Feb 21 2025
Chinese New Year Hotel Performance 2025: Market Trends and Standout Cities
- Despite a general economic slowdown, several Chinese cities saw positive hotel industry performance during the Spring Festival, with Shenzhen, Zhengzhou and Wuxi standing out.
- Japan emerged as the top performer in the overseas market, while snow and ice tourism and intangible cultural heritage tourism surfaced as new growth areas.
During the Chinese Spring Festival, a peak period for tourism, the hotel industry in Mainland China faced a series of challenges due to an economic slowdown. The market experienced a slight decrease in average daily rates (ADR) and a more significant drop in occupancy, leading to a 12% decline in revenue per available room (RevPAR) compared to 2024. However, mid-range, economy, and luxury hotels displayed resilience, with the latter maintaining steadier occupancy rates.
Despite a generally stagnant first half of the holiday, the latter half saw a surge in demand, with occupancy and room rates surpassing the previous year’s figures. Notably, only 25% of secondary markets exceeded their prior occupancy levels, and a mere 28 surpassed last year’s RevPAR.
Several cities, including Shenzhen, Zhengzhou, and Wuxi, emerged as strong performers, showing year-on-year growth in both occupancy and ADR. Shenzhen, in particular, benefited from a range of cultural and tourism activities, attracting many visitors and boosting the overall performance of the hotel market.
Snow and ice tourism markets, particularly Harbin, were popular during the festival, while Fuzhou and Quanzhou saw increased RevPAR due to the festival’s recognition by UNESCO as an “Intangible Cultural Heritage.”
Among popular overseas destinations, Japan experienced significant growth, driven by a rise in ADR.
Credit HNR Hotel News
Feb 20 2025
How to use ChatGPT to create hotel guest journeys and save time
By Willem Rabsztyn, CEO and co-founder at Bookboost
Imagine this, a couple books a weekend stay, and instead of a generic confirmation from the hotel, they receive a tip about a hidden sunset spot or a breakfast-in-bed option. Small touches like these can transform a regular visit into a memorable experience, making guests feel more special and making your brand stand out.
You might think that achieving this requires complex tech, lengthy setup, or even specialised training. Here’s the good news: with ChatGPT, you can get started quickly, with no technical know-how required.
By following these 5 simple steps, soon you’ll have ChatGPT working as your own personal assistant, delivering exactly the experience you want.
1. Start with your brand: setting the foundation
To use ChatGPT effectively, the AI needs to understand what makes your hotel unique. You need to provide a background so it can adapt to the vocabulary you use, the services you have, and more.
Think of this as laying the groundwork that will guide ChatGPT’s tone, language, and response style. People often complain about ChatGPT providing general answers and using language that is not common for humans. That is because they haven’t trained it.
Start by defining your hotel’s personality. Provide insights into its unique qualities, such as the atmosphere, core values, and guest experiences you aim to deliver. For instance, is your hotel known for its luxurious ambiance, eco-conscious design, or cozy, family-friendly charm? This context ensures that the AI generates responses that feel authentic and aligned with your brand.
Next, establish your brand voice. Specify whether ChatGPT should adopt a friendly and approachable tone, a formal and luxurious style, or perhaps something playful and vibrant. Consistency in tone across all guest interactions strengthens your brand identity and leaves a lasting impression.
Tip: You can even mention words that should not be used (to avoid sounding like a robot).
2. Identify and segment guests
Personalisation starts with understanding your guests. To make journeys resonate with each traveller, segment your audience based on their unique needs and preferences.
Break down your guests into meaningful groups, such as business travellers, families, couples, solo travellers, and more. Each group has distinct priorities and expectations, which should shape their journey.
You can even feed ChatGPT with some statistics and numbers from your guest data, so it can understand what are the most common guest groups in your property, establish priorities and identify highly valuable groups of guests.
3. Map key milestones and touchpoints for each segment
Once you’ve segmented your guests, it’s time to outline their journey. Mapping key milestones ensures ChatGPT’s responses are relevant and impactful at every stage.
Map out all the critical points in the journey, such as booking, pre-arrival, check-in, in-stay, and post-stay, and think about how ChatGPT can support every stage. For example, perhaps you need help crafting the message, putting together an attractive offer based on your services or understanding what other type of messages and interactions you could create based on your brand’s essence.
