No Vacancy Live! – Details, episodes & analysis

On No Vacancy, I talked with Charif Zahrane, Managing Partner at M7 Services, about the hotel technology mess sitting underneath the AI conversation.

Everybody wants to talk about AI. Charif wants hotel operators to look at what sits below it first.

Data. Infrastructure. Security. System connections. The unsexy stuff that decides whether the shiny new tool actually works or turns into another headache.

That's where this conversation gets useful.

Hotel operators can't just throw AI on top of messy systems and expect magic. They need a cleaner foundation, a better understanding of what they're connecting, and partners who understand how hospitality actually runs.

Charif also gets into why the old "break-fix" IT model doesn't match where hotels are headed.

This one's for anyone trying to figure out what hotel tech should look like before AI makes the whole thing even more complicated.

Want the weekly roundup of news, videos, and what you might've missed? Text HOTEL to 66866.

Today we answer the most important question of all, what Arnie missed. Arnie Garfinkle tosses back some cocktails with Glenn, Craig and Producer Suzanne for this week's Friday Night Audit. Bets are open to how late Arnie shows up for his guest spot.

Seventy-three percent of new vacation ownership purchases now come from Gen Z and millennials.

That changes the pitch, product strategy, and member experience conversation for every company in vacation ownership.

During ARDA Spring Conference, I spoke with Gordon Gurnik, COO of Hilton Grand Vacations, about younger buyers, points-based flexibility, AI, and the experiences HGV builds around ownership.

🎟 HGV runs about 3,800 member experiences a year, so ownership means access, not just more space

🏎 At Elara in Las Vegas, HGV brings F1 into the owner experience with viewing areas, concerts, food, and beverage

🎤 Chef dinners, wine tastings, baseball suites, and private concerts create moments members may not arrange on their own

🤖 AI opens a path toward more personal recommendations, especially in markets like Las Vegas where too many choices can overwhelm a trip

👨‍👩‍👧 Points-based ownership helps younger buyers adapt as their families, schedules, and vacation habits change

Gordon also talks about why hospitality keeps people hooked: travel, food and beverage, construction, marketing, sales, entertainment, and the moments when guests create memories right in front of you.

Want the weekly roundup of news, videos, and what you might've missed from #NoVacancyNews? Text HOTEL to 66866.

Conversions still beat new construction in a lot of markets right now, so I wanted to get specific on what Bruce Ford sees across the Americas pipeline.

I talked with Bruce Ford (SVP, Lodging Econometrics) about where projects are moving, where they're stalling, and what owners/operators/investors should watch in Canada, Latin America, the Caribbean, and the U.S. for #NoVacancyNews.

Here's what we cover:
🏗️ Canada shows roughly 2x as many renovation/conversion rooms as rooms under construction
🇨🇦 Bruce explains where he still sees room to grow in Canada, especially upper midscale and upscale
🌎 In Latin America, he points to uneven activity, with stronger momentum in Mexico than some other markets
🏝️ We talk Caribbean resort redevelopment, including repositioning and storm-related rebuild activity
🏨 Bruce explains why soft brands matter when owners want local character plus distribution power
🇺🇸 In the U.S., renovations/conversions still run at about 2x rooms under construction
📉 He says the market likely needs another rate cut or two before more projects move into the ground
⚽ We also hit World Cup city activity and why smart developers don't build around one event alone
💬 Bruce asks what topics you want next: cities, regions, new construction, renovations, or broader real estate trends

Thanks to Actabl for supporting this episode. Actabl gives you the power to profit. Visit Actabl.com.

Glenn is in California. Producer Dave is on the way. We preview all there is to expect at the California Lodging Investment Conference.

Today is International Women's Day and we wanted to celebrate by having two strong women leaders in the industry on. First is Davonne Reaves of The Vonne Group and then our very own Dr. Producer Suzanne. Today we celebrate all the strong women in our lives.

Holy Cow! We made it to 50 shows. Nikki Fox, VP Business Development at Parkwest GC, joins Glenn, Craig and Dave to class up the show.

In this episode of the Hotel Design Podcast, we welcome Paul Steelman - CEO of Steelman Partners. Paul Steelman was previously on our show during Episode 10.

Host Glenn Haussman is an avid casino resort design enthusiast, and he starts the conversation with Paul Steelman by discussing his rich and vibrant background. Paul began his career prior to the birth of modern Las Vegas, which began with the creation of Steve Wynn's The Mirage – the world's first mega-resort.

Paul notes that the entrepreneurial spirit of Steve Wynn was absolutely incredible and they discuss how he parlayed a small investment into the ownership of The Golden Nugget, before setting out to redefine the entire notion of Las Vegas with the creation of The Mirage.

One of the most prominent projects that Steelman Partners designed was Resorts World Las Vegas – a recently opened $5 billion mega-resort on the Las Vegas Strip. Steelman recounts the long process from its initial design & concepts in 2012, to finally opening the modern Asian-inspired resort in 2021 after many design changes.

Paul and Glenn discuss the challenges of basing the resort over a failed mega-resort project called Project Echelon, a Boyd Gaming Project which was partially completed before succumbing the financial crisis in 2008.

They also reviewed the maturation of casino resorts and how the design of this project pushes the project into a new era of design. This influenced the casino to be located centrally to the building with all amenities surrounding the casino floor.

Paul's philosophy is that the casino must be the most energetic room in any casino resort building - 24 hours a day.  Resorts World Las Vegas has a different casino design, which is long and narrow, and allows guests to take less steps overall to reach their destination. This makes the gaming floor easily accessible from all sides, an idea that Paul sees as successful through his many years of designing multiple Asian resorts in Macau, China.

Paul believes that every new casino must have something new that attracts and entices guests. A beautiful hotel and beautiful restaurant simply aren't enough any longer. Customers crave something new and unique within a singular attraction. When Steelman Partners designed Circa, they designed the most incredible sports books - one inside that stretches three stories - and Stadium Swim, an unique and redefining outdoor sports experience.

They also discuss the Freemont Street Experience - which spans over 4 blocks and accommodates entertainers, free concerts, and more. They also discuss the concept of themed resorts, and creating buildings and that transcend a specific style and remain timeless.

They also talk about how Lorenzo Doumani, a young, new developer and the son of Edward Doumani, imagined building a non-gaming hotel. That project has recently broke ground, and is called The Majestic – which is located directly across from the Las Vegas Convention Center. Paul shares how this convention focused hotel has redesigned the experience to better help businesses achieve their meetings' goals.

Finally, they discuss new endeavors that Steelman Partners is working on, along with concepts that Paul things will remain prevalent. They discuss sports, e-sports, and sports viewing – which is slated to reinvent the town and will reinvent these buildings a great deal. Paul thinks the integration of various digital services, including digital live gaming will in fact change the future. They are anticipating that artificial intelligence and virtual reality applications will be the next wave of entertainment.

Visit our website to view our extended notes and follow along with some great project visuals - http://hoteldesignpodcast.com/ - and make sure to subscribe to our new Youtube page to watch the video interview!

See slides presented on air here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/ixfwnykkqjonb6m/Dave%20Burns%20wild%20life%20photos.pptx?dl=0