The meeting and events industry is expected to thrive in 2025 and meeting professionals are optimistic about the health of the industry despite the continuing challenges of rising costs and staff shortages.  Five key trends have been flagged. 

See these trends in the full report. 

This survey was conducted with over 500 business leaders in North America, Latin America,  Europe and Asia Pacific. 

Consumers’ desire to travel again is fuelling new behaviours. In this report Mastercard researchers have compiled the key characteristics and motivations of tomorrow’s traveller.  They review: 

• the tourist of tomorrow and the key trends driving travel behaviours
• Exploring experiences 

• Harnessing insights 
• Supporting communities and strengthening destinations

This is aimed at help to inform, advise and inspire destinations to enhance their value propositions, enlighten marketing strategies, and establish initiatives to promote environmental protection and inclusive growth.

See more in this White Paper. 

In this study, 327 hospitality professionals worldwide were surveyed to explore attitudes towards AI and its potential to transform the industry; 

• HR, General Managers and IT professionals are the most optimistic about AI’s impact, with 94% believing that AI will have a significant impact on the industry.
• 73% of hoteliers agree that AI will have a big impact with 61% already benefiting from AI or expect to benefit from it within the next year.   
• 93% of hoteliers expect IT spend to increase, 77% plan to allocate between 5% and 50% of their IT budgets to AI tools.
• Over 80% of respondents believe AI will significantly  reshape pre-booking interactions and guest communications.

See more data in this report. 

In the latest poll:

• 71% of travel buyers say their company’s  business travel bookings increased last year, with 48% expecting more business trips this year than last year. 
• Only about one-third of buyers (34%) expect their travel program will apply AI in significant ways this year.
• 34% of respondents say their company’s Work-From-Home (WFH) policies have become stricter over the past year. 
• Hybrid work schedules are most prevalent in Europe, 77% of business travel professionals report their company has a hybrid work policy for 2025.
• Business travel companies ramp up sustainability efforts, with 48% expecting their company will increase their  sustainability efforts this year. 

See more in the report. 

Tourism plays a key role in economic development and delivers a series of benefits. However, tourism must be sustainable and inclusive, of all people.  

Accommodation, food & beverage and MICE companies, that wish to ensure that their offerings are designed in an accessible manner, can use this international guidance tool as a starting point for assessing, developing or adapting their services.

Some statistics:

• In 2025, there are estimated to be 5.42 billion total social media users worldwide, with an average person using 6.83 different social networks per month.   
• Social media advertising spend is projected to reach $276.7 billion in 2025, with 83% of that ad spend total generated on mobile by 2030.
• Video content continues to be popular, with 78% of people preferring to learn about new products through short video content and 93% of marketers reporting they'll spend more time on social marketing in 2025.

See data for difference social media platforms in this article. 

Booking.com surveyed 6,457 Gen Zs  across 32 markets to give  insights on what Gen Z guests expect from a hotel. They found that: 

• Gen Z guests are more likely to stay in a hotel than in any other type of accommodation and 68% rated air conditioning as the first thing they look for in a hotel
• 61% of respondents expect a 24-hour check-in service.
• They are prepared to pay more for amenities and services, 46% for breakfast, 31% access to spa and sauna facilities  
• Gen Z prefer to go on holiday with family members (58%), parents (47%), and partners (41%), followed closely by friends and siblings. 

See more in this article about how Hoteliers can position their offering to attract them. 

This new study by Mabrian on accessible accommodation in 

Spain found that despite efforts to reduce physical barriers and adapt spaces, accessibility still remains a significant challenge in Spain’s tourism sector:

• only 8.3% of hotels and 1.2% of tourist rentals meet minimum accessibility standards, 
• The Valencian Community, Basque Country, Cantabria, and Galicia lead the rankings for accessible accommodation in Spain.
• The biggest challenge is to understand understand the motivations, priorities, and needs of travellers with disabilities and their companions.

See more in this article. 

Social media statistics change so rapidly it can be a real challenge keeping up.

For marketers and research professionals, the social media landscape can be inspiring and overwhelming.

Here are the most important social media statistics for 2024.

See more in this article. 

The objective of the study is to monitor the evolution of distribution channels within the European hotel industry with a specific focus on online travel agencies (OTA).

• Direct bookings have declined, decreasing by nearly 7% to 50.9% in 2023 (57.6% in 2013). 
• During the pandemic (2021) there was a notable shift as direct bookings saw a significant increase, reaching 55.2%. 
• The long-term trend from 2013 to 2023 highlights a 10% increase in the average market share of OTAs in the European hotel sector, rising from 19.7% in 2013 to 29.6% in 2023.
• The 3 main players within the OTA market remain Booking Holding, Expedia Group and HRS, with an aggregated market share of 90%.

Results for 2023, are based on observations from over 3000 hotels across Europe. 

The concept of mapping the tourism customer’s journey—the Five Stages of Travel—has long been utilised in tourism marketing and research. However, this has evolved and changed with the advent of social media and mobile technology.

This article looks at how businesses can tailor their marketing and recognise where potential customers are within the five stages of travel, tailoring their marketing strategy to guide them toward making a booking.