This month in Washington, D.C., , Co-Founder and Chief AI Officer of , will deliver a stern warning to hoteliers: “Seize agentic hotel distribution now and become indispensable, or don’t, and remain invisible.”

In a presentation at the titled: “Agentic Hotel Distribution: Owning the AI Era of Travel,” Brewer will explore how autonomous AI agents, real-time personalization, and structured hotel data are reshaping distribution, loyalty, and profitability for the next decade. He will challenge hoteliers to confront the seismic shift underway in travel distribution as booking migrates from websites and apps to AI-native platforms. He also will discuss how hotels can build an AI-native commerce layer today that will become the default layer for all future bookings.

“Travel is shifting from websites and apps to AI-native surfaces where the conversation is the booking,” Brewer said. “AI is not an add-on—it’s infrastructure. And if hotels don’t own it, they won’t survive. With new , travel preferences will only need to be set once, and the web will adapt around them. Every rate, room, local activity, and perk will be filtered through persistent, personalized logic. Hotels that act now can anchor that experience in their own AI stack. Those that don’t will hand off the guest journey to third parties.” 

Brewer, a hospitality technology innovator, is transforming how hotels and resorts compete in the AI era. He has more than 20 years of experience at the intersection of travel, AI, and structured data, and has pioneered agentic AI systems that give hoteliers control of their agentic hotel distribution, loyalty, and guest personalization. A recognized industry voice, Brewer led critical contributions to Schema.org standards for hospitality, ensuring hotels and resorts could surface rich, AI-readable data across search and booking platforms. Under his leadership, Brewer launched the TravelOS Model Context Protocol (MCP) and —tools that were inspired by the need for direct conversational commerce and loyalty-aware AI personalization among Brewer Digital clients such as global travel brands Travel + Leisure Co., Drury Hotels, Red Lion Hotels, and G6 Hospitality. 

In his presentation, Brewer will:

• Trace the industry’s reliance on the OTA XML standard in 1999 that handed Expedia, Booking, and Google effective control of hotel distribution. Today, OTAs and Google capture more than 60 percent of hotel digital demand, leaving hoteliers burdened with high commissions, little ownership of guest data, and weakened loyalty.
• Unveil a NEW playbook — powered by Agentic Hospitality’s AI-native infrastructure — that gives hotels the ability to reclaim the guest journey. By leveraging Model Context Protocol (MCP) and AgentSite endpoints, hotels can capture guest intent, score and route that intent with SAR + MCP’s Intent Matrix, and seamlessly convert queries into direct bookings, upsells, and loyalty engagements.
• Highlight the aggregator MCP story as a real-world example of orchestration in action.
• Share findings from Universal Orlando Resorts, one of the world’s most competitive resort markets. Despite millions invested in guest experience, Universal was found to be missing essential structured data — including LodgingBusiness, HotelRoom, Offer, and Review schema — as well as real-time inventory, rates, and availability markup. The result: AI systems cannot “see” their offers, forcing AI-native queries like “show me Orlando suites near Volcano Bay with family perks” to default to OTAs. Ads control search today; it's broken and hotels have given up on paid-to-play.
• Explain how Agentic Hospitality protects hotels in the AI era: shielding profitability by blocking high OTA commissions, safeguarding guest data for long-term marketing and engagement, and restoring loyalty by enabling hotels to fully own repeat business and direct bookings.
• Argue that new regulatory frameworks, such as the Digital Markets Act (DMA), are not working with suppliers; rather they are causing chaos and change by gatekeepers in the European Union, further disrupting the OTA and Google duopoly and opening new opportunities for hotels to reclaim share. It’s time for a course correction—one that actually protects suppliers, not gatekeepers and intermediaries.

“AI-native infrastructure is the North Star for hotels,” Brewer said. “Without it, hoteliers will always be renting their guests from someone else. I encourage all Destination AI attendees to join the movement to own the AI era of travel. We’ve already done it for Brewer Digital clients Wyndham and the Houstonian Hotel, Club and Spa. The next success story could be yours.”

To learn more about Agentic Hospitality and its flexible deployment-as-a-service models, visit

Austin, Texas, USA – 16 September 2025: Cendyn, a global integrated hotel technology and services company, has found hotel customer acquisition costs (CAC) are down 19% year-on-year (YoY) as a result of utilizing AI in Google’s Performance Max for travel goals (PMTG).

A newer channel in Cendyn’s analysis set, PMTG, increased hotel bookings and revenue by more than 4x across all regions, according to the . Drawing on aggregated data from the Cendyn Digital Marketing Platform (DMP), the Performance Index identified a 262% surge in conversion rate (CVR) and improved cost efficiency due to the intelligent application of AI with guest data to find high-value audiences.

