Think Ahead—Top trends for Hospitality brands in 2024.

Source: Unsplash

What will the hotel and hospitality industry look like in just a few short years?

In this post, we'll take a look at some of the trends that are predicted to take off in late 2024. From eco-friendly initiatives to virtual reality, there's something for everyone in the Hotel and Hospitality industry.

So, what are you waiting for? Start planning your trip to the future!

The Rise of the Micro Hotel

Hotel Trends 2022 - micro hotel

If you're looking for a hotel stay in 2023, you'll likely have more choices than ever before. Thanks to the rise of the micro hotel, you'll be able to choose from a variety of small, boutique properties that offer a more intimate and unique experience than traditional hotels.

What's driving the growth of micro hotels? A few things. First, they're typically much more affordable than traditional hotels. They also offer a more streamlined, minimalist design that appeals to travelers who are looking for something simple and uncluttered. And finally, they tend to have a more local feel, since they're often situated in neighborhoods rather than downtown areas.

Keyless Entry Systems

Hospitality Trends 2022 - Keyless Entry System

One of the most exciting hotel and hospitality trends for 2023 is the increasing popularity of keyless entry systems. These systems allow guests to check in and access their rooms without having to carry or store a physical key.

This trend is already taking off in some hotels, with many offering guests the option to use their smartphones, tablets, or other devices as virtual keys. Keyless entry systems are not only more convenient for guests, but they can also help reduce staff workloads and improve security.

In-Room Tech

Hotel Trends 2022 - In room tech

Looking ahead to the end of 2022 and beyond, there are some exciting hotel and hospitality trends on the horizon. Perhaps the most notable is the increasing use of in-room technology. From voice-activated room service to virtual reality setups, hotels are looking for ways to make guests' stays even more comfortable and convenient.

Another trend that is likely to continue in 2023 and beyond is the move towards eco-friendly and sustainable practices. Hotels are looking for ways to reduce their environmental impact, and this is something that guests are increasingly interested in. Whether it's using recycled materials in construction or installing energy-efficient appliances, hotels are starting to take sustainability seriously.

Sustainable/Eco-Friendly Initiatives

Hotel Trends 2022 Eco-Friendly Initiatives

When it comes to the hospitality industry, sustainability is becoming more and more important. In 2023, we can expect to see hotels and resorts making a bigger effort to be eco-friendly, from using recycled materials in construction to implementing energy-saving measures.

Some of the hottest eco-friendly initiatives we can look forward to include:

- Using natural and organic materials in construction wherever possible

- Installing energy-saving measures, such as LED lighting and motion sensors

- Recycling or composting program for waste management

- Educating guests on how they can reduce their environmental impact

Local Experiences

Hospitality Trends 2022 - local experiences

As we move into the future, more and more travelers are looking for unique, local experiences. They want to feel like they're really getting to know the country or city they're visiting, and aren't interested in just staying in a sterile hotel room.

That's why we're seeing a big trend towards local experiences in the hotel and hospitality industry. This includes everything from restaurants that serve traditional local cuisine to tours of interesting local landmarks. Hoteliers who want to stay ahead of the curve should start thinking about ways to incorporate more local experiences into their offerings.

Data-Driven Decisions

The analytics and algorithms know practically everything about us; however, this is not how spy movies or conspiracy theories paint it. In fact, it is more beneficial for visitors. In an article about the internet without cookies, we talked about these tools being used more than anything to know the behaviour of consumers. In this way, companies can offer better services or products according to their preferences.

Source: YouTube.

With guest data, hoteliers can provide a personalized experience for their customers. This will be done by analyzing customer behaviour and trends in every hotel property they visit. This process will help them anticipate their desires and send them relevant offers by using data analytics software nowadays. Thus, artificial intelligence will help to develop targeted and relevant marketing strategies for every different market group.

Some studies have shown that customer experience will soon overtake price and product as a differentiator. Because of this, it is more useful for hotels and other hospitality services to use this technology.

This is what the future of the hotel industry holds for us since, with their studies in data, they will be able to assure us the best vacation experience for our stay.

