Forward ho: Hotel industry leaders size up 2025

by David Eisen | Jan 08, 2025

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Brian Chesky, the co-founder and CEO of Airbnb, a company that by turns is admired and loathed by the traditional hotel industry, is on record saying that artificial intelligence will likely have more of a worldly impact than the Industrial Revolution did. It’s a bold statement. He might be right.

Leaders within the hotel industry agree that the era of AI will have a profound and irreversible impact—one that could start paying dividends as early as, well, now. AI will be a formidable force, changing the way hotels interact with guests and how guests approach the travel-booking process. It’s not the only thing on hoteliers’ radars in 2025.

Last year was a reality check. The good news is that the check engine light was not on; rather; things moved more smoothly as the distribution mix became more predictable and consistent, including a welcomed burst in group travel, and, if not embraced, but accepted, more solidity in interest rates and its impact on development and transactions.

It’s a lot to consider heading into the new year and while much of it is baked in, hospitality leaders are both united and varied in how they believe 2025 will pan out. HOTELS Magazine elicited responses from a cross-section of the hotel industry to gauge the trends and topics that will be most prevalent as 2025 barrels forward.

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