Book your hotel without leaving ChatGPT? That is now Radisson Hotel Group’s bet, while Duetto is acquiring FLYR Hospitality to accelerate its push into AI-driven revenue management.
Today’s hospitality news, 9 October 2026: acquisitions, openings, a leadership handover and industry lobbying — here is what you need to know from across the sector today.
🇫🇷 France
🍽️ Food service | On Monday 12 October, members of the French National Assembly will examine a bill to modernise the titre-restaurant meal voucher. The text would make permanent its use for all food products — a temporary exemption due to expire at the end of 2026 — and allow vouchers to be used on Sundays and public holidays. A direct issue for restaurateurs. #MealVouchers #FoodService #Legislation
🏖️ Social tourism | To mark 90 years of paid holidays in France, Miléade is hosting 324 former miners and miners’ children from 34 towns in the Bassin Minier mining area at its Domaine d’Agecroft in Mandelieu-La-Napoule from 9 to 18 October. The stay, largely funded by Miléade, is being run in partnership with Secours Populaire du Pas-de-Calais and Maisons & Cités. #SocialTourism #FrenchRiviera #Miléade
⛺ Outdoor hospitality | Closed all summer for lack of funds, the municipal campsite in Gueugnon (Saône-et-Loire) is to be sold. The town council voted unanimously for the sale in early October, as the municipality can no longer operate it or bring it up to standard. No buyer has yet been identified. #Camping #OutdoorHospitality #Burgundy
🌍 International
🤖 Artificial intelligence | Radisson Hotel Group has partnered with Accenture to launch a ChatGPT plugin built on OpenAI technology. Travellers can find, compare and book the group’s hotels directly while planning their trip. #Radisson #ChatGPT #HotelDistribution
💻 Acquisition | Duetto is acquiring FLYR Hospitality, a specialist in AI-powered automated revenue management and business intelligence. Following its purchase of HotStats in 2025, the San Francisco-based software company is expanding its Revenue & Profit Operating System and stepping up its focus on independents and smaller chains. #Duetto #RevenueManagement #HotelTech
💰 Investment | Real estate investment trust DiamondRock Hospitality is acquiring The Bellmoor Inn & Spa, a 79-room luxury resort in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, for $31 million, or approximately $392,000 per key. The deal values the asset at 10.4 times EBITDA, with a cap rate of 8.6%. #DiamondRock #REIT #UnitedStates
✨ Appointment | After 20 years at the helm of Harry’s Home, founder Harald Ultsch is handing over to Andrea Bastel, formerly of Smartments, and joining the supervisory board. With 16 properties across Austria, Germany and Switzerland, the group is targeting one to two openings a year, including Innsbruck, Vienna and Italy. #HarrysHome #Austria #Appointment
🏨 Renovation | On a visit to Barcelona, David Marriott, Chairman of the Board of Marriott International, reviewed the full transformation of W Barcelona alongside its General Manager, Peter Schickling. He also met the teams at Hotel Arts, Le Méridien, Renaissance and Moxy. #Marriott #Barcelona #Spain
🚀 Development | Ennismore and Thai developer Central Pattana have announced that 25hours is coming to Bangkok. The brand’s first property in Thailand will open in the first quarter of 2029 with 345 rooms in the Siam Square district, within a new mixed-use complex. #25hours #Ennismore #Bangkok
🍸 Opening | On 2 October, Kempinski Hotel Brazzaville unveiled its rooftop, “Twelve – 12 Parallèle Sud”, on the 12th floor, with views over the Congo River and Kinshasa. The hotel has also welcomed a new Executive Chef, Alexandre Coupy, and a new Marketing and Communications Director, Stéphanie Coacu. #Kempinski #Brazzaville #Africa
📉 Employment | UKHospitality warns that around 100,000 jobs have been lost in UK hospitality over two years, representing 45% of all jobs lost in the United Kingdom. The trade body is calling for relief on employer National Insurance contributions in the 28 October Budget. #UnitedKingdom #UKHospitality #Employment
