Hyatt grows its all-inclusive segment to attract younger travelers with more high-end experiences
Hyatt grows its all-inclusive segment to attract younger travelers with more high-end experiences
Longtime players in the space, Hyatt seeks expansion in Caribbean and Latin America
The rendering displays the Hyatt Vivid Punta Cana, which is expected to open in the Dominican Republic in August 2026. (Hyatt Hotels Corp.)
https://www.costar.com/article/2067313855/hyatt-grows-its-all-inclusive-segment-to-attract-younger-travelers-with-more-high-end-experiences?
By Bryan Wroten
CORAL GABLES, Florida — Experience is a game-changer when it comes to making deals, and Hyatt Hotels Corp. is banking on that as it looks to further grow its all-inclusive resorts portfolio.
In an interview at the Americas Lodging Investment Summit Caribbean and Latin America conference, María Zarraluqui, senior vice president, global growth and owner relations for Hyatt’s Inclusive Collection, said her company has been dynamic with its deals and transactions in the all-inclusive space.
Last June, Hyatt closed on the acquisition of Playa Hotels & Resorts. Before that, it had a large joint venture with Spain’s Grupo Piñero for the Bahia Principe Hotels & Resorts brand. The largest deal Hyatt made in the all-inclusive space was its 2021 acquisition of Apple Leisure Group.
The results of these deals and partnerships are the attraction of talent, good partners, and strong results, Zarraluqui said.
“In addition, we are developing further our footprint with the owners that we actually have in this part of the world,” she said.
Zarraluqui recently moved into her role at Hyatt following her time as vice president of global development at Spanish hotel chain Meliá Hotels International. At Hyatt, she said she has a global goal and oversees the full strategy of the Hyatt Inclusive Collection footprint. That means having a resort in every place where the all-inclusive segment can be driven, from the up-and-coming markets to the most mature ones.
“We’re talking about from the CALA region to Europe, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia, so we have a full footprint of development that we would like to undertake,” she said.
Specifically in CALA, Hyatt has 16% of the all-inclusive market share with about 155 resorts and approximately 58,000 keys. That means it’s the biggest player, but there’s room to grow, she said. It plans to consolidate its presence in markets where it already operates, namely Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, Mexico and Aruba, as well as further develop its brands in other markets where it does not have as big a presence.
Hyatt’s Ziva and Zilara brands have “huge potential” there, she said. There’s also the Bahia Principe brand, as well as Alua, which is well-established as a brand in Spain and is on the right track in CALA. Hyatt’s lifestyle brand Vivid is targeted to the emerging millennial and Gen Z travelers.
There are many more markets with growth potential for Hyatt, including Costa Rica and El Salvador, she said.
Within the last year, Hyatt’s Inclusive Collection opened the Secrets St. Lucia Resort & Spa, Secrets Baby Beach Aruba, Secrets Playa Esmeralda Resort & Spa, Dreams Playa Esmeralda Resort & Spa, and Secrets Mirabel Cancun Resort & Spa. It has also undertaken renovations at its Zoëtry Agua Punta Cana, Secrets Playa Mujeres Golf & Spa Resort, and Hyatt Zilara Cancun.
Looking ahead, Hyatt has planned openings for the Hyatt Vivid Punta Cana and the Secrets Macao Beach Punta Cana this year and the Hyatt Ziva Punta Cana in 2029.
Making deals, partners
Hyatt is at the tail end of its integration of the Playa acquisition, Zarraluqui said. Hyatt's relationship with Playa dates back to 2013, with the creation of the Ziva and Zilara brands.
“It has been very smooth, because the relationship, the network was there, the knowledge was there, the parties were already working in a very solid way,” she said.
Hyatt has also gained many talented people as a result of the deal, including Nico Valle, vice president of growth for the region, she said.
The deal fit with Hyatt’s business mindset, and Playa was a business that complemented Hyatt, she said. Hyatt bought everything and then sold the real estate to Tortuga Resorts for $2 billion. The Bahia Principe deal similarly made sense with its joint venture.
Hyatt has a big platform for development in CALA with actual partners, investors, and families who own hotels, Zarraluqui said. More than 30% of the owners Hyatt works with have three or four resorts with Hyatt.
It’s necessary to have the right mix between the ownership company and brand, she said. All-inclusive resorts are a specialized segment, and there aren’t many groups as developed in operating in this segment.
The new all-inclusive space
The all-inclusive segment has evolved dramatically over the years, Zarraluqui said. It was previously a simple model in which guests could organize their vacation beforehand, knowing exactly what they’re paying for. They would go to the resort and have their food, beverage and entertainment.
Now the segment has a different level of inclusiveness with the growth of high-end properties, she said. Not only does it get guests out of the noise of organizing a vacation, it gives them a variety of experiences to have. There’s well-being, dining, entertainment, spa, sports and many others to choose from.
“I would say that the good evolution of the all-inclusive is it’s not conceived as a commodity, but a value-driven model very much linked to the experience that you are providing,” she said.
One of the biggest changes this segment has seen is the growth of interest among travelers ages 18 to 25, Zarraluqui said. More than 70% of these travelers in the U.S. and Canada have said they are more interested in an all-inclusive resort experience than they were five years ago.
The growing popularity of the all-inclusive segment is why the big brands want to be players, she said. It’s not an easy entry because it requires expertise in knowing how to operate a full-day, 365-day experience in the packaging segment. These resorts aren’t typically franchised and have management structures.
