Testing AI, Riding F1 and Restarting India-China Flights
Description
Hotel leaders say AI is showing promise in low-risk, measurable areas like contact centers, and IHG’s 400 hotels in China even use service robots, but many brands still aren’t ready for AI-driven search marketing or distribution—and executives doubt robots would survive U.S. guests. Asia’s “live tourism” surge continues, with events like the Singapore Grand Prix boosting branding and hotel performance—Hilton finds 40% of APAC travelers would plan trips around events (60% already have), and STR shows the F1 weekend can roughly double RevPAR. In air travel, IndiGo will launch daily Kolkata–Guangzhou flights on October 26—the first direct India-China link in nearly five years—with a Delhi–Guangzhou route likely to follow pending approvals, rebuilding a corridor that had 500+ monthly flights pre-2020.
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