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In case you missed it: Need vertigo? Meet the hotel of your dreams

Morpheus awakes. Late architecture phenom Zaha Hadid’s firm unveiled the Morpheus, the flagship hotel of Macau’s City of Dreams development. Designboom showcases the disorienting and dizzying vertical design of the building, which comprises two towers joined at the bottom and top, with multiple latticed, light touches. —Barbara Bohn

The Morpheus, in Macau’s City of Dreams entertainment development.
The Morpheus, in Macau’s City of Dreams entertainment development.

Should Frits van Paasschen be the next leader of Four Seasons? A lot of hotel companies could use a change maker and Frits is that. In fact, the former Starwood CEO just released a book, “The Disruptors’ Feast,” writing about how technology, development and urbanization are disrupting business and daily life. He says these changes represented two extremes: a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for so many and a looming threat to the global economy. Frits was among the hotel industry’s first to break the mold and operate differently. It doesn’t always sit well, doesn’t always work and it takes time to change old habits. But sometimes change is what’s called for and maybe someone should bring him back. —Jeff Weinstein

  


Follow the money: The New York hotel market has seen its share of construction in recent years, with the introduction of new supply weighing on growth. RevPAR may have decreased in each of the last three years, though it’s projected to increase this year. As Bloomberg points out, much of the recent construction in the Midtown South submarket, which includes Manhattan West and Hudson Yards, is geared to middle-market travelers spilling over from Times Square. But now, the coveted blue-chip office tenants are beginning to migrate to Manhattan’s far west side – and it’s only a matter of time before the luxury hotels follow suite. —Chloe Riley

 


The next OTA giants? Airline data provider OAG released a study about how tech giants like Amazon and Facebook could become among the travel booking giants. In fact, 44% of 2,000 travelers said they would consider booking via digital social and consumer platforms, and 44% said they would consider booking travel with e-commerce giant Amazon. The report offers a much deeper dive into how travelers book and has some interesting data points to consider. —J.W.

 


How badly do you want to see Old Faithful? The three government-owned hotels at Yellowstone National Park, which straddles Wyoming and Montana, are freshening up their revenue management model, according to the Bozeman Daily Chronicle: Up until now, the hotels had set the same price for the whole summer season no matter demand. But from now through 2022, manager Xanterra will use variable pricing to set room rates. That reflects a change in the National Park Service’s rate-setting policies, which are now more demand-driven. Park officials are watching for visitor reaction and improved services based on the expected increase in revenue. —B.B.

 


The trick up Booking.com’s sleeve: Interesting read and listen from Fortune this week on how booking.com is paying even more attention to non-hotel stay listings. As a result, the behemoth travel company is paying more attention to who else – Airbnb. There is also some interesting discussion here about using AI to maintain its advantage. —J.W.

 


Oh influencers: Can’t live with ‘em, can’t have that perfectly crafted post of a hand holding an ice cream cone without ‘em. As HOTELS recently wrote, not all influencers are created equal and properties have to do their homework (and create a serious strategy) around who gets to stay where for how long and how much. The Atlantic echoed that in a recent article which also points out that influencers aren’t all just phonies looking for a free meal (and board). “Instagram has ballooned to more than 800 million monthly active users, many of whom come to it for travel ideas, and influencers argue that the promotions they offer allow hotels to directly market to new audiences in an authentic way.” Just make sure you don’t get taken to the cleaners. —C.R.

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