an exclusive ship-within-a-ship concept implemented across fifteen of its vessels.

🏦 Yves Wencker named General Manager of Hotel Westminster in Paris, succeeding Françoise Perrier. Boasting nearly 30 years of experience in hospitality, his prestigious career includes roles at Disneyland Paris, overseeing 7 hotels, and managing Hotel Raphaël in Paris, the Taj Palace in Marrakech, Commune by the Great Wall in China, and Cotton House in Mustique. Recently renovated Hotel Westminster is positioned among the most prestigious in Paris, near Place Vendôme, a hub for jewelry and fashion.

📣 Booking.com declared a gatekeeper in May 2024. Google used by 90% of searches, modified hotel search results in EU after being named gatekeeper in 2023. New "Places sites" prioritize OTAs. Google Maps links non-clickable in EEA; direct booking links visibility reduced, with up to 30% fewer clicks reported. Promoted Property Ads (PPAs) spots increased to 25, offering more paid visibility opportunities. Cendyn's analysis showed a 235% increase in clicks for PPAs post-DMA, with a 30% CPC decrease. Specific hotel name searches show 35% fewer clicks on Free Booking Links (FBL) but 3% overall growth in Google Hotel Ads clicks. DMA's ongoing implementation may further impact independent hotels' costs and strategies.

👨‍💼 Laure Solelhac, an HR professional with international experience, shares insights from Mauritius. Originating from Carcassonne and having studied in Montpellier, she worked in Australia and Paris before settling in Mauritius. Now in the hotel sector, she also became a labor law attorney. She emphasizes the importance of HR in hotels (necessary for more than 40-50 employees), structured onboarding, respecting trial periods, proper notification for probation termination, justified and documented dismissals, and preparing for potential litigation.

📈 Bastien Blanc discusses innovation in hotel asset management, highlighting the industry's transformation due to technological advancements and changing investor expectations. He emphasizes the balance between generating new revenue streams, like those enabled by AI and blockchain, and improving operational efficiency through automation, enhanced data security with cloud computing, and data analysis for spending trends. The dilemma is whether to prioritize revenue generation or operational efficiency enhancement.