Unveiled with great fanfare in 2021 as the twelfth jewel in the Bulgari Hotels & Resorts collection, the 58-room project tucked into Benedict Canyon ran into six years of regulatory battles before being permanently shelved by the City of Los Angeles. A look back at the reasoning behind the decision — and at the fate of the site, now back on the market.

Alastair Laird has taken charge of Mango House, LXR Hotels & Resorts, and Canopy by Hilton Seychelles, in Mahé, as Cluster General Manager since July 2026. The appointment follows a two-year spell leading The Bristol Belgrade, a heritage hotel in the Serbian capital, and marks his return to the Hilton fold after several years outside the group.

🔎 Today's trend: the courts take centre stage in hospitality news. Between a validated dismissal in Spain and a conviction of Disneyland Paris a decade after a tragedy, the sector finds itself before the judges - while hotel groups continue expanding their territorial footprint, from La Ciotat to the Basque Country.

Canarian hotel group Lopesan Hotels & Resorts is to receive €300 million from the Canary Islands government, under an amicable settlement that brings to a close more than twenty years of litigation stemming from the 2001 and 2003 urban planning laws. Announced on 26 August 2026, the wider agreement, covering €485 million paid out to a group of hotel developers, is expected to allow the reactivation of more than twenty projects that have been stalled for two decades in the south of Gran Canaria.

Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Tourism has opened public consultation on draft regulations setting minimum staff-to-room ratios by property category, rising to three employees per room for luxury hotels. Due to take effect on 1 January 2027, the text goes well beyond service quality alone: it forms part of the Kingdom's strategy to build a national middle class and grow the domestic labour market.

Destination Québec cité announced on 27 August 2026 the appointment of Stéphane Morin to head its new Business Tourism & Commercialisation Division. With more than thirty years of experience in the hospitality industry, including ten years as Director of Sales and Marketing at Fairmont Le Château Frontenac, he will be tasked with strengthening the destination's positioning among organisers of international conferences and business events.

Prime Hotel Assets Fund, backed by J&T Investiční společnost and J&T Banka, has acquired the mixed-use Prague Marriott Hotel & Millennium Plaza complex in the heart of the Czech capital from PH Properties. Dosfield Group is acting as strategic partner on the deal, with the seller advised by CBRE. This is the largest single-asset hotel transaction in Central and Eastern Europe in 2026, and one of the most significant in Europe this year.

The French hotel group and the online travel agency are strengthening their collaboration to accelerate hotels' sustainable certification and its visibility at the point of booking, as corporate demand hardens around these criteria.

Hilton has announced the signing of Maravé Manuel Antonio, LXR Hotels & Resorts, marking the independent luxury brand's debut in Costa Rica. Developed with Ocean Cove MA Development One S.A. on a beachfront estate in the Manuel Antonio region, the 173-unit hotel and residential complex is due to open in 2029. The signing forms part of Hilton's strategy to strengthen its luxury footprint in Central America.

IHG Hotels & Resorts announced on 27 August 2026 the opening of the Holiday Inn & Suites Commerce City-Denver Airport in Colorado. The 106-room property, developed by NibbleNook Hospitality, is the brand's first newly built hotel to feature its new lobby concept, combining reception, an ordering counter and a bar within a single space. The opening forms part of Holiday Inn's ongoing modernisation drive ahead of its 75th anniversary in 2027.

In the Hunter Valley, the group is transforming 137.6 hectares into a resort combining golf, wellness, family offerings and event spaces

Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank partners with Marriott Bonvoy and Visa to offer two premium cards in the United Arab Emirates, featuring Elite status and points on everyday spending.