World Cup pregame: How hotel performance projects two weeks out
CoStar Group's Didio Pequeno joins the CoStar News Hotels podcast to break down how hotel performance is trending across the 16 World Cup host markets.
May 27, 2026•18 min•Ep. 238
CoStar News Hotels
CoStar News Hotels' experienced, award-winning journalists bring diverse perspectives and voices to the news. From exclusive interviews with CEOs, to conference news from around the world, to coverage of public hotel companies, our stories are accessible for free 24/7 to inform your business today and in the future.
CoStar News Hotels is part of the global CoStar News team, which reports commercial real estate news from all over the United States, Canada and the U.K.
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Episodes
It's game time for hotels scoring sports tourism business this summer
Brandon Ehrhardt, vice president of marketing for travel partners and advertisers at Expedia Group, joins the show to share details from Expedia Group's new report that found that North America has $8.1 billion in tourism spend up for grabs this summer.
May 26, 2026•22 min•Ep. 237
How hoteliers are sorting through the complicated tariff refund question (with Alan Benjamin)
Procurement expert Alan Benjamin, founder and president of BenjaminWest, joins the podcast to discuss what hoteliers might expect from the $166 billion in promised tariff refunds and how getting that money back in the pockets of owners will be a complicated process.
May 20, 2026•26 min•Ep. 236
Smaller markets are winning hotel group demand
In this episode of the CoStar News Hotels podcast, reporter Natalie Harms discusses hotel group demand trends with STR's Hannah Smith, including how smaller markets in the U.S. appear to be coming out on top when it comes to attracting group hotel business.
May 13, 2026•17 min•Ep. 235
How Japan moneyballed its way to strong tourism demand
When Japan lost more than half of its travelers from China, many worried the year's long stretch of strong performance for hotels would end in that country. Instead, it replaced that demand in the aggregate. Listen for that and other highlights from across the Asia Pacific region with STR's Matthew Burke and Jesper Palmqvist.
May 06, 2026•29 min•Ep. 234
A hotel-hostel concept for the digital nomad era
In this interview from the 2026 IHIF EMEA conference, CoStar News Hotels' Terence Baker speaks with Navneet Bali, founder and CEO of LyvInn Hotels, who explains his goal of gearing his hostel-hotel brand toward the growing number of young, IT-savvy European travelers.
Apr 29, 2026•14 min•Ep. 233
Trinity expands its investment criteria for European hotels
CoStar News Hotel's Sean McCracken speaks with Trinity Investments' Ryan Donn at the 2026 IHIF EMEA conference in Berlin where Donn spoke about the company's newer approach to finding deals and his interest in the demand outlook in Southern Europe in particular.
Apr 28, 2026•14 min•Ep. 232
Why Wyndham’s Dimitris Manikis sees big growth ahead in Europe, India
Dimitris Manikis, president of Europe, Middle East and Africa at Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, joins the podcast from the International Hospitality Investment Forum EMEA in Berlin.
Apr 27, 2026•18 min•Ep. 231
Turbulent times call for portfolio scale, geographical reach and trusted investors, says TUI Blue’s Wesam Okasha
In this interview from the 2026 IHIF EMEA conference, CoStar News Hotels' Terence Bakers speaks with Wesam Okasha, managing director of TUI Blue Hotels and head of global development, Asia, Greater China and Europe, Middle East and Africa, about the necessity of security in travel, new projects in the works, the future of the Middle East's hotel industry and more.
Apr 24, 2026•13 min•Ep. 230
Kew Green Hotels readies for next stage of growth
Kew Green Hotels CEO David Taylor talks with CoStar News Hotels' Terence Baker at the 2026 IHIF EMEA conference about his company's next growth phase, which he said is undeterred by geopolitical headwinds.
Apr 23, 2026•17 min•Ep. 229
Democratizing branded residential
In this episode, CoStar News Hotels reporter Natalie Harms discusses the rise and growth of branded residential projects with Nate Siehr, co-founder of The Big Key Group. The company's first project, the Ambar Residences Orlando, is rising to meet changing traveler behavior and deliver on a product outside the luxury price point.
Apr 22, 2026•35 min•Ep. 228
Covivio Hotels execs see opportunities with conversions, operations
Covivio Hotels CEO Tugdual Millet and Deputy CEO Sébastien de Courtivron joined the CoStar News Hotels podcast while at the 2026 International Hospitality Investment Forum EMEA in Berlin to talk about their plans to more evenly distribute their portfolio across Europe, the opportunities of office-to-hotel conversions, the importance of sustainability and high-quality operations, and more.
Apr 21, 2026•15 min•Ep. 227
Why Accor is reimaginging its luxury portfolio (with Xavier Grange
French hotel giant Accor might not be acquiring, investing in and launching as many new brands as it used to, but it has not stopped activity in refreshing and relaunching flags — and there is still space for the completely new. Xavier Grange, global chief development officer, Sofitel, Emblems and MGallery, and all luxury brands, Europe and North Africa at Accor, joined the podcast while at the International Hospitality Investment Forum in Berlin.
Apr 17, 2026•15 min•Ep. 226
Finding investment opportunities across Europe, with Union Investment's Andreas Löcher
Andreas Löcher, head of investment management operational real estate for Hamburg-based Union Investments said he's seeing more hotel deals being done across Europe.
