Is This Really the Hospitality Industry We Want in 2025?

Today I came across an article titled “Top 5 Hospitality Trends to Watch (and Act On) in 2025”. I admit I opened it with a degree of professional curiosity, hoping to find inspiring ideas about the future of our industry. But as I read on, what I felt was certainly not enthusiasm. It was a mix of bewilderment, frustration and a question that kept repeating itself in my mind: is this really the hospitality industry we want to build?

It really unsettled me. Not so much because of the use of technology itself—a tool that can undoubtedly improve many operational dimensions—but because of the dehumanising and superficial way these trends are presented as though they were the industry’s new gospel. Automation, chatbots, algorithm-calibrated reputation, algorithmic hyper-personalisation... Everything seemed focused on pleasing artificial intelligence more than the guests themselves.

I have dedicated my life to hospitality, and every line I read took me further away from the purpose that led me to join this profession in the first place: making people feel good. Not robots. Not search engines. Not the platforms that push us to compete for visibility as though human quality could be reduced to a keyword or a response rate. What has become of the art of welcoming? The emotion of an unplanned gesture? The smile that cannot be automated?

What troubled me most was not what the article said, but what it left out. Not a word about leadership, team culture or purpose. Nothing about genuine sustainability, beyond a token paragraph at the end. And above all, not even a hint of reflection on the human dimension of our industry, the one that truly makes the difference between a hotel that merely accommodates and one that transforms.

That is why I decided to write this post. Not to reject technological progress—which I consider necessary and valuable when implemented with sound judgement—but to open up a space for critical thinking. Because if we, those of us working on the ground every day, do not defend the soul of this profession, no one will do it for us.

We are bombarded with headlines such as “AI-Powered Travel Planning” or “Automated Guest Messaging”, selling us a hotel industry governed by algorithms, conversational interfaces and reputations optimised to appeal to machines. It all sounds impressive... until you realise what we are sacrificing for that supposed efficiency.

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I have worked in hotels long enough to know that technology is a wonderful tool when it complements the human experience, not when it replaces it. But this kind of narrative seems written more by software engineers than by hoteliers with a vocation for service. And the guest? And the art of welcoming? Where does hospitality as a genuine gesture fit in?

Let us unpack these “trends” a little and put them into proper perspective:

The obsession with automation: convenience or dehumanisation?

1. “AI-Powered Travel Planning”:

   • What are they telling us? That if you do not optimise your online reputation to appeal to an algorithm, you will be left out of the market.

   • What do they forget to mention? That an excellent reputation is built from within, with motivated human teams and strong service cultures. Not with reviews manipulated to please ChatGPT.

2. “Automated Guest Messaging”:

   • Are we seriously celebrating the fact that guests do not speak to anyone? Is that the standard of hospitality now?

   • The reality: Many guests value speed, yes, but they also value human interaction, empathy and genuine smiles. An automated message cannot offer comfort or resolve a poor night’s sleep.

3. “Self-Service Technology”:

   • Convenience, yes, but... where is the opportunity to impress the guest with a warm welcome, a kind word, an authentic connection?

   • Relevant data: According to Skift + Oracle (2025), younger guests value control, but they also value personalised service. It is not an “all or nothing” proposition.

And what about sustainability? Are we really taking it seriously?

The article mentions, as a bonus, an almost ironic point: “Space tourism is real, but sustainability is the real mission”. A section at the end, as though it were an anecdotal appendix? What message are we sending?

Sustainability cannot be the dessert. It must be the main course of our strategy. According to the “ESG & Sustainability in Hospitality” report (ESG Pro, 2025), 78% of travellers prefer sustainable accommodation and 65% are willing to pay more for it. But that requires genuine commitments, not greenwashing or superficial campaigns.

Three ideas I would rather see on the list of real trends for 2025:

• 1. Authentic, empathetic leadership in hospitality:

  • Investing in internal culture, emotional training and empowering teams.

  • As the StaffCoach™ model (Holliday, 2001) rightly points out, “leading is not about doing everything yourself; it is about developing others so they can do it better”.

• 2. Purpose-driven sustainable hospitality:

  • It is not about putting up two green signs in guest rooms, but about rethinking supply chains, water consumption, waste and relationships with the local community.

• 3. Memorable experiences, not automated ones:

  • Why do we not talk more about co-creating moments? About the emotional guest journey, experiential and genuine value propositions, as advocated by Kotler’s Marketing 3.0 strategies.

To conclude...

I am not opposed to technology. But I am opposed to letting it decide for us what is “best” in hospitality without critical reflection. Technology must serve people, not the other way around.

So, if the “trend” in 2025 is to erase human beings from the heart of the hotel experience, I declare myself in rebellion. True hospitality, the kind that welcomes, cares and connects, does not need to be replaced. It simply needs to be rediscovered.