Deanna Ting

We've always seen Conley as the adult in the room at Airbnb, someone who can explain the meaning of hospitality to the upstarts while also having enough creative entrepreneurial experience to fit in at a startup.

New year, new you — at least that's what a lot of us are telling ourselves this week now that the holidays are over, and so are our days of gluttony (or so we believe). And since we're all collectively tackling that perennial New Year's resolution to get healthier, now is as good a time as any to take a closer look at how hotel fitness and wellness is evolving.

What will be really interesting is how Hilton proceeds as a new asset-light company, and one with a new major stakeholder by the end of the first quarter: China's HNA Group, the same new owner of Carlson Hotels.

Although much focus as of late has been on Airbnb's ability to become a new kind of online travel agency, we shouldn't lose sight of the fact that it continues to be a major disruptor to the traditional hotel industry, too.

We make our predictions for some of the biggest trends that will impact the hospitality industry and the overall guest experience.

At a time when hotel companies are investing so much into brand differentiation, their time may be better spent thinking as much or even more about the individual guests than brand swim lanes, suggests this new report from Deloitte.

Not many CEOs would spend Christmas evening engaging in hundreds of conversations with fans and critics alike — and on Twitter no less. But Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky is not your average CEO, and what he revealed in his Noel-time tweets gives us a much clearer understanding of where Airbnb is headed in 2017.

Will other hotels or more established travel companies follow suit?

We can appreciate Conrad's desire to be innovative in its approach to content marketing, as well as providing both useful service and inspiration for its guests. But we question whether these attempts have any actual staying power or impact.

We spoke to hoteliers from Viceroy, The Ritz-Carlton, Park Hyatt, Brandmark Collective, and Pendry Hotels to gain a better perspective into where the luxury hospitality market is headed.