New research from Global Hotel Alliance (GHA) has unveiled three defining trends shaping the future of hotel loyalty – simplicity, personalisation, and experiences over discounts. Independent hotel loyalty programmes that deliver on these fronts are gaining ground on their larger counterparts, preferred for their clarity, flexibility, and meaningful travel experiences over traditional models built around rigid points systems.

Robust returns and sustained momentum reflect the growing impact of its award-winning loyalty programme, GHA DISCOVERY, which now commands a 30-million-strong global membership. Total hotel stay revenues reached US$746 million in Q1 2025, up 15% on Q1 2024, while total room nights picked up 12% and the Average Daily Rate (ADR) across its portfolio of 850 hotels nudged up 3%.

Global Hotel Alliance has announced significant growth of its Green Collection. Since its launch in March 2023, the collection has expanded by 150%, growing from 189 hotels, resorts and palaces to 472. This rapid expansion underscores the increasing importance of sustainability in the hospitality industry.

Two UAE-based hospitality powerhouses have come together in a milestone partnership as Rotana, one of the Middle East’s leading hotel management companies, joins Global Hotel Alliance – the world’s largest alliance of independent hotel brands.
This strategic move positions Global Hotel Aalliance among the top hospitality groups in the UAE, with an impressive portfolio of around 70 hotels offering an unrivalled choice of upscale and luxury hotels to the 30 million members of its GHA DISCOVERY loyalty programme in this popular tourism destination.

As India’s luxury travel sector experiences unprecedented growth, Global Hotel Alliance and two of its hotel brands – The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts and Minor Hotels – have reaffirmed their commitment to the market, unveiling new initiatives to elevate the country’s high-end hospitality landscape.

The Hotel Management Company “Adeera” a PIF company which is set to be Saudi Arabia’s national hospitality champion has joined the Global Hotel Alliance (GHA), the world’s largest alliance of independent hotel brands. Through participation in the award-winning GHA DISCOVERY loyalty program, Adeera will connect with a global network of international travelers, offering exclusive experiences and benefits under its brand portfolio in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This partnership represents a significant step in Adeera’s mission to showcase the warmth and generosity of Saudi hospitality while expanding its international presence in the luxury travel market.

Global Hotel Alliance (GHA), proudly celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2024 by delivering its best-ever results. The milestone year saw record-breaking performance across all key metrics, further establishing GHA’s position as a leader in the global hospitality landscape. Total revenue generated by the GHA DISCOVERY loyalty programme soared to $2.7 billion, a 16% increase from the previous $2.3 billion record set in 2023. Repeat stay revenue climbed 15% to $1.6 billion (up from $1.4 billion in 2023), highlighting the growing engagement of loyal members, while cross-brand stay revenue surged by nearly one-third, reaching $370 million (up from $289 million in 2023), driven by members staying in a different brand than where they enrolled.

Cinnamon Hotels and Resorts, a leading hospitality brand renowned for its exceptional properties across Sri Lanka and the Maldives, has joined the Global Hotel Alliance (GHA), the world’s largest alliance of independent hotel brands. It will see the Sri Lankan-based group’s 17 hotels and resorts join GHA’s diverse portfolio of more than 850 hotels across 45 brands in 100 countries, offering the 30 million members of its award-winning loyalty programme,

GHA DISCOVERY, an even greater choice of authentic properties in popular destinations.

•  Japan and Thailand holiday favourites for second year running, followed by China, Australia, New Zealand and Italy

• Business travel makes a comeback (13% increase in planned business trips globally), led by travellers in China, Germany and Spain

• Asia and Europe dominate business and leisure travel plans for 2025

• Longest vacations planned by travellers in China, Thailand, and the UAE

• Relaxing and unwinding overtakes exploring new destinations as #1 travel motivation

• Friends and family recommendations remain the leading source of inspiration

• Loyalty platforms still the top tool for hotel search and booking

The world’s leading hotels, destinations, airlines, and airports, as voted for by the 28 million members of the GHA DISCOVERY loyalty programme, were revealed at the 18th edition of the prestigious ULTRAs awards ceremony, held in London on Thursday 7th November 2024.

GHA has revealed key insights into the 2025 travel preferences of UK holidaymakers at a media event before this year’s Ultimate Luxury Travel Related Awards (ULTRAs) in London. The survey, which drew insights from the 28 million members of the GHA DISCOVERY loyalty programme, including more than 1.5 million based in the UK, outlines the travel trends set to shape the industry in the coming year, reinforcing the UK’s status as a powerhouse in global travel.

