London and Regional U.K. reported positive revenue-per-available-room (RevPAR) growth in 2011, according to data from STR Global, the leading provider of market data to the hotel industry. Despite its challenges throughout the year, demand grew in the majority of U.K. destinations. For 2012, STR Global forecasts a slight RevPAR increase for London and Regional U.K.

Asia is insulated from Europe’s current economic woes – isn’t it ? To find out how several Asian and Pa cific markets will likely fare in 2012, we turned to HORWATH HTL, whose consultants sprang into action and produced the following situation reports and outlooks covering twelve countries from the UAE to Australia, and several points in between.

Our regional outlook continues with a look at key markets in the Western hemisphere. HORWATH HTL has provided an in-depth look at the prospects for 2012 in the USA, Brazil and the Caribbean. The economy of the United States is the world’s largest national economy. Its nominal GDP was estimated to be nearly $14.7 trillion in 2010, approximately a quarter of nominal global GDP. The US economy has been expanding since the end of the recession, which is officially considered to have ended in June 2009. The recovery has been fragile, however, with many mixed signals that have led to uncertainty in the consumer and business markets.

According to HORWATH HTL, 2012 will be a year of uneven recovery across Europe – unless the financial, fiscal and Euro crisis worsens substantially, in which case all bets are off. To get an idea of the outlook in key markets across the continent, The Hotel Yearbook asked 11 different offices of Horwath’s international network to contribute their professional assessment of where we are and where we are going.

This newsletter provides a snapshot of the performance of Greek hotels based on a sample of more than 180 hotels & resorts in Greece. The hotel performance data is complemented by data from other sources so as to place the Greek hospitality industry in the context of Greek tourism and of the International Hospitality Industry. Finally, the outlook of the industry, as seen by hoteliers themselves, is given.

Hotel rate parity trends for February to April 2012 of three, four and five star hotels across some of the major cities in Europe. The report shows the percentage of hotels with cheaper rates on their own brand site compared to their rates on other OTAs.

Where holidaymakers want to go is just part of leading tour operator Kuoni's annual Travel Trends Report. The 20-page report also tracks hot travel trends and the top destinations for weddings and honeymoons, for families, for solo travellers, for pampering spa holidays, for the most exciting adventures and authentic experiences as well as the best destinations for those that care about the planet.

Having joined together with Hard Rock International to open the first-ever all-inclusive Hard Rock Hotel in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic in January 2011, Palace Resorts announced an extension of this relationship to include the first-ever Mexico all-inclusive Hard Rock Hotels set to launch in 2012. In order to continue to provide the best possible resort experience to its guests, Palace Resorts has created a new marketing arm, The All-Inclusive Collection, which will independently promote only these new Hard Rock all-inclusive properties, while at the same time, reinforcing the Palace Resorts Brand with a new and separate team that will cater to the existing Palace Resort brands. This will allow both entities to market the brands independently to different audiences and segments, with a laser focus on the needs specific of each brand and product offering, while continuing to offer the highest quality service and resort amenities leisure and business guests have come to expect.

IN-DEPTH: With TripAdvisor becoming less dominant/ reliable, brands are beginning to regain some lost influence and the correct management of both mobile and mapping technology will be key to increasing any brand's online reputation, says James Harrower, search marketing manager, International at Hilton Worldwide.

2011 closes with positive indicators for hotel business throughout the European Union, with an average of 5.5% growth in the RevPAR as a result of increased occupancy combined with growth in average daily rates. Yet, the dynamic that was seen until Spring 2011 slowed in the last quarter, ending with the start of decline last December. Europe is facing the challenge of renewing its hotel supply and of taking back control over distribution by the hotel operators. Europe is facing the challenge of renewing its hotel supply and of taking back control over distribution by the hotel operators.

London and Regional U.K. reported positive revenue-per-available-room (RevPAR) growth in 2011, according to data from STR Global, the leading provider of market data to the hotel industry. Despite its challenges throughout the year, demand grew in the majority of U.K. destinations. For 2012, STR Global forecasts a slight RevPAR increase for London and Regional U.K.

On January 17, the 175 attendees of the first Cornell International Hospitality Summit India had the unique opportunity to hear from India's leading hospitality executives as they discussed the most important issues facing the country's travel and tourism industry. The summit was SHA's first major industry event in Asia and was co-presented by the Center for Hospitality Research (CHR). Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces was title sponsor of the summit, which was held at the Taj Mahal Palace in Mumbai.

Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE: H) announced today that a Hyatt affiliate has entered into agreements with Naseel Holding Company to manage three new Hyatt-branded hotels in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. With the addition of these three new hotel agreements, there are six Hyatt-branded hotels under development in Saudi Arabia across five of Hyatt's brands. Currently, there is one Hyatt-branded hotel in Saudi Arabia - Park Hyatt Jeddah – Marina, Club and Spa, which opened in 2009.

Marriott International (NYSE:MAR) today announced three new hotels will join its portfolio in Europe, each to feature the innovative new European design model for the upper-moderate Courtyard by Marriott brand.

Asia is insulated from Europe’s current economic woes – isn’t it ? To find out how several Asian and Pa cific markets will likely fare in 2012, we turned to HORWATH HTL, whose consultants sprang into action and produced the following situation reports and outlooks covering twelve countries from the UAE to Australia, and several points in between.

