Former Starwood CEO on Merger Pitfalls and 12 Other Hospitality Trends This Week

Every week we post hundreds of stories across various sectors in travel, connecting the dots across various global trends, and in these weekend posts we highlight the stories that tackle these trends. This one looks at top hospitality trends.

For all of our trends roundups, go here.

>>Hostels are no longer the dirty, questionable haunt of teenage backpackers. They’ve grown up quite a bit, along with their demographic: 5 Ways Hostels Are Trying to Move Beyond the Backpacker

>>Marriott and Starwood jolted their loyalty program members awake on Friday by allowing them to link award accounts: Marriott And Starwood Loyalty Members Caught off Guard by Integration After Merger

>>We have to wonder: Was West Elm’s partnership with Marriott’s SpringHill Suites just a pilot for its bigger hotel schemes? Looks like it, given today’s news: West Elm Is Checking Into the Hotel Business

>>Loyalty members at Marriott and Starwood were in for a surprise last Friday when the hotels announced that it was possible to link the programs. Each group now has nearly double the volume of bookable hotels and partner programs with which they can use their points: Starwood and Marriott Finally Merge — Skift Business Traveler

>>As we’ve noted before, while this merger makes sense for a lot of reasons, it’s a shame that the Commune Hotels brand is going away: Destination Hotels and Commune Hotels Debut a New Name

>>When we said co-living would be the next big hospitality trend, we weren’t kidding: AccorHotels Delves Into Co-Living With Its Newest Hotel Brand

>>While we think it’s prudent to avoid the Trump name for this brand, is it really so smart to use the same name as a line of budget-friendly cars? Trump’s New Lifestyle Hotel Brand Shares a Name With a Budget Car for Millennials

>>It’s genuinely not enough for a boutique or lifestyle hotel to just look good anymore: Disruption From Inside Out Is Key to Hospitality Innovation, Says Two Roads CEO Niki Leondakis

>>Arne Sorenson certainly had a lot to share at this year’s Skift Global Forum. Read on for some insight into the company’s unconventional decision to link Marriott Rewards and Starwood Preferred Guest, as well as how he really feels about Airbnb and direct bookings: Marriott CEO on Loyalty, Airbnb and Direct Bookings

>>If Generator Hostels’ success — and yesterday’s AccorHotels’ announcement of the new Jo&Joe brand are any indication — hostels are a definite sector of hospitality that the bigger brands should be paying more attention to: Why the Hotel Industry Should Be Paying More Attention to Hostels

>>Want to fight back against Airbnb as a hotelier? Create a hotel that people actually want to hang out at: Why Hotels With a Lifestyle Focus Thrive in the Sharing Economy Age

>>Here’s the former Starwood CEO’s take on what’s happening in the hospitality industry now, and why brands need to work harder than ever to be more agile and flexible in dealing with disruption. Oh, and he thinks the Marriott-Starwood deal could have been better for shareholders and employees: Former Starwood CEO Thinks Timing of Marriott Deal Wasn’t Best for Shareholders

>>Here’s what Airbnb Head of Global Hospitality and Strategy Chip Conley had to say about hospitality’s continuous evolution: This Is What Hotels Can Learn From Airbnb — and Vice Versa