A well-trained ChatGPT can help you with all of that. But it is crucial that you set clear objectives for each stage. Do you want to make the experience more personalised? Or do you want to increase your upselling revenue? Define what you want to achieve at each touchpoint.
Clear objectives guide ChatGPT’s interactions to be helpful and intentional.
4. Create specific prompts for each segment and stage
Tailored prompts are at the core of using ChatGPT to create personalised guest journeys. With well-designed prompts, ChatGPT can generate responses that feel customised and relevant for each guest group.
Here’s how you design targeted prompts:
Let’s say you’re a boutique hotel located in Berlin, Germany, and you’ve already completed steps 1 to 3 to help ChatGPT understand your brand and guest needs. Now you want to send a personalised pre-stay message to a business guest arriving soon.
The Prompt could be:
“Create a pre-stay message for a business guest arriving in two days. Highlight our business-friendly amenities and recommend nearby spots for a quick coffee or a lunch meeting.”
Example response generated by ChatGPT:
“Hello [Guest Name],
We’re excited to welcome you to [Hotel Name] soon! To make your stay as comfortable and productive as possible, we wanted to share a few details that might be useful.
Our hotel offers high-speed Wi-Fi throughout, along with quiet, comfortable workspaces that are perfect for catching up on projects or hosting small meetings. If you need any assistance with meeting room arrangements, just let us know – we’re here to help.
For a quick coffee or a relaxed business lunch, we recommend [Café Name], just a short walk away, known for its calm ambiance and exceptional coffee. If you need any further recommendations or assistance before you arrive, don’t hesitate to reach out.
Wishing you smooth travels, and we look forward to your arrival!
Best regards,
[Your Name] [Hotel Name] Team”
Keep adjusting prompts until ChatGPT’s responses align with your brand voice and meet guest expectations.
Tip: Consider using different voice tones. Responses to families can be friendly and casual, while interactions with business travellers might lean more formal.
5. Measure feedback and continuously improve
The final step is to monitor guest feedback and use it to refine your approach. ChatGPT is a flexible tool that can be continuously adjusted to better meet guest needs.
Analyse engagement rates, feedback, and common guest questions to identify areas for improvement. High open and response rates indicate effective messaging, while feedback helps pinpoint areas for adjustment.
Use this feedback to refine prompts and further tailor ChatGPT responses. This ensures the guest journey evolves in line with changing preferences, providing an even more seamless and personalized experience.
Scaling personalisation without losing authenticity
ChatGPT gives hoteliers the ability to scale personalisation like never before while staying true to their brand’s authenticity. By automating repetitive tasks and tailoring interactions to guest preferences, ChatGPT helps ensure every guest feels recognized and valued.
However, personalisation doesn’t have to come at the expense of genuine hospitality. When paired with your team’s human touch, ChatGPT becomes a powerful tool to enhance, not replace, authentic connections.
Credit eHotelier
Feb 18 2025
6 social media trends hoteliers must leverage in 2025
Social media in 2025 isn’t just about posting stunning property photos, it’s about crafting immersive experiences that drive bookings and loyalty. The digital landscape is evolving rapidly, and hoteliers who stay ahead of these trends will see higher engagement, increased brand awareness, and ultimately, more direct bookings.
Here’s what’s making waves in social media and how you can use these trends to elevate your hotel’s online presence.
1. Hyperlocal storytelling: creating authentic connections
Travelers crave authentic experiences, and hotels can capitalize on this by showcasing the local culture, hidden gems, and unique community events. Instead of generic travel content, share stories about your destination’s lesser-known spots, collaborations with local artisans, or behind-the-scenes glimpses into your property’s connection with the community. Guests don’t just want a place to stay; they want to feel part of the destination.
2. Short-form video is king
TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts continue to dominate the digital space, with algorithms favoring engaging, bite-sized videos. Hoteliers should focus on creating short, compelling content that highlights unique experiences whether it’s a mesmerizing sunrise view from a suite, a time-lapse of an extravagant breakfast spread, or a quick tour of on-site wellness facilities. Videos should be dynamic, visually appealing, and designed to capture attention within the first three seconds.
