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🏨 SiteMinder's "Hotel Booking Trends" report identifies top 12 hotel booking channels generating the most revenue for Spanish establishments in 2024. Booking.com leads, followed by hotel websites (direct booking), Expedia Group, Hotelbeds, Jet2holidays, World2Meet, Keytel, OTS Globe, Airbnb, Agoda, Traveltino, and global distribution systems. Direct bookings rank second for the sixth consecutive year. Hotel websites averaged €476 per reservation, outperforming OTAs (€293), global distribution systems (€348), and wholesalers/DMCs/tour operators combined (€409). Agoda re-entered Spain's top 12 in 2023, boosted by increased arrivals from Asia. SiteMinder's annual report is based on over 44,500 hotel clients' data, securing over 125 million bookings worth over $50 billion in 2024.

🌱 Kora Green City, located in Vitoria's Plaza del Renacimiento, operates with Passivhaus certification and uses 100% renewable energy. Annually, it avoids 314 tons of CO₂ emissions, saves 75% in energy, and generates 27,000 kWh of solar energy with 58 panels. In 2022, 26 solar panels were installed, followed by 32 in 2023. Guests receive a WhatsApp message at check-out about their positive environmental impact, thanks to a system developed with Hijiffy. Kora Green City offers flexible living options and community spaces for various events. Kepa Apraiz, CEO of Kora Living, emphasizes the brand's commitment to sustainable tourism.

🏖️ The travel experience sector in Spain outperformed global growth in 2024, with 50% of Spanish operators reporting growth compared to 38% globally. Optimism for 2025 is higher among Spanish operators at 74%, versus 62% worldwide. Digital bookings in Spain account for 58%, with 25% through operator websites and 33% via online travel agencies. Spanish operators utilize advanced booking systems (68%), connect with resellers through APIs (46%), and experiment with AI (43%). Arival 360 | Valencia, sponsored by Civitatis, will be held from April 28-30, 2025 at the Palacio de Congresos de Valencia, emphasizing innovation in the industry. Spanish operators work with an average of 10 distribution partners, highlighting the role of OTAs in Spain's market.

📣 Clients using Asksuite's guest follow-up strategy have achieved a 71x ROI by sending automated, personalized messages at the right time through the correct channels. The strategy is crucial for increasing revenue and guest satisfaction, allowing hotels to influence decision-making, generate trust, and improve the overall guest experience. Tactics include increasing conversion rates, improving guest experiences during their stay, reducing abandoned bookings, and boosting direct bookings. A notable feature is AskFlow, which automates customized workflows for guests and integrates with PMSs and Asksuite's omnichannel platform. Communication is key before, during, and after a guest's stay, with WhatsApp serving as an ideal instant messaging platform. Hotels can automate messages, learn the perfect timing for follow-ups, and rely on technological tools like third-party systems, WhatsApp API, and AI Booking Agents to personalize communication without overwhelming staff.

💰 Ávoris, under Barceló Group, achieved a turnover of €4.5 billion and an Ebitda of €45 million in a year, marking a 1% sales margin. Copresident Simón Pedro Barceló aims to double Ebitda by 2025, aspiring to approach €5 billion in turnover. Iberojet, linked to Ávoris, plans to be the go-to airline for its tour operators and is set to launch routes to Orlando and Bangkok in 2024, enhancing connectivity from Barcelona to Costa Rica and Honduras, with continued operations in Madrid.

🏢 Phocuswright Europe 2025 will take place from June 10-12, 2025, at Palau de Congressos de Catalunya, Barcelona. The conference will explore disruptive forces redefining travel, covering intermediaries' evolution, emerging technologies' impact, and travelers' new expectations. The 2024 event saw over 600 attendees, with expectations to exceed this number. Early registration is available at 1095 euros. For more details, visit www.phocuswrighteurope.com.

🏢 FITUR 2025, in its 45th edition, is the most significant national tourism fair and a key international event. Noray, with 45 years in the tech and hotel industry, highlights the fair as a golden networking opportunity and a showcase for the latest trends. The fair featured industry advancements, especially in hotel technology, with diverse expert discussions. Key trends for 2025 included advanced AI for hyper-personalization, autonomous management systems, IoT for total hotel automation, blockchain for security and payments, and sustainable, energy-efficient AI technologies. Noray values FITUR for knowledge sharing and looks forward to continuing to offer cutting-edge solutions.

🏖️ FITURTECHY hosted a debate on January 22 about empowering local tourism businesses, featuring industry executives like Francisco Quintero (Landmar Hotels), Gabriel Llobera Ramis (Garden Hoteles), Diego Fernández Pérez de Ponga (Port Hotels), Armando Rodríguez (HD Hotels), and Juan Carlos Sanjuán (Casual Hotels), moderated by Daniel Sánchez (Paraty Tech). Topics included customer loyalty through packaging, branding strategies, data optimization, destination-hotel strategy alignment, artificial intelligence, market-specific communication, and tackling Canarias' marketing issues. Facing 2025 with a positive outlook, the group underscored the importance of customer loyalty, market diversification, and efficient management in times of prosperity to withstand future crises.

🏨 Mexican hotels lead with 50,000 rooms in 125 properties, followed by the Dominican Republic and Cuba. Key European markets include Germany, Italy, and Portugal, with Minor Hotels Europe & Americas and Meliá as major operators. The United States ranks fourth, predominantly managed by Barceló, handling 82% of Spanish hotel rooms there. At the bottom are Jamaica and Morocco, with Haiti and Mozambique highlighting the diversification with a single Spanish hotel each. José Elías invests in a new 100-meter, 520-room hotel skyscraper in Esplugues de Llobregat, Barcelona, set for completion by late 2025. Silken Hoteles eyes a 2025 expansion with a 13% growth in 2024, reaching over €130 million in sales, focusing on Morocco and Portugal for internationalization.

📌 DeepSeek, a Chinese AI competitor to OpenAI's ChatGPT, aims to elevate the hotel and travel industry by understanding specific needs, integrating with existing systems, and directly impacting profitability and customer satisfaction. With capabilities like real-time data analysis, demand trend prediction, upselling opportunities, inventory management, guest experience personalization, operational efficiency enhancements, audience-targeted marketing, strict data security, system integration, and continuous innovation through machine learning, DeepSeek presents itself as a strategic partner, not just a tool, for the hotel sector. Embrace AI fearlessly to stay competitive in the swiftly evolving world.