Continuing the growth story of the first half of the year, total hotel revenues rose 15% to reach US$689.0 million in Q3, with year-to-date revenues now at $2.0 billion. Q3 growth was fuelled by a 16% increase in room nights, combined with a small uptick in average rate.

Four new prestigious regional hotel brands have joined the fast-growing Global Hotel Alliance, expanding its presence in some of the world’s most popular tourism destinations. Unike Hotels in Norway, Sunway Hotels & Resorts in Malaysia, Andronis in Greece, and Paramount Hotels in the UAE add 32 properties to the world’s largest alliance of independent hotel brands, enriching its diverse portfolio with a mix of city and resort hotels that cater to the preferences of a wide range of travellers.

GHA and Regent Seven Seas Cruises have expertly created The Concierge Collection – a range of multi-day land programmes for those luxury cruisers who wish to extend their sailing, which could see guests indulging in delicious cocktails on a rooftop bar at Anantara Palazzo Naiadi Rome Hotel or witnessing stunning sunsets in the Divani Apollon Palace & Thalasso in Athens, as well as visiting iconic attractions such as the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, or London’s Westminster Abbey.

Strong growth in hotel revenues, room nights, GHA DISCOVERY membership enrolments and redemptions of the loyalty programme’s DISCOVERY Dollars (D$) all took centre stage in Q2, reflecting increased appetite for stays and experiences across GHA’s diverse portfolio.

Global Hotel Alliance, the world’s largest alliance of independent hotel brands, revealed key 2024 Japanese travel and tourism trends at its global CEO conference today. Staged in Japan for the first time, the CEOs of more than 40 GHA hotel brands and media gathered at HOTEL GROOVE SHINJUKU in Tokyo to hear insights into the preferences and behaviours of Japanese travellers.

• Loyalty programme is the third most important factor when choosing a hotel, after hotel quality and location

• Hotel benefits valued more than discounts or points

• Room upgrades considered most important hotel benefit

• DISCOVERY Dollars (D$) as a rewards currency deemed more transparent and

  generous than traditional points

• GHA DISCOVERY is perceived as a luxury programme in the hotel loyalty space

● Over 220 hotels, resorts and palaces in the Green Collection are committed to creating a more sustainable future to protect the people and the planet

● 15% increase in the Green Collection hotel portfolio compared to 2023

● US$1 donation to charitable causes for every Green Collection hotel booking made via GHA DISCOVERY channels until 30 April 2024 

Global Hotel Alliance (GHA), the world’s largest alliance of independent hotel brands, celebrated its 20th anniversary this week in Berlin at the International Hospitality Investment Forum (IHIF), where the then start-up was first announced in 2004.

Global Hotel Alliance (GHA), the world’s largest alliance of independent hotel brands, has started its 20th anniversary year on a high note, reporting robust Q1 results across all key performance indicators.

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Exceeding expectations, total hotel revenues for Q1 2024 jumped to US$649 million, up 17% compared to Q1 2023, while total room nights picked up 20%, and the Average Daily Rate (ADR) across its portfolio of 800 hotels nudged up 2%.

“We are thrilled to announce the addition of Cheval Collection to our alliance, marking our first venture into serviced apartments. Travellers are seeking larger accommodation options and now they can enjoy recognition and rewards across a greater selection of properties and destinations, including Edinburgh which we are excited to add.”

Chris Hartley, CEO of GHA.

Hosted by GHA and the alliance’s major hotel brand in India, The Leela Palaces, Hotels and

Resorts, the event brought together industry leaders and innovators to discuss emerging trends,

challenges, and opportunities in the rapidly growing market.

Global Hotel Alliance, the world’s largest alliance of independent hotel brands, is expanding its award-winning loyalty programme, GHA DISCOVERY, to unique vacation homes through a new partnership with Plum Guide. This unique partnership signifies a milestone for both luxury brands and a significant expansion for GHA into the vacation home sector, while it also represents Plum Guide's first foray into a loyalty programme that will offer rewards to customers across a broader range of accommodation options.

Lore Group, an international hospitality company that designs, transforms, manages and operates hotels, restaurants and bars across Europe and the United States, has joined Global Hotel Alliance (GHA), the world’s largest alliance of independent hotel brands.

Total room revenue of the GHA DISCOVERY loyalty programme, shared by all brands and their

collective 800 hotels, reached US$2.3 billion, surpassing 2022 by more than US$1 billion. This reflects the growth and engagement of the loyalty member base, which crossed the 25 million mark in 2023 and achieved 2.7 million new member enrolments for the year compared to 1.6 million in 2022.

