Bob W has signed a long-term lease with Dudok Real Estate to convert four office floors of the Weenahuis, at 147 Weena, into Bob W Rotterdam Central. Opening is scheduled for summer 2027. With 160 units, the flagship will be the operator's first Rotterdam property and strengthens its presence in the Netherlands, as office conversion becomes a central driver of its growth.

MCR, the third-largest hotel owner-operator in the United States, has submitted planning and listed building consent applications to Camden Council for the BT Tower. The group intends to transform the Fitzrovia landmark into a 400-room hotel complex. The scheme would also reopen the top of the Grade II-listed London monument to the public for the first time in almost 50 years. Opening is targeted for 2033.

The cruise giant is joining forces with Sandals and Beaches Resorts in a joint venture that marks its entry into the Caribbean all-inclusive resort segment.

Stockman Development LLC, led by Marquee Development, has secured approximately €424 million ($482.5 million) from GoldenTree Asset Management to finance The Stockman, Auberge Collection, at the base of Steamboat Resort in Colorado. The financing comes shortly after construction began, with more than 25% of the residences already under contract. It is a strong signal for the luxury hotel-plus-branded-residences model in US ski resorts.

People Inc, the media group chaired by Barry Diller, on 23 September 2026 withdrew its offer for all the shares in MGM Resorts International that it does not already own. Tabled in June, the proposal valued the casino operator at more than €15.8bn. As the largest shareholder in the group, which operates around 40% of the Las Vegas Strip, People is for now dropping its plan to take MGM private.

On 24 September 2026, Accor announced the large-scale roll-out of ALL Concierge, an artificial intelligence-powered assistant that supports guests from inspiration through to post-stay, across ALL.com, the ALL Accor app, WhatsApp and iMessage. The tool was refined through more than one million conversations during its pilot phase. Alongside it, the group is launching the Butler, an AI tool for hotel teams.

Accor will move SO/ Berlin Das Stue under the Sofitel banner in the first quarter of 2027. The 78-room boutique hotel occupies the former Royal Danish Embassy on the edge of the Tiergarten. The addition strengthens Sofitel in Germany, one of the group's strategic European markets, and continues the brand's expansion across the continent's major cultural capitals.

In June 2027, Elewana will open Ngorongoro Explorer Lodge, an 84-room property built on the highest point of the eastern rim of Tanzania's Ngorongoro Crater. Following Serengeti Explorer, this second address under the Explorer brand replaces an existing lodge. It targets an upscale positioning broadened to families, wellness and gastronomy.

Minor Hotels and Grupo Petra, one of Paraguay's leading real estate players, have signed two agreements in Madrid: a strategic partnership to identify new hotel projects in the country, and a management agreement for a 116-room NH hotel in Asunción, scheduled to open in late 2029. The signings build on a collaboration begun around the future NH Collection at Petra Imperiale and illustrate the group's asset-light strategy in Latin America.

Niagara Parks is committing CAD 25 million (around €15 million) to the redevelopment of Journey Behind the Falls, its most visited attraction, at the foot of the Horseshoe Falls in Ontario. The two-phase programme will see a 1903 tunnel reopen in 2027, followed by a complete overhaul of the lower observation deck in summer 2028. It forms part of the Destination Niagara Strategy, which aims to double the region's annual visitation.

Japan's Mitsubishi Corporation is to invest around PHP 44.5bn (c. €620m) in Ayala Corporation, the oldest conglomerate in the Philippines, lifting its economic interest from 4.7% to 15%. Through its property arm Ayala Land, the Philippine group is also one of the archipelago's leading hotel owners and operators.

🔎 Trend of the day: labour relations reach the front desk. A room attendants' strike at the Imperator in Nîmes, the threat of a historic strike across 46 Chicago hotels and an undeclared-work trial in Sarlat: pay, workload and employment conditions are back at the top of the hotel agenda on both sides of the Atlantic.