3. UGC: turning guests into your best marketers
User-Generated Content (UGC) is more powerful than ever. Encouraging guests to share their experiences through photos, videos, and reviews on social media builds trust and enhances your hotel’s credibility. Hotels that actively engage with UGC by resharing, featuring guest testimonials, or even running contests will create a sense of community and increase organic reach. In 2025, authenticity sells and nothing is more authentic than a real guest’s experience.
4. Micro and nano influencer marketing: the smart approach
Gone are the days of relying solely on celebrity influencers with massive followings. Hotels are now leveraging micro and nano influencers (those with smaller but highly engaged audiences) to drive targeted traffic. These influencers provide genuine recommendations, and their followers trust them more than traditional advertisements. Partnering with local travel bloggers, lifestyle influencers, and niche content creators can amplify your brand’s reach and credibility in a cost-effective way.
5. Evolving culinary and wellness experiences: social media’s new goldmine
Food and wellness trends are redefining travel decisions, and hotels must tap into this by showcasing their evolving culinary experiences and wellness offerings. From farm-to-table dining and plant-based menus to luxury spa treatments and fitness retreats, social media is the perfect platform to highlight these experiences. Use engaging formats like live cooking demonstrations, chef takeovers, or behind-the-scenes wellness content to attract travelers looking for indulgent yet mindful experiences.
6. Virtual tours and immersive storytelling
With advancing technology, virtual tours are becoming more interactive and immersive. Hotels can use augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) on social media to offer prospective guests a taste of the experience before they book. Imagine a 360-degree room tour on Instagram or a behind-the-scenes walkthrough of your resort on Facebook—this type of content builds excitement and trust, helping to convert lookers into bookers.
What’s new in social media for February 2025?
- Instagram’s AI-Powered Content Suggestions: Hotels can now leverage AI-driven insights to optimize content for higher engagement.
- TikTok Travel Hub Expansion: TikTok is doubling down on travel content, making it a prime platform for hoteliers to showcase their offerings.
- Threads Integration with Instagram: Meta’s continued push to enhance Threads could provide new ways for hotels to engage in real-time conversations with travelers.
- Google’s AI Video Search: A game-changer for hospitality brands, SEO-optimized video content will play a bigger role in discoverability.
The hospitality industry is undergoing a social media revolution, and staying ahead of these trends is no longer optional, it’s essential. By leveraging hyperlocal storytelling, UGC, influencer collaborations, short-form videos, and evolving travel experiences, your hotel can create compelling, shareable content that resonates with modern travelers.
It’s time to take action and start implementing these trends today and watch your social media presence thrive in 2025!
Credit eHotelier
Feb 17 2025
How to increase hotel revenue: Why ancillary revenue is key
By Karen Stephens, Chief Marketing Officer, Revinate
“You have blinders on!” That’s the last thing you want to hear when you’re trying to determine how to increase hotel revenue.
If anyone has said that to you before, you know you’re being called out for how you’re doing things because it prevents you from seeing the full picture. You’re too focused on one thing.
In the evolving world of hotel revenue management, you don’t want to have blinders on. In other words, relying solely on room bookings is no longer enough if you’re trying to find out how to increase hotel revenue. To truly thrive, hoteliers need to diversify their income streams — and that’s where ancillary revenue comes into view.
The reality is that surviving off occupancy alone leaves money on the table. Hoteliers are seeing a major shift in how revenue is generated, with a growing emphasis on ancillary revenue. And this is one trend you don’t want to miss out on.
Hoteliers who have removed the blinders and led with personalized guest experiences and strategic upselling have unlocked significant value that goes far beyond room rates — increasing their NOI and ensuring long-term success in a competitive market.
Do you want to be one of those hoteliers without blinders? Keep reading to learn how you can start increasing ancillary revenue today.
The problem with ‘heads in beds’ revenue models
Traditional hotel revenue management was all about “heads in beds” — filling as many rooms as possible at any given time. While that approach may have worked in the past, fluctuating demand, competition from OTAs, and changing economic conditions are now making this model completely unreliable.
Fluctuating demand will be an ever-present challenge for hoteliers as seasonal changes and unpredictable booking patterns put occupancy levels in a vulnerable spot. And a growing reliance on OTAs means that hotels are sacrificing a large portion of their revenue to commission fees. Continued economic shifts and global disruptions further add to the revenue uncertainty — leaving hotels exposed to external factors beyond their control.