Japan and Thailand top the list, followed by Spain, Canada and Hawaii, a survey of its GHA

DISCOVERY loyalty programme members found, with the desire to try new destinations and

experiences a key motivation behind travel decisions

Recognising the best of the best in global travel, the ULTRAs is a must-attend yearly event

for the luxury travel and tourism elite, organised by Nick Perry, Chairman of multi-media

brand Ultratravel, with whom Global Hotel Alliance, the world’s largest alliance of

independent hotel brands and operator of award-winning loyalty programme GHA

DISCOVERY has a long-standing joint venture – Ultratravel Collection.

Robust Q3 results are proving a major contributor to GHA’s 2023 gains, with hotel revenues

41% higher than in Q3 2022 and room nights up 31% year-on-year for Q3. The total revenue

2023 YTD has hit US$1.7 billion, which is 101% higher than in 2022 YTD.

Regent Seven Seas Cruises® is the first cruise line to partner with the alliance and its award-winning loyalty program GHA DISCOVERY.

GHA DISCOVERY members will be rewarded for experiencing luxurious stays on land and at sea.

GHA has reported stronger-than-forecast H1 2023 results, with room revenue in its GHA DISCOVERY loyalty programme up a remarkable 122% year-on-year by the end of Q2. This new high point has been consistently building since November 2022, reflecting a sustained appetite for international stays at GHA’s diverse portfolio of 800 hotels across 40 brands in 100 countries, spanning dynamic city properties, idyllic resorts, nature-immersed retreats, and even luxury palaces.

Building on the momentum of 2022, the first three months of 2023 continued the strong growth trend, with repeat-stay room revenue and room nights at GHA’s 800 hotels across 40 brands in 100 countries back to 2019 highs since the start of the year and total revenue hitting more than US$550 million for the quarter.

The Freddie Awards are the longest-standing and most prestigious recognition in the travel loyalty industry. Over the years, tens of millions of votes have been cast to allow members to recognise the loyalty programmes they appreciate most. This year’s event garnered an impressive 9 million votes

UAE-headquartered Global Hotel Alliance, the world’s largest alliance of independent hotels brands, is staging its annual CEO conference in South Africa for the first time, with the leaders of its 40 hotel brands representing 800 hotels in 100 countries gathering at Sun International’s The Table Bay Hotel from April 12th to 14th to discuss the positive global travel industry outlook in 2023.

Green Collection features nearly 200 hotels from GHA DISCOVERY’s global portfolio. It empowers

GHA DISCOVERY’s 24 million members to make conscious and responsible travel choices.

Global Hotel Alliance to make a US$5 donation to charitable causes for every Green Collection hotel booking made via GHA DISCOVERY channels before 30th April 2023.

Room revenue generated by the 23 million global members of the GHA DISCOVERY loyalty programme exceeded 2019 levels from mid-November onwards, driven by higher average daily rates (ADR), and soaring by 50% in the last two weeks of the year, while repeat stay room revenue was consistently ahead of 2019 levels from June onwards, up almost 80% by the end of 2022. Room nights, which had lagged behind earlier in the year, surpassed pre-pandemic levels by the end of Q4.

Launched this month, UK-based GLO is a global professional network of specialists in loyalty, rewards, consumer engagement and loyalty innovation, uniting companies across travel, hospitality, retail, finance as well as technology.

A recent survey of its GHA DISCOVERY loyalty programme members revealed that travel sentiment for the year ahead is extremely positive, with most respondents being comfortable with the thought of travelling internationally.

The favourite hotels, destination, airline and cruise line of the GHA DISCOVERY programme with 22 million global travellers were revealed at the 14th edition of the luxury travel awards ceremony, the ULTRAs, on Monday 31st October 2022.

GHA DISCOVERY's 22 million members can now access The Set Collection's iconic founding hotels as they are incorporated into the alliance's Ultratravel Collection and earn triple DISCOVERY Dollars when staying at these luxurious properties

Revenues generated by members of the GHA DISCOVERY loyalty programme during the first nine months of 2022 reached 84% of pre-pandemic levels at over US$900 million

GHA and its hotel brands support Boodles Boxing Ball to raise funds for Hope and Homes for Children

Luxury hotel group partners with GHA and joins loyalty programme GHA DISCOVERY, with their hotels becoming part of the alliance’s Ultratravel Collection

Hotel brands in the UAE and Maldives dominate revenues; spend per stay and average length of stay exceed pre-pandemic levels, and domestic stays bounce back to 2019 volumes

Newly relaunched GHA DISCOVERY takes home the prestigious '210 award' for Europe and Africa within the 'Programme of the Year' category for hotels

Global Hotel Alliance's loyalty programme encourages customers to stay in the collection's more than 500 hotels with more savings and perks to enjoy

Franck Kermarrec joins GHA as Chief Commercial Officer and Nicolas le Roux takes on new Head of Marketing and Digital Strategy role

CEOs of some of the world’s leading hotel groups, all members of Global Hotel Alliance (GHA), have made five bold travel predictions for 2022.

