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🏨 During the first half of 2024, Radisson Hotel Group saw solid growth with over 130 new signings and openings in EMEA and APAC regions. Radisson Collection, Radisson Blu, and Radisson RED brands expanded, including Radisson RED's entry into new markets like Ireland, New Zealand, Thailand, Laos, and China, growing its global portfolio to nearly 90 hotels. Radisson Blu added nearly 20 new properties, with Radisson Collection and Radisson RED launching in several new locations. Elie Younes, Executive Vice President and Chief Development Officer, highlighted the significant international portfolio growth, relevance to customers, and value to owners.

🏨 Marriott, an American giant, opened its 9,000th hotel in mid-August in Florida. The new partnership with Sonder adds over 10,500 rooms (9,000 already open) to the new Sonder by Marriott Bonvoy collection. Sonder, founded in 2014, caters to a young, urban clientele with a digital operational model. The first Sonder Atala opened in Paris in August 2021. Marriott now targets a net room growth of 6 to 6.5% for 2024. Tim Grisius, Global M&A and Real Estate Officer at Marriott, believes this will provide more urban apartment-style lodging options within the Marriott Bonvoy portfolio, catering to the growing extended-stay market.

📈 Booking for Business reveals a shift in business travel accommodations from 2019 to 2023 with apartment stays increasing from 5.77% to 8.87%. Hotels still lead with 71.6% of reservations, despite a 17% rise in hotel rates over two years. Other popular choices include guesthouses (4.17%) and B&Bs (2.37%). Business travelers are booking longer stays, averaging 3.5 nights, with France seeing an 11.1% increase in stay duration. Short-term rentals are facing regulatory challenges in cities like NYC and Barcelona which may affect future trends.

🌊 Two French entrepreneurs launched "Rent A Lake" in June, offering lake or pond rentals for events or fishing, with prices from 30 to 900 euros. The platform has about a hundred listings, expected to triple by December. The US counterpart "Lake.com" lists over 1,000 destinations. Airbnb also has a section for accommodations near bodies of water. Douchlib, a French startup from Pantin, allows renting showers, targeting not only tourists but also outdoor athletes and workers.

📝 An effective customer review management tool is essential, as 92% of consumers check reviews before purchasing or booking services in 2023. Positive reviews directly influence sales, improve online reputation, boost local SEO, and provide constructive feedback. Choose a tool offering essential features like review collection, moderation, analysis, multi-platform diffusion, and response management. Ensure it's AFNOR certified, has a solid reputation, and provides comprehensive support and flexible subscription terms. Guest Suite offers a complete solution with a 7-day free trial to enhance your local visibility and manage online reviews across various platforms.

🐅 Sasaab, a nine-tent camp in Kenya's Samburu National Reserve, won the 2nd Prize at the Hotel & Lodge Awards 2024 in the Lodge category. Guests at Sasaab not only enjoy the "big five" and "special five" animals but also engage in Safari Collection's conservation and community education efforts. The camp offers 100m² luxury thatched-roof tents with pools and outdoor bathrooms, styled in Swahili-Moroccan fashion, plus a spa and immersive excursions. ????

🏃 DGCCRF controlled nearly 16,000 establishments in key sectors of the tourist economy since January 1, 2024, in anticipation of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, which expect 15 million visitors. Directed by former minister Olivia Grégoire, the aim was to protect consumers and ensure fair commercial practices, surpassing the goal of checking all tourist accommodations in Île-de-France and conducting over 10,000 controls across France before the Games' start.

🏨 L’EHL Hospitality Business School in Lausanne, Switzerland, reviewed 8 key hospitality industry trends from the previous year. Tatyana Tsukanova highlighted important factors such as exchange rate fluctuations influencing travel destination choices and the industry's return to pre-pandemic levels, with travel expenses significantly rising. Trends like increased 'bleisure' travel, digital transformation, railway industry growth, local travel, and alternatives to overtourism were also observed. Despite 45% of survey participants from a February study by Booking valuing sustainable travel, they didn't prioritize it for trip planning. Nonetheless, 75% of global travelers intend to travel sustainably in the next 12 months.

🏅 Since January 1, 2024, France's DGCCRF has controlled nearly 16,000 establishments nationwide, focusing on the hospitality-industry (CHR), transport, non-food products, and online platforms for ticket sales and betting, as part of the preparations for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, expecting 15 million visitors. CHR received special attention, with 5,600 checks revealing mostly minor infractions leading to educational measures, but with serious breaches by less than 6% of establishments resulting in 483 administrative and 346 criminal proceedings, and 26 closures by prefectural decree. Additionally, SignalConso, the consumer reporting platform, registered over 13,000 complaints in related sectors.