Our regional outlook continues with a look at key markets in the Western hemisphere. HORWATH HTL has provided an in-depth look at the prospects for 2012 in the USA, Brazil and the Caribbean. The economy of the United States is the world’s largest national economy. Its nominal GDP was estimated to be nearly $14.7 trillion in 2010, approximately a quarter of nominal global GDP. The US economy has been expanding since the end of the recession, which is officially considered to have ended in June 2009. The recovery has been fragile, however, with many mixed signals that have led to uncertainty in the consumer and business markets.

According to HORWATH HTL, 2012 will be a year of uneven recovery across Europe – unless the financial, fiscal and Euro crisis worsens substantially, in which case all bets are off. To get an idea of the outlook in key markets across the continent, The Hotel Yearbook asked 11 different offices of Horwath’s international network to contribute their professional assessment of where we are and where we are going.

Z Soho is a designer conversion of twelve Georgian townhouses in central London. Billed as the designer label without the designer price tag, the 85-room hotel is the first in a planned chain of strategically located properties and opened its doors in November 2011.

The Cornell University School of Hotel Administration (SHA) is launching a new hospitality marketing course in collaboration with Sabre Hospitality Solutions, a leading global hospitality technology and marketing company. SHA faculty and Sabre executives have co-developed the content for HADM 6471: Hospitality Marketing with Evolving Media: Social, Mobile, and Search, which will be offered for the first time during the 2012 spring semester.

OTRUM's Marketing Module has been in operation since 2009, with a target audience of more than 2 million hotel guests annually. Today there are over 115 hotels using OTRUM's marketing tools to communicate, promote and advertise hotel services direct to the guest room.

Recent research suggests that a high number of graduates in the UK are unhappy with the amount of responsibility given to them in their first job. A poll by UKSP, a careers website specialising in hotel recruitment, revealed that 36% of those who have graduated in the last five years were “disappointed” with the low levels of responsibility that they were given in their first job. This has led to widespread dissatisfaction, with 45% of recent graduates believing that “they could have progressed quicker in their chosen career if given the right opportunities.” Additionally, 45% said that they were now wondering if they were “in the right job,” as a result of this lack of responsibility. One in five, meanwhile, feel they haven’t been given the “right opportunities” to take on responsibility in their job.

This newsletter provides a snapshot of the performance of Greek hotels based on a sample of more than 180 hotels & resorts in Greece. The hotel performance data is complemented by data from other sources so as to place the Greek hospitality industry in the context of Greek tourism and of the International Hospitality Industry. Finally, the outlook of the industry, as seen by hoteliers themselves, is given.

VingCard Elsafe, the global leader in hospitality security and part of the ASSA ABLOY Group, announces that the luxurious Grand Hyatt San Francisco has selected a complete package of VingCard Elsafe solutions for installation as a key component of the comprehensive renovation of its 659 guestrooms. The completed renovation features the addition of VingCard’s Orion energy management system and Signature RFID locks powered by the cutting-edge VISIONLINE wireless online access management system.

The 11th Asia Pacific Forum for the Graduate Students Research inTourism and International Convention & Expo Summit 2012(APF & ICES 2012) is a 2-in-1 conference which will be held at Hotel ICON, the state-of-the-art teaching and research hotel in Hong Kong, on 22-24 May 2012. The theme for this year is "Initiate Connecting Opportunities Now!"

Hotel rate parity trends for February to April 2012 of three, four and five star hotels across some of the major cities in Europe. The report shows the percentage of hotels with cheaper rates on their own brand site compared to their rates on other OTAs.

904 Magazine recently included VIZERGY, a nationally recognized leader in hospitality digital marketing, as part of their "Companies with Heart" special feature in the February issue of the magazine. The recognition was based on several criteria, including the company's corporate philosophy on giving back, as well as activities, programs, and company policies that highlight VIZERGY's commitment to philanthropy. VIZERGY, a small business with less than 100 employees, has contributed nearly $30,000 and hundreds of hours of staff time towards numerous charitable causes, including: Dreams Come True, First Coast No More Homeless Pets, Homes of Life, Second Harvest Food Bank, as well as various schools, churches, and other organizations in the area.

Two years after the film's original escapade in Las Vegas, 'The Hangover Part II' (Warner Bros) has been named as most popular guest choice for on-demand movies in 2011 by Quadriga. According to data captured in over 210,000 hotel rooms across Europe, guests elected to relax by enjoying a range of top blockbuster movies with the two most popular choices both being comedy sequels. Universal Picture's 'Little Fockers' came in a close second.

Hotel Concepts – Brilliant, a leading global provider of technology and software solutions for the hospitality industry, announces the direct integration of the Flip.to social marketing platform into the RezExchange channel management and distribution system.

When Hostmark Hospitality took over as the management company of the bankrupt Hotel Classique in Edison, NJ last November, they knew immediately they wanted to rebrand it as a Lexington Inn, part of Vantage Hospitality Group and the Lexington Collection® of hotels, inns, and suites.

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc., owner of the luxury St. Regis and W brands, said fourth- quarter profit dropped after a cash payment from a lawsuit settlement boosted year-earlier earnings. Net income fell to $167 million, or 85 cents a share, from $339 million, or $1.78, a year earlier, the Stamford, Connecticut-based company said in a statement today. The year- earlier results included $75 million from the settlement. Adjusted earnings, which exclude some items, equaled 71 cents a share, more than the 57-cent average estimate of 22 analysts in a Bloomberg survey.