In the drive to increase bookings, hotel owners sometimes overlook a key component that can have a dramatic impact on their online visibility: local SEO. Search engines rely on a variety of signals when determining your hotel website's position and visibility in search results. Local SEO strategies cover three of the top web ranking signals that Google and the other search engines consider: on-page signals, citations from well-established, respected local directories, and reputable backlinks. When you correctly and proactively apply these local SEO strategies, you strengthen your hotel's business profile and help establish your website domain authority. READ MORE

I have just completed an incredible round-the-world voyage teaching on Semester at Sea, a floating university campus that visits around a dozen countries, giving students a comparative study-abroad experience that is truly global. One of the countries I visited was Morocco where, seeking to understand why the country is Africa's most popular tourist destination, I interviewed two successful entrepreneurs - one French and one British - responsible for attracting tourists to this exotic destination. Both have opened up modernized riads in the beachy-chic resort of Essaouira, on the Atlantic Coast. The Moroccan Riad is a traditional house or palace with an interior garden or courtyard. READ MORE

The evolution of the revenue management industry has been one of 2016's top trending topics. From the onslaught of big data opportunities to the drastic improvements in the life of the revenue manager, the benefits of revenue management practices and its sophisticated technology have been far-reaching in leaving virtually no revenue stone unturned. However, advanced technology has been accommodating far more in this industry's evolution than high consumptions of complex data and the bolstering of on-the-job productivity. As the industry continues to propel forward with better insights and more informed strategic opportunities, we've also seen a distinctly marked shift in how the role of revenue management is positioned within the organizational make-up of hotel(s) and hotel companies. READ MORE

Most leisure travelers in the 21st century still expect the same things out of their vacations that they wanted in years gone by: beautiful sights, convenient comfort, and unique adventures. But there is a new travel trend on the rise. With an increasing focus on wellness in our every day lives, it was inevitable that travelers and meeting planners would want to incorporate healthy, mindful experiences into vacations and events. That means personalized spa treatments, location-specific yoga sessions, refreshing eco-tourism excursions, restorative detoxes and more. A wellness-focused getaway isn't just a vacation. It is about how a destination can change a person's body, mind and soul. READ MORE

Millennials are counteracting their fight to have more free time with upping their productivity. They crave the spa because they put their well-being before work. Other demographics are also working to live rather than living to work. With that sentiment business travelers are adding on to their working business trips by adding family or significant others to the trip. Spa and wellness programs work wonderfully in the sense that they add creative fitness, healthy cooking, meditation, team and couples focused activity to the sometimes hum-drum qualities of a hotel stay. Furthermore, as a property slated to handle a company's business travel and leisure expenditure is a profitability bonus that makes numbers sing the praises of bleisure. READ MORE