IHIF Berlin 2026: Investors seek new returns as geopolitical risks reshape the hotel sector
Berlin became the center this week of one of the most important gatherings of the European and Middle Eastern hotel industry, as the IHIF EMEA 2026 forum discusses how to redefine returns in a sector that in recent years has gone through a pandemic recovery, inflationary pressures, expensive sources of financing, and a new round of geopolitical tensions. At a time when markets are burdened by the war connected to Iran, disruptions in air traffic, and growing uncertainty in the region, investors, hotel groups, advisers, and financial institutions in Berlin are trying to answer a key question: can hospitality still deliver stable returns, and under what conditions.
The forum is being held from 23 to 25 March 2026 in Berlin’s InterContinental and Pullman hotels, and the organizers from Questex state that it brings together more than 2,500 participants, more than 700 investors, and capital represented through more than 581 billion dollars in assets under management. Such attendance shows that the hotel sector, despite pressure on spending and rising costs, remains one of the few real estate niches that still attracts a broad range of institutional capital. This year’s theme,
“Returns Redefined. Value Reimagined.”, was not chosen by accident: the message is clear that the market is no longer satisfied with the classic hotel revenue model, but is seeking new sources of value, from more flexible operating models to technological transformation and the blending of hotel business with other types of assets.
The sector is seeking resilience, but also a new investment logic
Unlike earlier cycles, when hotel investments were assessed largely through occupancy, average room rate, and location, the discussions in Berlin show that investors’ view today is significantly broader. Hotel properties are increasingly being seen as platforms that can generate revenue through multiple streams, from accommodation and gastronomy to branded residences, wellness, longer stays, and hybrid models that combine hospitality with the residential and “living” segment. The forum organizers therefore emphasize that hospitality is no longer just a classic hotel category, but an institutionally recognized asset class that also affects other segments of the real estate market.
Within such a framework, the message that the desired return can no longer be separated from the resilience of the business model is especially important. Investors in Berlin are not discussing only where capital will achieve the highest return, but also where that return will be most durable against political shocks, regulatory changes, fluctuations in travel demand, and technological disruption. This is particularly important for the markets of Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, where hotel growth is simultaneously linked to great tourism potential and serious risks, from war and security threats to fluctuations in energy and transport prices.
Gloria Guevara: tourism and hospitality remain among the most resilient sectors
Additional weight was given to the forum by Gloria Guevara, who this year returned to the helm of the World Travel & Tourism Council, WTTC, as President and Chief Executive Officer. Her participation in Berlin comes at a time when WTTC is strongly advocating a new investment phase of global tourism. At the beginning of March, the organization published an estimate according to which investments in travel and tourism in the world’s largest economies could reach 12.5 trillion US dollars by 2035, with an expected average annual demand growth of 3.3 percent.
The message that Guevara and WTTC are putting forward in such an environment is that the sector is not immune to crises, but it has proven its ability to recover and adapt. This is especially important in Berlin because the hotel industry is once again facing a test of external shocks. After tensions connected to Iran intensified in recent weeks, including threats to tourist and recreational locations and disruptions in traffic and security assessments, investors at the forum cannot ignore the fact that geopolitical risk is once again spilling directly into tourism and hospitality. In such circumstances, resilience is no longer an abstract concept, but an operational and financial category.
Iran, security, and the cost of uncertainty
The crisis connected to Iran is one of the important backdrops of the Berlin gathering. In recent months, Iran has been affected by serious internal unrest and repression of protesters, as reported by international human rights organizations, while aviation and security authorities have also monitored occasional air traffic restrictions and the broader security implications for the region. In the meantime, regional tensions sharpened further in March, and international news agencies also reported threats directed at tourist and recreational locations. For the hotel sector, such circumstances do not mean only a reputational or political problem, but a concrete business risk: a possible decline in bookings, more expensive insurance, more uncertain demand projections, and more difficult project financing in more sensitive markets.
This is precisely why the Berlin forum is not merely an industry gathering with optimistic messages about growth, but also a place where an attempt is being made to measure the cost of uncertainty. How large a discount does an investor seek for a project in a market exposed to geopolitical shock? How much greater is the value of an operator who can quickly adapt distribution, prices, and guest structure? And how flexible are the models that in stable years are presented as high-growth in reality? These are questions that may not be visible in promotional slogans, but they are precisely the ones that determine the tone of conversations between funds, banks, and hotel groups.
AI is no longer decoration, but a tool for margin
One of the most noticeable topics of the forum is artificial intelligence, but not in the form of general promises, rather as a question of direct impact on the cost structure and distribution of value in the industry. In the official IHIF programme, several discussions are devoted precisely to where AI truly improves investment decisions, operational efficiency, and hotel profitability. Particularly highlighted is the thesis that artificial intelligence is simultaneously changing three important points of the value chain: the way guests arrive at a booking, the way hotels manage prices, and the way platforms compete with traditional operators.
