The hotel industry is entering a new era. Generative and agentic AI are no longer distant possibilities reserved for tech‑forward properties. They are shaping guest expectations, operations and revenue models today, and if you act wisely (and quickly), your hotel will be well positioned to benefit.
Our 2026 Hospitality Industry Outlook paints a clear picture of how the coming years will unfold for hotels across different segments. Based on the views of 18 industry leaders, the report explores how AI will transform each stage of the guest journey – from discovery to checkout – and how hoteliers can leverage this technology without losing the soul of hospitality.
Here are some of the key talking points from the report.
Search, chat and book – all in one flow
Gone are the days when guests toggle between Google, OTAs and hotel websites before booking. Generative AI is collapsing that journey into a single conversational flow. Guests can now describe what they want – “a vegan‑friendly spa weekend within two hours of London” – and get an itinerary, hotel suggestions and instant booking options all in one go.
That shift changes everything for hotels. Visibility will no longer depend on SEO or OTA positioning alone. Instead, it will hinge on the quality of your data and how connected your systems are. Hotels without clean, structured content and open APIs risk being missed when AI agents search for accommodations.
As Chris Hemmeter, Managing Partner at Thayer Investment Partners, warned:“If hotels fail to manage their data, they will be invisible.”
To day’s content strategy needs to evolve. Room descriptions, amenities, pricing and extras must live in clean data fields, not messy PDFs. Guest-facing Q&As, hotel policies, photos... Everything needs to be AI-friendly and accurate.
For hotels that get this right, the reward could be big. AI‑powered platforms won’t just find your property; they’ll book it.
Embrace experience as the new loyalty
As AI takes on more of the discovery journey, the hotels that thrive will be the ones offering something OTAs can’t: richer, more personalized experiences driven by connected systems and high-quality data.
Bryson Koehler, CEO of Revinate, sums up this shift well: “Points-based loyalty is dead. Hotels that operationalize experiences are going to win guests over instead.”
The core advantage here isn’t the loyalty program itself. It’s the experience. AI assistants will evaluate hotels on relevance, accuracy and the substance of what they offer. Hotels that surface clear, structured content – from amenities to upsells to local recommendations – will stand out in AI-driven searches and convert more directly.
This only works when your tech stack is connected. A PMS, CRS, booking engine and CRM that share real-time data give you the foundation to personalize at scale and present the kind of experience an OTA can’t replicate.
Do this well and the impact is meaningful. Guests who feel seen and understood will bypass intermediaries, helping direct bookings become a stronger and more predictable revenue channel.
Go beyond chatbots with agentic AI
Generative AI took guest communications and marketing by storm. But the next frontier is agentic AI: smart systems that connect via APIs, share data across departments and act autonomously. According to our research, the early wins aren’t just in guest-facing areas. They’re across all hotel operations.
Expect AI agents to make waves in:
- Reservations and booking management
- Real-time pricing and upselling for revenue teams
- Housekeeping, maintenance scheduling and staff allocation
- Guest communications – from pre-arrival updates to personalized in‑stay messages
- Back-office tasks like procurement, scheduling and reporting
For example, housekeeping teams can be notified automatically once a guest checks out. The room gets cleaned, the status updates in real time, and the next arrival is prepared – all without manual input. Front‑desk staff get fewer calls. Revenue managers get smarter pricing. Guests get smoother stays.
It’s technology working behind the scenes to make service feel effortless.
Make more time for humans
As automation increases, roles will shift. Transactional and repetitive tasks will fade. Human-led guest interactions – the moments that create real connection – will become more valuable than ever.
Adrie Vreeke, CEO of Capsule Hotel Group, captured this shift clearly: “Automation is already removing most transactional tasks, so it feels realistic that frontline roles will center almost entirely on soft skills. That shift could be very positive: staff focusing on creating connections, solving problems and delivering hospitality rather than pushing paper.”
That doesn’t mean fewer jobs. It means better jobs. Staff will spend less time on admin, and more time on service, storytelling and guest experience. Think curated recommendations, surprise upgrades, thoughtful touches. The hotel staff of the future will be more like hosts than clerks.
For lifestyle, boutique or luxury brands, this represents an opportunity. The properties that lean into AI-enhanced, human-centered hospitality will stand out. For economy or midscale hotels, automation can deliver consistency and efficiency. Either way, the winners will be those who recognize where AI adds value and where human connection matters most.
What this means for hoteliers today
2026 is an inflection point. The building blocks for change are already here. Guest expectations are shifting. Business models are evolving. And the demand landscape is being rewritten.
If you’re running – or building – a hotel, now is the time to take action. How? Well, you’ll have to read the report to see what we recommend. Get started now on Reimagining the Guest Journey in the Age of AI: 2026 Hospitality Industry Outlook.
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