8 April 2025 - 10 Minutes News for Hoteliers

3 min

Four Surprising Sources of Incremental Hotel Revenue

🏨 Rising operating costs prompt hoteliers to seek new revenue streams, with hotel entertainment technology being a lucrative option. Oracle and Skift report 67% of hotel executives anticipate non-room revenue growth over the next five years. CBRE forecasts a 2% U.S. RevPAR increase due to higher group demand and business travel. OnStream by DISH Business provides a cost-effective entertainment platform that integrates with existing infrastructure, offering live TV, streaming, casting, and customizable UI for promoting amenities, local ads, and enhancing guest experience.

0 min

Bringing Back the Zing that India Misses

What’s Wrong with Metasearch Today?

💸 Nearly half of U.S. travelers used metasearch for flight and hotel bookings in 2017, with metasearch engines surpassing traditional ads as a marketing channel. However, metasearch's share of travel traffic fell from 22% in 2017 to 17% by 2020. The CPC revenue model often leads to higher prices, as rankings are based on bids rather than the best rates. Over 3/4 of top metasearch channels' revenue comes from Booking and Expedia. Traditional metasearch fails to retain customers due to better rates available through OTAs' loyalty programs or apps. For metasearch to survive, it must evolve beyond price comparison, adopting a customer-centric approach with integrated OTA functionality and a cost-per-action model that incentivizes better deals for travelers.

DoorDash Adds AI-Powered Tools to Enhance Online Menus

💾 SuiteOp, a Guest Operations Platform, secured $3 million in seed funding to accelerate development, enhance automation tools, and expand into new markets. Co-founders Jean-Emmanuel Losi and Simon Seroussi, dealing with operational challenges at their short-term rental brand Sosuite, created SuiteOp to address similar issues hospitality businesses face. With this investment, the company aims to deepen automation, reduce overhead, and improve efficiency, building on a fivefold increase in run rate, 15% month-over-month growth, and zero percent customer churn. SuiteOp was founded in 2023 and supports tens of thousands of units.

2 min

The Raise the Wage Act would increase the federal minimum wage to $17 an hour — Here’s what to know

💰 Congressional Democrats, led by Sen. Bernie Sanders, introduced the Raise the Wage Act to Congress on Tuesday, aiming to raise the national minimum wage to $17 an hour over five years and eliminate subminimum wages for tipped, disabled, and youth workers over seven years. The current federal minimum wage of $7.25, last increased in July 2009, would more than double by 2030. The legislation faced a party-line vote during the weekend. Sanders cited that over 60% of workers live paycheck to paycheck. Previously, a $15 minimum wage proposal was included in President Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief plan in 2021 but failed to pass. The Raise the Wage Act has the support of Rep. Robert C. Scott (D-Va.), 32 Senators, 142 Congressional Representatives, and various organizations. The restaurant industry has concerns over job losses and the elimination of the tipped wage, currently at $2.13.

2 min

Chef Michael White opens Levant in Puerto Rico

🍽 Bret Thorn, Senior Food & Beverage Editor for Nation's Restaurant News and Restaurant Hospitality since 1999, hosted podcast "In the Kitchen with Bret Thorn." Wrote "Kitchen Dish" column for The New York Sun (2005-2008), articles in Thailand for Manager magazine and Asia Times (1992-1997). Magna cum laude graduate of Tufts University, studied at Le Cordon Bleu and in China. Winner of 2006 Jesse H. Neal Award, inducted into Disciples d'Escoffier in 2014. Expert in food and beverage trends, French cuisine, and Asian cuisine, especially Thai. Lives in Brooklyn, N.Y. Contact: [email protected], LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

2 min

Pickle-mania sweeps restaurants

📖 Bret Thorn, Senior Food & Beverage Editor for Nation’s Restaurant News and Restaurant Hospitality, joined in 1999. Host of "In the Kitchen with Bret Thorn" podcast. Wrote "Kitchen Dish" column for The New York Sun (2005-2008). Lived in Thailand (circa 1994-1999), writing for Manager magazine and Asia Times. Graduated magna cum laude from Tufts University (1990), Phi Beta Kappa member, studied traditional French cooking at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. Worked for ABC News during Tiananmen Square protests (1989). Won 2006 Jesse H. Neal Award, inducted into Disciples d’Escoffier (2014), author in the Oxford Encyclopedia (2012) and Oxford Companion to Sugar and Sweets (2015). Lives in Brooklyn, NY.

6 min

Reclaim lost revenue: How hotel retargeting ads capture direct bookings

📢 97% of visitors leave a website without booking, risking revenue loss to OTAs and competitors. Retargeting ads help re-engage high-intent travelers, encouraging direct bookings. Click-through rates (CTRs) for retargeting ads are 10x higher than regular display ads. Cloudbeds' Digital Marketing Suite simplifies retargeting for hoteliers with AI-enhanced ads, budget control, and performance tracking, aiming to decrease OTA reliance and increase direct bookings.

3 min

Dear Hoteliers: You’re Probably Leaving Money on the Table—Let’s Fix That

💸 Independent hotels and boutique properties often miss revenue opportunities, such as underpricing rooms by $20 during events or failing to upsell. These oversights can lead to thousands or tens of thousands of dollars in annual losses. RevOptimum specializes in revenue performance optimization, helping hotels reclaim lost income through strategies like daily pricing optimization, OTA strategy management, and intelligent forecasting. They work with PMS systems like Cloudbeds and Mews to maximize hotel performance.

1 min

From viral treat to culinary canvas: Dubai Chocolate is inspiring creative variations

🍫 In less than a year, Dubai Chocolate became a global dessert sensation, starting with a viral TikTok video by a Dubai-based creator. Named “Dessert of the Year” in a Hospitality Trends Report, it has inspired numerous variations across restaurants and pastry shops. A new trend, Dubai Strawberry Parfaits, layers fresh strawberries, pistachio cream, kataifi, and chocolate sauce. These desserts are now featured from brunch menus to evening offerings.

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