A condensed edition while I’m traveling, focused on jobs and news. Between photoshoots and time changes, time was tighter than usual, but I haven’t missed a week since launching the newsletter, and keeping that cadence remains the goal.

Light Reading
Mauricio Prieto of Travel Tech Essentialist put together his own Travel MegaTrends 2026 Report: Same Trends, New Year. A sarcastic and lighthearted look at the trend reports that are popping up everywhere, including the last few editions of this newsletter.

Thanks for reading.
☞ Know of a new-to-hotels marketer or a hotel marketer who was recently laid off? Forward this newsletter to them!

⚡️ Skift Megatrends 2026 // Skift

⚡️ You Can Now Reshare Public Stories on Instagram // Social Media Today

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Trending news, marketing news, and reports:

▶️ ILTM Cannes 2025: The Luxury Travel Trends That Actually Matter // Hertelier

▶️ TikTok Travel Trends Report 2025 // TikTok

▶️ Pinterest Predicts 2026 // Pinterest

▶️ INSPIRATO Winter 2025 Magazine - Wellness Journeys, Festive Gift Ideas, and more // INSPIRATO

▶️ ChatGPT is Apple’s most downloaded app of 2025 in the US // TechCrunch
↳ The top apps all-around after ChatGPT include Threads, Google, TikTok, WhatsApp, Instagram, YouTube, and Google Maps.

▶️ The Golden Globes announced its first-ever nominees for best podcast // Variety

▶️ Uber Advertising is launching an insights platform for marketers called Uber Intelligence. // Business Insider

▶️ IAB Tech Lab introduces new CTV ad formats, updates programmatic guidance // MarTech

▶️ HSMAI Announces 2025 Top 25 Extraordinary Minds in Hospitality Sales, Marketing, Revenue Optimization and Distribution // HSMAI

▶️ How Airbnb 2x'd revenue in 1 week // Strategy Breakdown

▶️ Stella Artois turns Google Maps reviewers into brand ambassadors // TrendWatching

▶️ The Ancillary Revenue Revolution: How IHG and Accor are Rewriting Hotel Economics // White Sky Hospitality

▶️ How to use LLMs to humanize your content and scale your research // Search Engine Land

▶️ Google rolling out Preferred Sources globally and announces Spotlighting subscriptions // Search Engine Land

▶️ Reusing top performers, end-of-year wrap ups, and more social media trends to try right now // Rachel Karten

▶️ 21 Culinary Travel Trends We're Excited About, According to T+L Travel Experts // Travel + Leisure

▶️ Are Evening Wellness Rituals the New Nightcap? // W Magazine

▶️ Spa Market Size - By Spa Type, By Service Type, By Customer Preference, By Age Group, By End Use Growth Forecast, 2026 - 2035 // GMI Insights

Leading luxury hotel marketing across resorts and task force marketing roles over the past 15+ years led me to begin publishing The Hotel Marketing 5.15 in 2025 as a way to help keep clients up to date on hospitality marketing news and activations. I currently work remotely for Ka La‘i Waikīkī Beach, LXR Hotels & Resorts.

Based on a communication method developed by Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard, the 5.15 is a weekly format designed to synthesize key insights in 15 minutes or less and be read in five minutes. This newsletter applies the same principle to hotel marketing: concise, actionable trends and opportunities curated for industry professionals.