Steve Carran and David Millili join a special holiday roundtable led by Katie Cline (Suite Success), alongside Glenn Hausmann (No Vacancy), Josiah Mackenzie (Hospitality Daily), and Zach Busekrus (Behind the Stays), to unpack the biggest hospitality moments of 2025 and what’s likely coming in 2026.From the long-awaited Waldorf Astoria New York revival and the acceleration of “ultra-luxury,” to loyalty disruption, trade show fatigue, boutique brands being gobbled up by the majors, and the industry’s messy (but inevitable) race to adopt AI—this conversation is packed with sharp takes, real operator perspective, and plenty of friendly debate.They wrap with 2026 predictions, including the growing divide between luxury and everyone else, the next evolution of loyalty (beyond points), authentic content backlash against the “AI buffet,” workforce shifts driven by automation, and what’s next for branded short-term rentals and experience-led travel.In this episode, we cover:2025’s biggest headline: the Waldorf Astoria New York restoration and what it signals for luxuryWhy points can feel more like “bribery” than true loyaltyAI in hospitality: confusion, hype, and the gap between “buzzwords” vs real resultsHow AI should support staff (reduce stress, protect service) rather than replace peopleTravel behaviour shifts: more local trips, road trips, and value-driven getaways (without giving up travel)Watch the FULL EPISODE on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aT3HtYbHDNYLinks:Katie Cline on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katiecline13/Host of Suite Success: https://www.suitesuccesspodcast.com/ Josiah Mackenzie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josiahmackenzie/Host, Hospitality Daily: https://podcast.hospitalitydaily.com/p/start-here/ Glenn Hausmann on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/glennhaussman/Host, No Vacancy: https://novacancynews.com/ Zach Busekrus on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zacharybusekrus/Host, Behind the Stays: https://www.journey.com/For full show notes head to: https://themodernhotelier.com/episode/239Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-...Join the conversation on today's episode on The Modern Hotelier LinkedIn pageConnect with Steve and David:Steve: https://www.linkedin.com/in/%F0%9F%8E...David: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-mil.

Ask this episode

“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.

Transcript

Related