At the end of the day, everything is linked to results, she said. It’s a competitive market, and all of the brands are fighting with each other to get deals. Hyatt has a proven track record, and potential partners know what it can do, she said.
“When we go to that type of pitch, we have a little bit of an advantage because of what we already have and what we can demonstrate, while other brands may not be there yet,” she said.
Airbnb is becoming one of the most important travel distribution platforms
With the addition of hotels, it moves closer to the everything travel app
Sean McCracken (CoStar)
https://www.costar.com/article/2031807739/airbnb-is-becoming-one-of-the-most-important-travel-distribution-platforms
Hotels listing on Airbnb is not a new thing. In fact, I wrote about how some hoteliers were doing everything they could to make the most of the platform despite integration issues almost a decade ago.
But adding thousands of independent and boutique properties and highlighting that is part of the short-term rental platform's 2026 summer release. Listing hotels on the platform suddenly seems like a much bigger focus for Airbnb.
In a recent interview with The Wall Street Journal, Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky said he's had to make a philosophical shift on hotels and admitted that they bring something to Airbnb-focused travelers.
"For many years, one of our original taglines was, 'Forget hotels,' he said. "I saw Airbnb as opposition to chain hotels.
"I was ideological about homes, and our customers weren’t as ideological as I was. Basically, there were three types of people: people who only book homes, people who only book hotels and, it turns out, most people are open to doing both. It was like billions of people coming to our store looking for something, and we didn’t always have it.
"There are reasons to use a hotel. I think it’s by trip type, not by segment. If I’m booking for tomorrow night, checking in at 11 p.m., and staying one night; I’m traveling for business; or I’m going to New York where Airbnb really doesn’t exist, a hotel is a really good option."
This is an interesting shift for a lot of reasons, including the fact that despite analysis showing hotels and Airbnb-listed accommodations not always being directly competitive, more people going to Airbnb to book hotels makes those listing directly competitive for attention at the very least.
One thing I think is absolutely worth keeping in mind is the fact that Airbnb is already a much bigger company than most others in the lodging space.
At the time of writing, Airbnb has a market cap of $77.5 billion, which is more than triple Expedia Group's $25.5 billion but obviously less than Booking Holdings' $120.2 billion.
In terms of nights booked, the volume breaks down in a pretty similar way. For the first quarter of 2026, Airbnb had 156.2 million nights and seats booked compared to 113.9 million room nights booked in Expedia and 338 million in Booking.
Keep that in mind. Airbnb is already booking more accommodations than Expedia's various sites, which have long been viewed as titans in the universe of hotel distribution.
What this ultimately means is hoteliers will need to be agile in their distribution strategies, keeping in mind they have increasing visibility in another major player.
While the hotel industry has long had a somewhat tense relationship with the online travel agencies because of commissions, I don't want to assume another major player in the space automatically is a bad thing — especially since so much of the OTA discussion of the last decade is still dictated by the thought that Expedia and Booking form a duopoly in the space.
Ultimately, you'll all be striving for more direct bookings in the end, but knowing you have a potential path to a new type of traveler should also excite more enterprising hoteliers.
Fattal acquisition proposal values PPHE at just shy of £1 billion
PPHE acknowledges 'fair' proposal and moves discussion to its shareholders
In PPHE’s portfolio of 51 hotels is the 178-room Park Plaza Nottingham in the U.K. (CoStar)
https://www.costar.com/article/1739953311/fattal-acquisition-proposal-values-pphe-at-just-shy-of-1-billion?
A non-binding proposal to acquire 100% of PPHE Hotel Group for £22 ($29.53) per share.
The price per share will be attributable to the shares in PPHE that Fattal does not already own.
PPHE is based in Amsterdam and listed on the London Stock Exchange, which states Fattal currently owns 3.97% of PPHE.
Fattal’s offer values PPHE at £930 million, with its bid for the approximate 96% of the firm thus having a value of approximately £921 million.
The news comes approximately six months after PPHE’s founder and president and co-CEO said they were investigating potential investment options, including strategies of “contributing growth capital to PPHE, to a potential partial monetization of their stakes in PPHE.”
In a news release issued Thursday on the London Stock Exchange, Tel Aviv-based Fattal said: “It is willing to maintain the proposal for a limited period to allow for a constructive engagement with [the] PPHE board and its advisors, with a view towards announcing a firm offer within the next four weeks.”
On Wednesday, PPHE confirmed via a stock filing that its executives had “evaluated [Fattal’s] proposal and determined that (it) represents fair value. … The board intends to engage with … major shareholders regarding the proposal in order to assess its deliverability. There can be no certainty that any firm offer will be made or as to the terms of any offer. A further announcement will be made as appropriate.”
PPHE's current hotel portfolio comprises 51 hotels and approximately 9,600 rooms in eight European countries, including eight Croatian campsites. The company values its portfolio at approximately £2.2 billion.
PPHE's stock price now stands at £19.82 per share, up 23% from the close of trading on Wednesday, which gives the firm a market capitalization of more than £830 million.
Fattal, which has 315 hotels in 21 countries, has a market capitalization of approximately 13 billion New Israeli shekels ($4.6 billion).
Both PPHE and Fattal referred to their stock filings when asked by CoStar News Hotels for further comment on the proposal.
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