Guest experience Highlights

• 91% of customers consume products by brands that provide relevant offers and recommendations (Accenture).
• 90% of tourists are willing to share behavioural data if it would, in turn, allow them to have a cheaper and easier experience (SmarterHQ, 2019).
• In a study conducted by SmarterHQ, Cheetah Digital, Liveclicker and MailCharts, the travel and hospitality sector has reported the highest shift toward tailored messaging. Close to 63% of their communications catered to individual customers, while 38% of their marketing mix is directed to individual shoppers (Liveclicker, 2019).

Voice Search

Voice search is a tool that will keep helping all the sectors of business and the economy. Among the latest digital assistant on the market, we have Amazon's Alexa, Apple's Siri, Microsoft´s Cortana and Google Assistant.

This type of AI is still in its early stages of development, and its model is based on conversational language. With this technology, customers will get an answer based on their context previous queries. 

Source: YouTube.

In the hotels and hospitality business, voice search is growing and transforming all the booking processes. With smartphones and tablets, visitors can research and book their vacations. Hoteliers can equip their websites with voice search capabilities to increase conversions by connecting them to qualified leads.

Voice search highlights

• 24% of people over 18 own at least one smart speaker—that’s 60 million people (Marketing Land, 2020).
• A study in 2019 revealed that purchases of everyday household items are made through voice search (SEJ, 2019).

Virtual Reality

According to a study from eMarketer, virtual reality became one of the biggest emerging technology trends, with 57,4 million users just in the United States. VR transforms and upgrades the hospitality industry.

Large companies such as Facebook or Google are investing in this type of technology. With it, visitors can visit their hotel rooms and other attractions just by using these augmented reality glasses.

Virtual reality will become more popular over the years since the quality of detail it offers gives a unique experience to all who visit the virtual facilities of the hotel. It is not the same to visualize your hotel room by describing the booking and the photos to give a complete tour before visiting the hotel.

Source: YouTube.

Virtual Reality Highlights

• 68.7 million people are using AR at least once per month (eMarketer, 2019).
• According to VR research findings, worldwide spending on VR content and apps reached $8.034 billion in 2021 (Statista, 2018).

Tourism products

Travelers need more unique experiences for their new journeys, which they can obtain with tourism products. These allow them to choose specific destinations and what activities they expect to do there.

With this new trend, the hospitality industry can expand to a specific business. However, it is good to understand that this type of tourism requires a more in-depth study of the consumer since a predetermined product cannot be imposed on any traveler. Tourism products can also be subject to the times of the year. For example, safari tourism depends on the times when nature allows everything to be seen better. If you use Amazon to sell products, you would like these Amazon listing optimization tricks.

 Some tourism products are:

• Sports tourism
• Health or medical tourism
• Adventure tourism
• Recreation tourism
• Cultural tourism
• Pleasure tourism
• Religious tourism
• Adventure tourism

Source: Unsplash

Smart Technology

Technology is reaching every type of business. In the hospitality business, hotels can now rely on new features like touchless sales, which have been more common since the pandemic began. This new technology can offer cost savings and revenue opportunities, and hoteliers can cover guest services, operations and marketing, which will allow them to achieve higher levels of profitability.

With the technology for hotels, it is easier to evaluate the guests' experience and personalize them as they continue visiting the establishment.

Hotels are shifting to become smart hotels. By offering Wi-Fi all around the property, guests can do the check-in and check out through a mobile app, direct messaging, and, as we mentioned previously, can have a mobile key. These "intelligent hotels" incorporate in-room technology that uses tables to replace printed compendium and alarm clocks. Also, visitors will have direct digital access to the hotel staff. Like smart homes, guests will also control the entire room through the use of tablets.

Source: YouTube.

Final Thoughts

After a dark stage for all economic sectors, businesses return with all their new weapons to market and please their consumers. The hotel and tourism sector comes with everything.

Technology continues to transform our entire society, and artificial intelligence and augmented reality are increasingly being implemented in hotels.

The tourist products will offer visitors experiences beyond just knowing a country, and they will know in-depth its culture or nature.

Many of us want to pack our bags and get on the next flight with all these new trends. Until that happens, we hope you have a good trip.

What does the future of hospitality hold? busy times AHEAD for the hotel and hospitality industry.

But what trends can you expect to see in the coming year? From eco-friendly initiatives to AI-powered customer service, read on to find out more about what's in store for hotel and hospitality goers in 2022.

Ready to experience the future of hospitality for yourself? Make a reservation at the trendiest hotels and see what the hype is all about!

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