Apr 16, 2026•11 min•Ep. 225
Valor's Euan McGlashan on the power of running a people-focused global hotel company
Euan McGlashan, co-founder and CEO of third-party management company Valor Hospitality, joins the podcast during the International Hospitality Investment Forum in Berlin to talk about how connecting cultures across the globe helps improve his business.
Apr 15, 2026•19 min•Ep. 224
Why Yotel is partnering with Hilton (with Yotel CEO Phil Andreopoulos)
In an exclusive interview recorded at the International Hospitality Investment Forum EMEA in Berlin, Yotel CEO Phil Andreopoulos discussed the growth possibilities for his 23-hotel brand now that it's signed a franchise agreement with Hilton.
Apr 14, 2026•15 min•Ep. 223
Wyndham Hotels & Resorts' strategy with Chief Development Officer David Wilner
Wyndham Hotels & Resorts Chief Development Officer David Wilner sits down with CoStar News' Stephanie Ricca to discuss the global franchise company's expansion into higher-end brands and extended-stay. This episode was recorded at the 2026 Hunter Conference in Atlanta.
Apr 13, 2026•10 min•Ep. 222
The future of architecture and design in hospitality
Pete Dunne, vice president at planning, landscape architecture and urban design company EDSA, joined CoStar News Hotels' Trevor Simpson for an interview at the 2026 Hunter Conference.
Apr 10, 2026•11 min•Ep. 221
Why Vietnam's hotels and tourism are poised for long-term success
STR's Jesper Palmqvist joins the podcast for our monthly overview of the Asia-Pacific region, focusing this month on why infrastructure improvements and foreign investment are buoying the outlook for tourism destinations in Vietnam.
Apr 08, 2026•23 min•Ep. 220
How Raines Co. turned history into a mission-driven stay
At the 2026 Hunter Conference, Raines Co. CEO Grey Raines joins CoStar News' Natalie Harms to discuss the company's Lantern Hotels and why adaptive reuse, inclusive hiring and curated experiences are outperforming traditional development.
Apr 07, 2026•12 min•Ep. 219
Graduate Hotels set for portfolio growth two years after Hilton acquisition
Parker Henderson, brand leader of Graduate by Hilton, joined CoStar News Hotels' Trevor Simpson for an interview at the 2026 Hunter Conference.
Apr 06, 2026•13 min•Ep. 218
IHG's new Americas-focused exec on why the brand is 'on the move'
Natalie Harms of CoStar News Hotels speaks with Mark Sergot of IHG Hotels & Resorts about his move from leading global sales into heading development for the Americas. The discussion highlights IHG’s loyalty engine, commercial performance, and the opportunities Mark sees for hotel owners in both new builds and conversions.
Apr 03, 2026•15 min•Ep. 217
Concord Hospitality bolsters investment in extended-stay segment
Helene Okabe, senior vice president of business development at Concord Hospitality, joined CoStar News Hotels' Trevor Simpson for an interview at the 2026 Hunter Conference.
Apr 01, 2026•9 min•Ep. 216
Why this hotelier is seeing success targeting the tertiary markets
Newport Hospitality Group President Wayne West unpacks why the real opportunity lies just outside major city centers in this episode with CoStar News reporter Natalie Harms. He dives into deal flow, repositioning strategies, and why talent — not capital — is the real differentiator in today’s hotel landscape.
Mar 31, 2026•9 min•Ep. 215
Surveying the hotel demand and development landscape with Vision Hospitality's Mitch Patel
Mitch Patel, CEO and founder of Vision Hospitality Group, joined CoStar News Hotels' Trevor Simpson for an interview at the 2026 Hunter Conference in Atlanta.
Mar 30, 2026•14 min•Ep. 214
Three in NYC: Unpacking luxury hotel deal dynamics with Gencom's Karim Alibhai
Karim Alibhai, founder and principal of luxury hotel and resort developer Gencom, sits down with CoStar News' Stephanie Ricca at the 2026 Hunter Conference to talk about Gencom's recent hotel deals in New York City. He talks about competition for bids in the city, why his company is focused on asset management for returns, and the future of luxury hotels.
Mar 26, 2026•18 min•Ep. 213
Hospitality America’s 30-year playbook and next phase of growth
Ben Campbell, president and CEO at Hospitality America, joined CoStar News Hotels' Natalie Harms in conversation at the 2026 Hunter Conference. In the interview, Campbell discusses Hospitality America's 30-year anniversary and unpacks how the “small but mighty” management company is competing with larger players.
Mar 25, 2026•16 min•Ep. 212
IHIF Day 2 recap: More optimism, less certainty
European hoteliers remained optimistic on deals and travel demand during the second day of the International Hospitality Investment Forum, recapped by CoStar News' Sean McCracken and Terence Baker. But they are also more reluctant to give specific expectations for the rest of 2026.
Mar 25, 2026•5 min•Ep. 211
Hotel transaction market picks up with promising submarket activity
Arriba Capital's Ryan Bosch joined CoStar News Hotels Reporter Natalie Harms at the 2026 Hunter Conference to share what he's seeing in the hotel transactions market in the U.S. He said some submarkets are seeing more activity — even if the market as a whole is distressed — and there's a lot of opportunity for hotel conversions versus ground-up developments.
Mar 24, 2026•9 min•Ep. 210
Recapping Day 1 of IHIF EMEA 2026 in Berlin
CoStar News Hotels' Terence Baker and Sean McCracken share their takeaways from the first day of the International Hospitality Investment Forum EMEA in Berlin.
Mar 24, 2026•7 min•Ep. 209
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