President Xi Jinping's famous phrase encouraging restraint in Chinese government spending has had some effect. However, the recent rise in China's GDP has been driven by increased infrastructure spend, not domestic demand. China's civil servants might be enjoying fewer banquets and hotel stays but they're having trouble cutting back on the bridges and railways.

Today, digitally-active consumers have instant access to information, often more than the hotel itself. The newest crop of consumers, also known as the millennials, has grown up with technology their entire lives. With a few keystrokes they can find out everything they need to know about a product or service, even extending into their social networks to get reviews and recommendations. To meet the demands of the all-channel consumers, hotel operators are moving fast to adopt innovative technologies to deliver a seamless guest experience that starts before check-in and continues throughout the guest's journey. The question is, is that enough?

The Lexington New York City, a storied hotel that originally opened in 1929, underwent a $46 million renovation restoring the jazz age glamour that once made it famous among celebrities, dignitaries and other notables. The hotel, that Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe once called home, is centrally located in Manhattan's midtown neighborhood. Catering to the luxury business and leisure traveler, the Lexington New York City houses a collection of unique artwork and features more than 1,000 square feet of flexible function space, as well as a selection of on-site dining options. General Manager, James Marino, tells us more about this stunning property.

In late May, people in 52 countries and 436 cities globally gathered in protest. Japan cancelled billions of dollars of purchases from the US. South Korea followed suit. The European Union may do the same. How is your hotel responding to this situation?

Could 2013 be the farewell year to hotel room service? While the service may have been more glorified in generations past, hotels are now left considering their options: do they keep the service afloat and relevant for their customers or do they make they cut? The vice president of food and beverage for Omni Hotels & Resorts says that instead of doing away with the hotel service, it makes more sense to try and do it better.

In the past, the key ingredient in building brand awareness was generally thought to be advertising. You ran some commercials on television, put up a billboard, sent some direct mail, or did a sales blitz. When the Internet took hold, websites and social media were added. But what may have worked in the past doesn't necessarily work in today's over-communicated business environment where each consumer gets hit with thousands of brand messages every day. And any brand, especially a new one, must be able to generate favorable publicity or it won't have an easy time in the market. In other words, you need to get the media on your side. In this article, you'll see how brands have successfully leveraged public relations to increase their brand awareness and what you can do to spread your hotel's awareness.

Nestled amongst the iconic Waikiki beaches on the island of Oahu, The Modern Honolulu offers the ideal combination of modern sophistication and the authentic and relaxed atmosphere of the Hawaiian Islands. The essence of aloha is apparent in The Modern Honolulu's personal, friendly service and incomparable food, beverage and entertainment options for guests and diners at the innovative urban resort. In seeking the best of Honolulu, The Modern Honolulu offers stylish spaces that inspire the senses, with unparalleled culinary options to match.

With a convergence of underlying causes, Toronto has become a 21st century hotspot for innumerous tech startups and leading software firms. Many of these new software and hardware utilities can benefit hotel operators by reinforcing the emotional connection between the brand and its guests, thereby driving loyalty and long-term occupancies. Hence, it is sensible for properties to consider investing in this next generation of emerging technologies to get ahead of the competition.

At first glance the internet, in one fell swoop seems to have extinguished thousands of years of social interaction. In a decade the way we communicate has been revolutionized. But is this for the better and does this meet our basic needs? The internet Tsunami has washed away traditional working methods. Is this for the better and what is happening to reverse this change? Here we talk about how email culture has brought in an impersonal touch, how product comparison has driven down quality and the great technology divide that led to this. We support the article with various examples from the travel industry as well as some important question & answers.

Hotel distribution often creates a confusing technology picture. As solutions proliferate and evolve, opportunities emerge to combine and simplify. Successful integration between previously separate applications and vendors is also becoming more common. This paper examines the background to the 500 shades of complexity and suggests options to help hoteliers equip themselves for more cost-effective and straightforward distribution by combining the strengths of channel management and CRS.