🇫🇷 NATIONAL
👨🍳 Departure – Cognac, Charente
Mathis Debize is stepping down as head chef of the Michelin-starred restaurant Les Foudres, at the Chais Monnet & Spa. He joined in 2021 and had led the one-star Michelin Guide property since summer 2023.
#Cognac #ChaisMonnet #Gastronomy #Michelin
🛡️ Regulation – France
The government is lowering the ownership threshold that triggers Ministry of Economy scrutiny for non-European investors in strategic listed companies, from 25% to 10%. A sovereignty measure that could also affect certain listed hospitality players.
#Investment #Sovereignty #France
🏛️ Appointment – Beaune, Côte-d’Or
Anne-Gaëlle Catinot, a hospitality professional formerly with the Hostellerie de Levernois (Relais & Châteaux), becomes President of the Beaune Congress Centre and Deputy Mayor as of May 2026.
#Beaune #Appointment #Burgundy
🏨 Opening – Amiens, Somme
Southern Amiens welcomes two new properties on Rue Alexandre-Dumas: a B&B Hotel, opened in July 2026, and a Best Western Plus whose construction has just begun nearby.
#Amiens #Opening #BB #BestWestern
🐠 Project – Saint-Malo, Ille-et-Vilaine
The Grand Aquarium de Saint-Malo unveils a €34 million project: a roughly 20-room hotel with direct views over a 10,000-fish tank, along with a new restaurant. A first in Europe, according to its director.
#SaintMalo #Aquarium #Hospitality #Innovation
🐉 Investment – Val-d’Oise
The Élysée is reportedly close to finalising an agreement with Saudi Arabia to revive the former Mirapolis park site, closed since 1991, as a Dragon Ball theme park, for several billion euros.
#ValdOise #SaudiArabia #ThemePark
🌎 INTERNATIONAL
💾 Unusual – Shihezi, China
Two men were arrested after stealing 16 RAM sticks from PCs at several “eSports hotels” in the Xinjiang region, reselling them for around $2,000 before being caught on CCTV.
#China #EsportsHotel #Theft
🏝️ Takeover, Sardinia | Cheval Blanc takes over the Hotel Pitrizza
Cheval Blanc has taken over the Hotel Pitrizza on the Costa Smeralda, with a full rebrand planned for 2027 under the name Cheval Blanc Pitrizza. It will be the group’s first Maison in Italy, with 65 rooms and suites including 16 private pool villas.
#Sardinia #ChevalBlanc #Luxury
🌴 Reopening, New Caledonia | The former Le Méridien on Isle of Pines reborn as Domaine Oro
Closed since May 2024, the former Le Méridien on Isle of Pines reopens on 7 August under the Domaine Oro brand, part of Series by Marriott. The former Le Méridien in Nouméa and Sheraton in Bourail adopt the same “Domaine” naming.
#NewCaledonia #Marriott #Reopening
🇺🇸 Profile, USA | Cyrille Bessière, a bridge between French brands and America
Based in New York for fifteen years, this HEC graduate turned CEO of Kids Empire (66 to 122 parks in two and a half years) has supported the US development of Polène, Palais des Thés and Dossier, making it his mission.
#USA #FrenchTouch #Entrepreneurship
📊 Results, Spain | Amadeus posts resilient H1 2026 results
Amadeus reported 5.1% revenue growth at constant currency, and at reported rates too, despite the impact of the Middle East conflict on air traffic. The Hospitality and Other Solutions division grew 9.2%, driven by new clients.
#Amadeus #Results #TravelTech