The introduction of the industry's first digital rewards currency, as part of the redesign of GHA DISCOVERY, will support the organic rebound of travel and hospitality in 2022

Global Hotel Alliance and ASMALLWORLD AG combine the strengths of GHA DISCOVERY, the largest loyalty programme for independent hotel brands and ASMALLWORLD's leading travel &lifestyle community

Global Hotel Alliance embraces consumer demand for more flexibility on how they earn and spend rewards, at home or away, with the redesign of GHA DISCOVERY and the introduction of the industry’s first digital rewards currency

The ‘living local’ trend has gained strong momentum in 2021, with travellers igniting their passion for rediscovering closer-to-home destinations and experiences, according to new data by Global Hotel Alliance

Multinational hotel operator with more than 360 hotels across 30 countries to merge its NH Rewards with GHA’s DISCOVERY loyalty programme

Sun International, Africa’s leading gaming and hospitality group, with properties in South Africa, Nigeria and Eswatini, will participate in the DISCOVERY loyalty programme, gaining access to a global customer base of 17 million members when they join the alliance later this year

Aimbridge Hospitality and Global Hotel Alliance partner to offer DISCOVERY, the world's largest loyalty program for independent hotels and brands, to a collection of Aimbridge's independent properties through their Evolution Hospitality division

A record year with seven new member brands joining the alliance and the DISCOVERY loyalty programme reaching 16 million members

Award winning hotels, resorts, residences and restaurants brand is set to bring more luxury, leisure and lifestyle choices to the 15 million members of the alliance’s DISCOVERY loyalty programme

Grand Hotel Heiligendamm on the Baltic Sea and Kempinski hotels in Singapore and Bali are the newest members of the luxury portfolio within Global Hotel Alliance

A curated collection of distinctive hotels is set to benefit from the global database of 15 million DISCOVERY members

FAUCHON L’Hotel Paris and Capella’s hotels in Düsseldorf, Sanya, Shanghai, Singapore and Bali are newest members

The world-renowned beach club and hotels and resorts brand is set to bring more luxury, leisure and lifestyle choices to the 15 million members of the alliance’s DISCOVERY loyalty programme

Greece’s most prominent, family-owned hotel group extends the alliance’s European footprint with seven luxury hotels

Award-winning beachfront properties in Mauritius and the Maldives offer more luxury resort experiences to the14-million DISCOVERY members

Five independent hotel groups, together with Oracle, now make up the alliance’s shareholders

The portfolio of award-winning properties set to integrate ahead of the launch of Capella Bangkok property later this year

Another strong year of growth, reinforced by new shareholdersand a rapidly-growing shared customer baseof nearly 14 million members

THE 2018 Ultras held in Dubai for first time. Luxury Travel Awards announced at glittering ceremony. Siam Kempinski Hotel Bangkok is recognised as “Ultratravel Collection Hotel of the Year"

Minor Hotels and Pan Pacific Hotels Group make strategic investments

Australia’s leading provider of contemporary accommodation strengthens presence of the alliance in Oceania and beyond

Dubai-based brand strengthens presence of the alliance in the Middle East and Indian Ocean

The power of collaboration and the excellent health of the independent sector revealed by strong performance of the multi-brand DISCOVERY loyalty programme

Singapore-based brand extends presence of the alliance in top resort destinations

Alila Hotels and Resorts and Corinthia Hotel London are recognised as luxury travel favourites

Minor Hotel Group’s fifth member brand further enriches the alliance with unique lodges and camps in iconic locations across Kenya and Tanzania

Hawaii-based Outrigger Resorts brings the rapidly growing alliance extended presence with premier beachfront resorts across the Pacific and Indian Ocean

Home-grown brand is pioneering Chinese luxury hospitality

Early members of the Ultratravel Collection seeing incremental business from the 6.1million of DISCOVERY members

Niccolo Chengdu, the new luxury brand’s first hotel will open in April

Exclusive group of lifestyle luxury hotels joins GHA, with several properties to become a part of the new Ultratravel Collection

Four resort hotels in California add to the alliance’s growing presence in North America

Travel Leaders Group and multi-media brand Ultratravel, announced today that four Corinthia hotels are to become members, as part of its upcoming launch.

Alliance now has 120 hotels in the Nordic region, making it one of the biggest players in that market