As summer winds down, the biggest hospitality and digital trends point toward one thing: people are becoming more intentional with how they spend their time, money and attention. Travelers are prioritizing meaningful experiences over packed itineraries, luxury is increasingly defined by wellness and convenience, and social platforms continue to evolve as AI reshapes the way consumers discover brands and content. From emerging hotel concepts to the latest platform updates, here are the stories shaping hospitality, travel and digital marketing this month.
TRAVEL AND HOSPITALITY TRENDS
New York City’s Restaurant Trends Extend Beyond the City
- The Infatuation’s latest trend report may focus on New York City, but many of its observations are already appearing in markets across the country. Affordable, high-quality cocktails are making a comeback, frozen boozy treats remain popular (hello, frozen margs), restaurants are embracing approachable comfort foods like burgers over overly complex dishes to appeal to weeknight and neighborhood crowds, and all-day coffee programs are helping restaurants drive traffic beyond traditional meal periods.
Enclave Hotels > Sightseeing
- Akin to plop vacations and calmcations, “enclave hotels” encourage travelers to skip sightseeing and enjoy the property’s self-contained worlds, where dining, wellness and culture turn the hotel into the destination. This seems to be an evolving trend with travelers seeking slower-paced travel and luxury properties adopting the all-inclusive model.
Six Travel Trends to Watch
- Industry leaders at this year’s World’s Best Summit identified several themes expected to shape travel over the next year. Inclusive and safe travel experiences remain a priority, while niche interests, from reading retreats to film-inspired travel and tattoo tourism, continue to drive bookings. Travelers are also seeking deeper local storytelling (Native stories, minority-owned businesses and hotels, local heroes, etc.), meaningful human connection, and luxury experiences that maximize their time, such as private transportation and curated excursions. Read the full report here.
Breakfast for Dinner
- According to this Business Insider story, breakfast restaurants continue to grow in popularity thanks to their affordability, approachable menus and role as community gathering places. Diners are gravitating toward familiar comfort foods that also align with today’s focus on protein and fiber, while breakfast cafés are increasingly serving as “third places” for casual meetings and social connection throughout the day.
Americans Haven’t Given Up on Plants — They’ve Given Up on ‘Plant-Based’
- The protein/fibermaxxing trends are playing a role in consumers still turning to plants, just not alternative meat products. Interest in whole foods as protein sources, like legumes, is up as younger generations turn their back on ultra-processed foods despite the plant-based label.
The Evolution of Skillcations
- Travelers aren’t just looking for experiences—they want to leave with new skills. From photography workshops to destination-inspired craft classes, “skillcations” continue to grow in popularity as travelers seek immersive programming that creates a stronger connection to the places they visit.
Reforming Hotel Amenities
- Luxury hotels are leveling up fitness amenities with the addition of reformer Pilates studios to their properties to keep up with the booming wellness trend. Properties like Soho Warehouse in Los Angeles view the amenity as an investment in their demographic, signaling that they know what’s current in the wellness space and will likely have other amenities that align with this audience’s interests.
DIGITAL UPDATES
Meta Still King
- According to new insights from Social Media Today, Meta platforms continue to dominate overall reach and usage, with Threads gaining on X, and Pinterest on the rise. YouTube remains more widely used than TikTok and there has been noticeable growth on Snapchat, Reddit and LinkedIn over the past year.
Digital Burnout and Impacts on Social Media Usage
- A new study from Incogni analyzes the dip in active participation on social media. Users are posting less, limiting who can view content, prioritizing mental health over social media and more. More than half of the survey respondents claim that maintaining a social media presence feels like work and many (47%) younger respondents have deleted an app because of stress and anxiety.
Tinder Partnership Opportunity
- The in-app Events feature is expected to expand to 26 cities by the end of September following a successful beta phase in Los Angeles. The feature connects users with local in-person events organized by independent parties. The idea was built on Gen Z’s desire for in person connection and the most popular events have been those centered around an activity (i.e., pottery).
Relevance Over Volume
- More content doesn’t necessarily mean better results. TikTok says the brands seeing the strongest performance are those that quickly learn what resonates with their audiences and consistently create valuable, relevant content—not simply those posting the highest volume.
Roost is Making Birds Cool Again
- A new app called Roost is taking the opposite approach to traditional social media. Designed around slower, more intentional communication, the platform delivers messages at the speed birds actually travel and encourages thoughtful interaction over endless scrolling.
LinkedIn Offers Tips for Driving Views
- A recent post highlights the importance of consistency on the platform, which considers posting regularity to be a key contributor of the algorithm. Posting at least 2-3 times per week, engaging with comments within the first hour of posting, repurposing top-performing comments in new formats, frame posts as a Q&A, keeping posts between 200-300 words and switching up content types regularly all impact overall reach.
ChatGPT Remains Most Popular AI Tool
- According to new insights from Pew Research, ChatGPT is the most popular AI chatbot in the U.S. and most Americans are using it to assist with search vs. image generation or professional needs. Additionally, the study found that 49% of adults are now using AI chatbots compared to 33% in 2024. While new platforms continue to gain popularity, 44% of respondents use Chat, followed by Gemini at 24%, Copilot at 1% and MetaAI at 14%. Additionally, a new SimilarWeb study found that most AI users turn to the tools in the initial stage of the shopping journey but return to more familiar search tools when comparing pricing. According to SimilarWeb, consumers who were recommended brands by ChatGPT are 2.5x more likely to visit that site over a competitor and spend nearly twice as long on a website recommended by the chatbot.
New Meta App Called Pocket
- The new AI app enables users to create games and tools that other users can play with and is a result of Meta’s team acquisition of Gizmo earlier this year. Written AI prompts build interactive experiences that are fed to a discovery feed. The app is currently in beta mode and only available in Brazil, but it’s likely a larger rollout is in the works.
View Count on Facebook Posts
- Some users are seeing view counts displayed on posts, but the number is currently only viewable by the creator. As likes, comments and follower counts continue to decline in relevancy as AI-powered recommendations become the main feed experience, Meta is prioritizing reach/views as a key metric.