Here’s what you can do to take control. Diving into how to increase hotel revenue starts with maximizing your guests’ wallet. As Jan Freitag, National Director, Hospitality Analytics at CoStar Group, points out on the Hotel Moment podcast, “There’s something that revenue managers together with marketing people need to figure out: Where is the customer going to pay additional? What can we just throw in to create the value equation?”
And when guests book direct, you can easily increase guest spend. Why? Because you provide value that OTAs can’t — personalized recommendations for a better guest experience.
How to increase hotel revenue: focus on ancillary revenue
You likely have a good idea of what ancillary revenue is and where it comes from at your hotel, but if you haven’t tapped into this river of hotel revenue goodness, then a refresher couldn’t hurt.
Ancillary revenue refers to any income generated from services or products beyond the room charge. From spa treatments to food and beverage sales, you have plenty of choices on how to increase hotel revenue.
Examples of ancillary revenue:
- Spa services: Offering packages, treatments, and wellness services that guests can add to their stay.
- Food and beverage: Upselling premium dining options, in-room snacks, and beverage packages.
- Room upgrades: Offering guests the option to upgrade their rooms for a more luxurious experience.
- Experiences: Providing curated local tours, private events, or unique experiences that guests can purchase during their stay.
And what’s the conduit for ancillary revenue? Hyper-personalization. As Marc Winchell, Corporate CRM at PHG Hospitality shares on the Hotel Moment podcast, “I think we’re gonna have guests looking for even deeper personalization, and hopefully in a way where we’ve convinced them to continue to book direct because we know that we can deliver a better guest experience for them if they do.”
Technology that supports hyper-personalization in your marketing communications on-property, or even pre-arrival, opens the door to upsell opportunities that guests feel are actually relevant to them. Know that your guest loves mocktails? This is how to increase hotel revenue — with an upsell for happy hour mocktails at your hotel restaurant. And when your guest books direct, you’re more likely to collect preferences like that to use for future upsells.
How hyper-personalization unlocks ancillary revenue
The fuel for hyper-personalization is your guest data. And more hoteliers are waking up to the fact that guest data informs which hotel offerings to present to the right guest at the right time to drive additional spending. Carlo Del Mistro, Chief Digital Officer at Ennismore, predicts on the Hotel Moment podcast, “The other thing that we are seeing is hyper-personalization” when comes to hotel revenue trends for 2025.
How you store, action, and manage that guest data determines the success of your upsells. With technology like a Customer Data Platform, all of your guest data is stored in one place, and ready for you to segment appropriately. So the next time you go to promote your new spa package, tapping into your guest’s profile that loves your spa’s coconut facial will be seamless. And because a CDP makes it easy to keep track of your guests’ preferences, it will also be easier to set up automated emails to let that coconut facial-loving guest know their favorite spa treatment will be available at your hotel again soon.
It’s that touch of hyper-personalization that drives hotel ancillary revenue and makes every guest stay memorable. John Burns, President of Hospitality Technology consulting urges hoteliers to ask themselves, “What would I do in terms of personalization of my property? What could I be doing to say, ‘Hello. Welcome back. We appreciate you. We’re glad you’re here.’” When you manage your guests’ data the right way, you can easily answer that question and generate an endless supply of hotel ancillary revenue ideas.
Direct bookings: The key to unlocking higher revenue per stay
Let’s be clear: Out of all the strategies to increase hotel revenue, direct bookings should be the cornerstone. Unlike bookings made through OTAs — the ones that eat up your marketing spend and hit you with commission fees — direct bookings allow your hotel to retain a higher percentage of revenue. But the true value of direct bookings lies not just in the immediate room rate, but in the long-term relationship that can be built with guests. That’s the answer for how to increase hotel revenue.
Remember when we mentioned NOI earlier? Well, the best way to increase that number and increase hotel ancillary revenue is with direct bookings. As we discussed, direct bookings are a clear path to personalization, allowing you to accumulate guest data that would otherwise go to OTAs. That kind of first-party data you get from guests is what you’ll use to turn them into loyal bookers that take advantage of your ancillary services.
