When you have been responsible for a hotel, you listen to predictions about tourism with practical questions in mind.
What will guests expect? What will colleagues need to deliver? And where should the owner invest?
At the Tourism Meetup & Workshop in Baku, I explored ten changes in how people plan, book and experience travel.
Baku has a personal place in my professional journey. My years managing Park Inn by Radisson Azerbaijan and my involvement with Skål International Baku connected me with the people and businesses behind the destination.
I have now added this recording to the speaking archive on my website. The ten themes below reflect the original presentation; the operating questions that follow are my present-day reflections for hotel owners and leaders.
Ten themes from the presentation
Healthy food · 03:46
Greater attention to food choices, including organic ingredients and gluten-free options, and what these expectations mean for hospitality menus.E-booking · 04:05
Digital reservations, e-visas and online planning as increasingly important parts of the traveller’s journey.Wellness services · 04:23
The role of natural resources and spa experiences in destination development, including the example of Naftalan.Extreme sports · 04:43
Adventure experiences, from kite surfing to mountain excursions, as reasons to visit a destination.Green and sustainable tourism · 05:06
Renewable energy, responsible development and protecting the landscapes that attract visitors.Low-budget tourism · 05:17
Affordable airlines and accommodation concepts that make travel accessible to more people.Innovative technology · 05:35
Examples including virtual room tours, biometric entry and touch-screen room controls.Social network promotion · 06:03
Social platforms as places for travellers to discover destinations, connect and organise shared experiences.The sharing economy · 06:30
How services such as Airbnb, Uber and Lyft challenged established accommodation and transport models.E-payment · 07:14
Digital wallets and emerging payment methods, including cryptocurrency, discussed in the context of the presentation.
Watch the presentation:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5tkZbO66s8
The operating questions
A trend becomes commercially useful when we connect it to a decision.
Where are guests experiencing friction? Which services do they value enough to pay for? Can the team deliver the experience being advertised? How will an investment affect costs, service quality and commercial performance?
The session also explored millennial travellers’ interest in local experiences and greater independence from packaged itineraries. For a leader revisiting that discussion, the task is to test those ideas against the property’s actual guests, rather than assume every traveller wants the same thing.
My approach is to agree on the problem, identify priorities and give each action an owner and a measure of progress.
Continue the conversation
Read the original article with all ten timestamp links:
https://ahmetcanyesildag.com/blog/10-tourism-trends-baku?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=baku_tourism_trends&utm_content=the_standard
Today, from Oakville, Ontario, I work with hotel owners, emerging managers and hospitality teams through advisory, mentorship and applied learning.
If you are planning a keynote, executive workshop or consulting discussion, tell me about your audience or property—and the decision you want to address.
Ahmet Can Yeşildağ
ahmetcanyesildag@gmail.com
Originally published on ahmetcanyesildag.com. This is an adapted edition for The Standard.