The report also highlights soaring media costs, which rose sharply year-over-year (YoY), increasing by 20% to 40% across digital platforms. Cendyn discovered that Google Hotel Ads (GHA) cost-per-click (CPC) rates rose 14%, reducing click volume despite continued advertiser demand. Cendyn relates the sharp rise in media spend to intensified competition, increased bidding pressure from online travel agencies (OTAs), evolving regulations, and macroeconomic headwinds.

Overall, the first half of 2025 has uncovered a number of critical industry trends directly impacting hotel visibility, booking performance and marketing budgets. Assessing performance across Google’s digital marketing products for January – June 2025 versus the same period in 2024, the report warns that without investing in AI and utilizing visibility opportunities within PMTG, hotels will see digital marketing ROI significantly deplete, having a profound impact on bookings and revenue.

Luke Markesky, SVP, Global eCommerce, at Cendyn said: “With advertising costs rising faster than many budgets, hotels must continue to evaluate and evolve their digital strategies to strategically employ AI to make a real impact to gain the right visibility to drive high-value bookings. Through this report, hotels gain insights to understand the impact of increased competition, regulatory changes, and evolving traveler behavior on digital marketing performance, while navigating the opportunities of AI. Hotels that invest strategically and utilize valuable guest data can sustain growth, capture market share, and emerge as leaders in a competitive, privacy-conscious, and increasingly AI-driven advertising environment.”

The Cendyn Hotel Digital Marketing Performance Index delivers actionable intelligence by evaluating adoption trends, cost dynamics, and performance metrics across major digital hotel advertising channels. Designed to help hospitality marketers make informed decisions, the report empowers hoteliers to utilize AI in order to optimize spend, preserve visibility, and capture demand in an increasingly crowded market.

The is available now,

Why investing in people, processes, and technology will define hotel success

By Paul Isaacson

Budget season isn’t just about numbers—it’s about vision. As a hotel finance executive, I have found that success in 2026 will come down to discipline, collaboration, and clarity. Hoteliers face a marketplace defined by uncertainty: shifting demand patterns, evolving technology, rising operating costs, and persistent talent pressures. Yet, uncertainty is precisely why a strong, collaborative budgeting process is essential.

When it comes to budgeting, the process should begin at the property level. General managers, directors of sales, and operations teams know their markets best. They provide the ground-level insights—market trends, client mix, event calendars, and competitive positioning—that form the foundation of revenue assumptions. From there, it’s important to layer in top-down guidance, normalizing assumptions to ensure comparability across the portfolio.

Once revenue direction is established by mid-September, October becomes the month for deep dives into expenses—labor, operations, and margin optimization. By November 1, business plans and budgets are finalized and delivered to ownership. This collaborative rhythm ensures we are not just budgeting for a property but aligning a portfolio for sustainable growth. At Hospitality America, this rhythm is anchored in commercial alignment—ensuring sales, marketing, and revenue strategies move in unison with financial planning to optimize profitability across the portfolio.

Technology as a Growth Multiplier

If one theme defines 2026 budgeting, it is this: speed is everything and knowledge is king. Hoteliers must invest in tools that sharpen decision-making and enhance productivity. That means evaluating and implementing new benchmarking, consumer intelligence, and AI-driven forecasting tools.

These platforms allow us to:

• Understand competitive positioning in real time.
• Segment customers more effectively.
• Forecast labor needs with precision.
• Enhance housekeeping and maintenance productivity.

Investing in these systems enable hotel companies to “do more with less,” a necessity as operating costs rise while guests remain price sensitive. Importantly, technology is not an expense line item—it’s a margin growth driver.

Labor and Culture: The Human Advantage

Even with the best technology, hotels run on people. Recruiting, retaining, and engaging talent is one of the most significant cost pressures—and one of the greatest opportunities. After all, culture is a company’s differentiator. It keeps turnover low and engagement high. Recognitions, awards, and intentional connectivity between corporate and property teams aren’t just cultural touchpoints, they’re budget priorities. Investing in training, development, and employee engagement tools ensures our teams feel valued and remain committed. A strong culture doesn’t just save money on turnover—it creates better guest experiences and stronger owner returns.

Supply chain challenges, tariffs, and rising logistics costs remain a reality, especially for furniture and fixtures for properties under renovation. The solution is planning early, sourcing strategically, and aligning closely with brand standards.

Food and beverage costs, while often managed by third-party operators, also impacts the guest experience and event profitability. Sourcing locally and leveraging group buying can help offset inflationary pressures, but operators must remain vigilant in balancing cost control with guest satisfaction.

Preparing for the Shifts Ahead

Market dynamics are shifting. It’s important to look at corporate vs. leisure demand, group vs. transient mix, and cyclical event calendars. Hoteliers must be agile in reallocating resources and rethinking market strategies. A “set it and forget it” approach to budgeting won’t cut it. Instead, we must build assumptions that anticipate change and give teams the tools to adapt quickly.