Jan Freitag, National Director, Hospitality Analytics at CoStar Group, explains it best when he says, “An interesting word there – book direct. I think that is critical for the hotel. I don’t want you to come from any other channel. I want you to come to me directly, and then I’m willing to value that loyalty.” The value-add is your hotel’s superpower. In fact, 76% customers gravitate towards brands that personalize offerings because guests notice when brands notice them, and that’s a loyalty bond that’s hard to break.
Find out how you can drive more direct bookings at your hotel.
Smart upselling strategies for maximizing total stay value
“It’s absolutely critical to understand — what’s the total spend? We’ve talked about the total lifetime value of a customer, but I think there’s a total stay value of a customer. Yes, they pay for the room, but then what else can we offer them where they’re like, ‘Oh, I don’t want to go off-site, let me just eat right here,’” Jan shares. And this is exactly what we mean by “revenue beyond the room.” Hoteliers must shift focus to ancillary services for effective hotel revenue management because there’s more money to be made outside of room bookings.
So when it comes to elevating ancillary revenue, remember that upselling, timing, and personalization are everything. The right offer at the right moment can significantly increase total guest spend. And if we think about the stages of the guest journey, there’s a touchpoint to insert an upsell at every stage as you work through how to increase hotel revenue:
- Pre-arrival offers. Send guests tailored room upgrade offers or experience add-ons prior to their arrival, which is when they are most likely to consider them. These guests just made their booking, so leverage their guest data with offers that will get them even more excited that they’ll be receiving a personalized stay.
- On-property upselling. Did you know your guests are just a text away? Nearly every guest has a smartphone in their hand. As a result, a hotel messaging app like Revinate Ivy is a primary hotel ancillary revenue tool you can use to offer real-time upgrades or experiences during the guest’s stay.
- Post-stay upselling. Your guests just wrapped up a memorable stay with you. So, while that experience is fresh in their minds, consider sending an automated email not only encouraging them to review their stay but also offering a discount to book again. Or maybe present a free meal offer at your restaurant next time they book because you noticed they were frequent in-house diners.
5 steps to implement an ancillary revenue strategy
If you’re not used to leaning on ancillary revenue, then starting that process can be daunting, but here are five actionable steps to implement a successful ancillary revenue strategy:
1. Audit your current revenue streams
Take stock of all the revenue opportunities beyond room bookings. Identify which hotel services or amenities are underperforming or could be enhanced. Do you notice a large percentage of your business travelers taking advantage of your golf course? That’s a sizable guest segment for upsells to maximize their on-property spending.
2. Leverage guest data for hyper-personalization
Guest data is the fuel for hyper-personalization. You can’t effectively create a unique experience for each guest without it. Utilize your hotel CRM or CDP along with a consistent segmentation strategy to ensure that the right offer reaches the right guest at the right time.
3. Encourage direct bookings
Direct bookings is the ticket to stronger guest loyalty. The connection you can establish and the guest data you can collect from a direct booking is far superior than what you can outsource to an OTA. Use your guest data from direct bookings to further personalize the upsells you aim at each guest so that they’re more likely to book with you again having realized their unique preferences.
4. Align sales, marketing, and revenue teams
Ensure that all departments work together to create a unified approach across every touchpoint to drive ancillary revenue. Each department should understand how guest data is being used to capitalize on guest preferences to drive on-property spending.
5. Measure and optimize
Track your revenue per guest beyond just room revenue. That way, you can see how your ancillary revenue strategy is performing and determine which hotel amenities guests are most interested in. Use those analytics to continuously optimize your strategy and feed future marketing communications as you continue to refine upsells offers so that they resonate with each guest.
Key takeaways
As you work out how to increase hotel revenue, it’s essential to look beyond the traditional model of filling rooms.
- The path to sustainable profitability includes a deliberate focus on driving ancillary revenue by upselling guests on hotel amenities like spa services, food and beverage, and personalized experiences.
- Hoteliers who prioritize direct bookings, not only increase their bottom line revenue, but also lend themselves more opportunities to use the guest data collected from direct bookings to craft targeted upsells.
- Hyper-personalization is a must-have for any ancillary revenue strategy in order for the right guest to resonate with the right upsell.
For more insights on optimizing your hotel revenue management strategy, listen to the latest episode of the Hotel Moment podcast and hear firsthand from industry leaders.
Credit hospitalitynet