In practice, this means that for investors AI is no longer just a technological add-on that sounds modern, but a tool that can determine margin. If automated systems reduce dependence on intermediaries, improve revenue management, and predict demand more precisely, then AI directly affects cash flow and asset valuation. On the other hand, that same development increases pressure on owners and operators who are slow to introduce changes, because the market increasingly rewards passive reliance on traditional distribution channels less and less. Berlin thus opens a discussion on whether digital transformation will strengthen hotel independence or further concentrate power in the hands of the largest technology and platform players.
The hotel as a model for other types of assets
An important concept emerging at this year’s forum is the so-called “hotelising” spread of hospitality logic into other sectors. The organizers openly state that the hotel approach today affects the broader real estate market, including serviced living, student accommodation, senior living, branded residences, and other segments in which user experience, operational flexibility, and additional services are becoming the key to differentiation. In other words, the hotel is no longer seen only as a building with rooms, but as an operating system that can be replicated across a range of other products.
For investors, this is important because it broadens the field of possible strategies. In an environment where office real estate is under pressure, and classic retail models have long been seeking a new balance, hospitality and related “living” formats are increasingly being offered as an answer to the search for more active, service-oriented, and adaptable assets. However, the spread of hotel logic into other categories does not automatically mean lower risk. Such projects require stronger operational expertise, high-quality branding, and greater discipline in cost management, which is why investment increasingly relies on partnerships between capital and operators.
M&A, consolidation, and the return of major players
The forum programme also shows that the sector is preparing for a new phase of mergers, acquisitions, and consolidation. Discussions on M&A trends are focused on deal structures, execution risks, and strategic priorities that will shape hotel portfolios in 2026. This is not surprising. High interest rates, refinancing pressure, and the gap between sellers’ and buyers’ expectations have long slowed transactions, but as the market gradually adapts to the new cost of capital, expectations are growing that some postponed deals could be relaunched.
At the same time, major players are not seeking only volume, but also the quality of revenue. Portfolios with a clear brand, better operational efficiency, and a more resilient demand structure have a greater chance of attracting capital than properties that depend on one market or one type of guest. That is why Berlin this year looks like a place where the discussion is not only about whether to buy or sell, but also which types of assets will be the first to go through a new wave of revaluation. In that process, advisers, banks, and funds play a special role as they try to assess where “temporary weakness” ends and where a structural problem begins.
Why investor turnout is an important message to the market
The figures with which the organizers boast are not just a marketing framework, but also a signal to the market. More than 700 investors and more than 2,500 participants in total at a time of global instability send the message that interest in the hotel sector has not disappeared, but has been reshaped. Particularly indicative is the fact that a significant share of investors at the forum are attending for the first time, which points to a broadening of the capital base interested in this asset class. This does not mean that money is entering without hesitation, but it does mean that the sector still manages to impose a narrative of relative resilience and an opportunity for active value creation.
For Europe, this is also important from a broader economic perspective. Hotel investments are not isolated from urban development, jobs, transport, and local consumption. When the forum speaks about public-private cooperation and the role of hospitality in destination regeneration, it is also a political question: how cities and states attract capital while at the same time preserving public interest, sustainability, and social legitimacy. This part of the discussion is becoming more sensitive precisely at a time when local communities are increasingly questioning the cost of touristification, pressure on housing, and the relationship of large investments to the space in which they arise.
Berlin as a mirror of the industry’s new phase
This year’s IHIF EMEA should therefore also be read as a mirror of a broader change within the industry. On the one hand, the sector wants to show that it is robust enough to survive wars, political shocks, and changes in consumer habits. On the other hand, the very theme of the forum reveals that it is no longer enough to defend old business models. Return must now be redefined, and value reimagined through technology, operational discipline, diversification, and more precise risk management.
This is where the real significance of the Berlin gathering lies. It is not only about funds, hotel companies, and advisers gathering in the same city, but about the industry trying to agree on a new definition of what it considers a quality asset at all. At a time when threats no longer come only from the business cycle but also from geopolitics, security, and technological change, the hotel is no longer a passive real estate asset waiting for a good season. It becomes an active, management-intensive, and data-driven product. That is precisely why the discussions from Berlin go beyond the narrow hospitality sector: they show how global capital today measures resilience, how it values flexibility, and where it still sees room for growth, even when the world around it is changing rapidly.
Sources:- IHIF EMEA – official event website with information on the dates, location, number of participants, investors, and forum theme (link)
- Questex – press release on IHIF EMEA 2026, number of delegates, investors, speakers, and assets under management (link)
- IHIF EMEA Programme – official description of programme topics on investments, resilience, and long-term growth (link)
- IHIF EMEA Session – discussion on the impact of artificial intelligence on distribution, revenue management, and value in hospitality (link)
- IHIF EMEA Session – discussion on where AI truly improves investment decisions in hospitality (link)
- IHIF EMEA Session – overview of merger and acquisition trends in the hotel sector during 2026 (link)
- WTTC – announcement on Gloria Guevara’s return as President and Chief Executive Officer of WTTC (link)
- WTTC – estimate of investments in travel and tourism by 2035 presented in Berlin (link)
- Amnesty International – overview of protests in Iran and the authorities’ response at the beginning of 2026 (link)
- AP / PBS News – report on threats against tourist and recreational locations amid the escalation of the Iran-related conflict in March 2026 (link)
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