Ultimately, budgets are not just internal planning documents, they are commitments to owners. It’s the operator’s responsibility to translate ground-level realities, market intelligence, and cultural investments into business plans that drive revenue, optimize margins, and deliver returns. Owners trust us to manage their assets wisely. That means clear assumptions, disciplined planning, and flawless execution.

Budgeting for 2026 is not about predicting the unpredictable—it’s about preparing teams and owners for what’s ahead with clarity, collaboration, and confidence. It’s also an opportunity to sharpen our competitive edge, invest in our people and technology, and position our hotels for long-term success.

At Hospitality America, our promise to owners is clear: we treat every budget as an investment strategy designed to maximize returns. By aligning sales, marketing, and revenue initiatives with disciplined financial practices, we protect and grow asset value while strengthening market position. Our collaborative approach ensures transparency, accountability, and profitability, giving owners the confidence that their investments are being managed with passion, excellence, and foresight.

Experiential technology is merging with AI to reshape guest expectations, early investment in booking systems backed by an Agentic AI infrastructure will win market share, loyalty and more

By Brad Van Orsow

As summer winds down and the robust vacation season slows, it’s time for resort and venue operators to shift gears and ramp up for budget season. Fall offers the perfect opportunity to take a step back, evaluate what worked, what didn’t, and new opportunities to improve both operations and revenue in the coming year. With advances in experiential technology and AI, businesses can plan smarter, crafting memorable guest experiences that align with evolving expectations while staying budget conscious.

With Fall also comes a surge in experiential travel. September, October, and November are revered for their weather and immersive experiences tied to nature, food, sports, and cultural traditions. Fewer crowds, lower prices, better deals, and the need for a pre-holiday reset also beg for last-minute getaways. Unlike peak summer vacations, fall travelers often spend more on short, experience-rich getaways. ‑2025 shows that one-night trips cost an average of $700 per night, compared to $396 per night for week‑long vacations, a clear signal that guests are willing to pay a premium for quality, experience-rich escapes.

Now is the ideal time for hospitality venues to market local experiences and monetize fall-themed offerings, such as:

• Sports & Tailgating Experiences – Football season consistently drives demand, and operators don’t need to wait for the playoffs to see results. Packages built around college and pro games such as pre-game parties, fan lounges, and stadium transportation, create strong opportunities to capture fan bookings.
• Culinary & Harvest Events – Seasonal dining and beverage experiences remain a top draw. Wine tastings, brewery tours, farm-to-table dinners, and chef-led culinary events can be complemented with guided hikes, photography outings, and rooftop gatherings designed for fall travelers.
• Festivals & Cultural Events – Oktoberfest celebrations, local craft fairs, and music or arts festivals bring visitors into secondary and tertiary markets. These can be elevated with wellness-focused offerings such as spa packages, yoga sessions, fireside lounges, and weekend retreats that align with cooler weather.

While these activities are a big draw to travelers, the actual “booking” of these events can be a real turn-off, especially if each activity needs to be scheduled independently on multiple sites, and the systems facilitating the reservations are fractured and do not connect or communicate with one another. So, what does it take to remove this chaos and turn frustrated lookers into one-click bookers?

It requires an Agentic AI infrastructure to serve as the backbone of booking, personalizing, routing, and converting every guest signal into real-time conversational commerce journeys, and a (PXMS) to monetize and manage the experience-based inventory such as pool-side cabanas, restaurant reservations, lounge tables, small conference rooms, equipment rentals and much more, either as packages or a la carte bookings. Operators who prioritize these technologies in their budgets will be the ones capturing more revenue and guest loyalty.

Experiences are the draw, but it’s the AI infrastructure powering the booking process and the guest itinerary crafted by the resort’s PXMS that drives the loyalty, repeat visits, and incremental income. With AI agents communicating at the front end, and PXMS monetizing experiential bookings on the back end, everyone wins.

Rooms will remain the foundation of hotel revenue, but the modern guest journey is far richer and more dynamic. Every seat, space, and experience is an asset that can now be dynamically priced, booked in advance, and easily tied into the larger guest ecosystem.

Fall Season is Budget Season

As AI reshapes how guests’ book, taking a “wait and see” approach is no longer viable. The budgets set this fall will decide which operators capture tomorrow’s most significant ancillary revenue streams.

Early adopters will gain not just diversified revenue but also the intelligence that comes from every transaction with data that sharpens personalization, pricing, and product strategy. Guests will gravitate to properties that make experiences easy to discover and book, leaving the laggards behind.

Budgeting for PXMS and Agentic AI now isn’t just about keeping up, it’s about claiming a leadership position in 2026 and beyond. The winners will be the operators who turn every seat, space, and service into a sellable, scalable part of the guest journey.