A few random thoughts as we wrap up the month of June and head into July. It is good to see the industry continue to rebound from a terrible 2020/early 2021. According to STR, the last four weeks ending Saturday, June 12, twenty-six states showed demand totals within a 10 percent margin of the corresponding period of 2019. Collectively, eight of those states sold more rooms for the four-week period than they did 2019. Demand gains are widespread and, so far in 2021, most states (28) have had at least one week that surpassed a comparable week from 2019. We are...

Like many of you I am finalizing my summer vacation plans. My family chose a visit to New Mexico this year. I was there before as a single guy and loved the state and am looking forward to experiencing it with my family. Today it will hit 98 degrees in Albuquerque. We are hoping for more temperate weather for our visit. Just over one state, in Phoenix, it will hit 117 degrees today. Yesterday it hit a record 118, breaking previous records by four degrees. Years ago, I was in Phoenix, and it was 102 and it was like being...

Booking.com just released its sixth annual Sustainable Travel Report (see related article). It is based on one of the travel industry’s largest surveys and worth paying attention to. A total of 29,000 travelers from 30 countries were surveyed. (Click here to access a page where the Report can be downloaded.) “Our research uncovers how the travel hiatus has opened travelers’ eyes to the impact, both positive and negative, that their trips can have on local ecosystems and communities around the world,” said Marianne Gybels, Director of Sustainability at Booking.com. As the world of travel starts to open again, Booking.com’s 2021 Sustainable Travel...

The pandemic has certainly brought greater attention to indoor air quality (IAQ). A recent survey by Carbon Lighthouse has proven that one group of the work force—Millennials—are demanding greater transparency and data when it comes to IAQ. You should care because Millennials are expected to account for 75 percent of the workforce by 2025. Carbon Lighthouse’s survey included 1,000 U.S. consumers. Due to the overweighted economic influence of the millennial demographic as both employees and consumers, Carbon Lighthouse chose to focus its analysis on the 332 millennial respondents who took the survey. Here are some of the key findings of the...

Ford Motor Co. made a lot of noise in recent weeks with its F-15 Lightning announcement. The introduction of this electric vehicle (EV) is significant. Ford’s F-Series truck has been America’s best-selling truck for 44 years. The first lightning will roll off the assembly line next year at a new high-tech factory using sustainable manufacturing practices. Ford is starting with zero-emissions versions of its most popular and best-loved franchises—Mustang, Transit and F-150—with much more to come in the years ahead. Ford is one of just many companies accelerating their production of electric vehicles. I have yet to buy one because...

August will be a big month for trade shows and conferences—perhaps one of the biggest ones ever—with the AAHOA Convention & Trade Show from August 3 to 6, the HD Expo & Conference from August 24 to 25, and The NAFEM Show from August 26 to 28. The AAHOA event will take place at the Kay Bailey Convention Center in Dallas, the HD Expo & Conference will take place at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, and The NAFEM Show will be held at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando. As of May 20, more than 60 percent of Americans...

Some random thoughts for the week: I received a call from an owner of four hotels last week, each of which is at least partially solar powered. I could quickly tell he was passionate about keeping his hotels’ environmental impact as small as possible. What he brought up to me was the clash between an owner’s reality and keeping up with a brand’s property improvement plans (PIPs)—standards that themselves could wipe out any environmental gains the owner has made through his or her investments over the years. What he told me was that the environmental impact of one renovation of...

World Oceans Day is an international day that takes place annually on June 8. The concept was originally proposed in 1992. No matter where your hotel happens to be—even in Death Valley—consider the plight of the oceans on June 8. According to Conservation International, each year by weight, three times more trash is dumped into the ocean than fish caught, a third of the world’s wild fisheries are overexploited or depleted, and in the past 40 years, populations of marine species have been cut in half. (Perhaps you should plan an event to raise awareness about the ocean’s plight...

Quite a few years ago I had the opportunity to stay at one of the first Hilton Home2 Suites hotels. Every now and then while traveling with my family I stay at the property. I like the fact that Hilton has made many of the features of the brand sustainable and brand standards. I also like the spaciousness of the rooms—part of the appeal of the brand in the extended-stay niche. About two years ago I wrote about a Hilton Home2 Suites that reached the rare LEED Platinum level. While not a green brand through and through, Home2 Suites...

It was a busy last week with Earth week peaking on Earth Day, Thursday, April 22. There were numerous newsworthy announcements worth mentioning. First, Hilton released its Environmental, Social and Governance Report. The ESG Report highlights the company’s environmental and social performance during a tumultuous year. Among the report’s highlights: The company took steps to increase sourcing of renewable energy at hotels around the world, in line with the company’s science-based targets. In 2020, most Hilton-managed hotels in the United Kingdom began procuring 100 percent renewable electricity. Fairmont Hotels & Resorts announced it is celebrating the 30th anniversary of its award-winning...