Key trends: What’s next for UAE hotels in 2025?

Following our 2024 UAE Hospitality Report, our experts took a deeper dive into the data to better understand the key trends shaping the upcoming year. These predictions can help hotels strike the perfect balance between delivering an exceptional guest experience and ensuring smooth operational processes.

After surveying over 1,057 hotel guests living in the UAE and 401 local hotels, here are the key trends our experts believe will continue to dominate in 2025:

1. A seamless booking experience is non-negotiable.

2. Automation continues to rise.

3. Self-service could become the new norm.

It’s no secret that hotels are always under pressure to provide a seamless and enjoyable experience during a guest’s stay. However, these expectations now extend to the entire journey, starting with the booking process. The booking experience has become a key factor in a guest’s decision when selecting a hotel, especially for those currently residing in the UAE.

Let’s talk numbers

• 63% of UAE guests cancel bookings because they can’t pay in their preferred way, compared to 37% globally.

• 64% of UAE guests prioritize a seamless experience, from booking to check-out, compared to 58% globally.

• 92% of UAE guests have a specific online payment method preference, compared to 68% globally.

What do these stats tell us?

• Digital-first interactions will dominate: As 64% of UAE guests already prioritize seamless check-in and check-out processes, we predict this number will grow significantly as technology becomes further integrated into daily operations.

• Frustration with limited payment options won't disappear: Hotels that fail to offer a variety of payment methods, including digital wallets and BNPL, might lose out to more tech-savvy competitors.

Whether on a global or local scale, automation has proven its benefits in optimizing operations, yet full adoption in UAE hotels remains limited. This is often due to the complexity of legacy systems, which create obstacles to integrating innovative solutions. However, our prediction shows that more hotels in the UAE will embrace automation despite these challenges, allowing staff to manage their workload more efficiently without compromising the guest experience.

Let’s talk numbers

• According to the surveyed hotels in the UAE, it takes on average 8 hours weekly to do reconciliation.

• 28% of hotels in the UAE said the amount of invoices their business receives isn’t manageable because they don't have enough staff

• 40% of UAE hotels currently face operational challenges due to manual reconciliation tasks

What do these stats tell us?

The trend toward automation will continue to gain momentum as hotels strive to streamline operations. Ignoring the push for more automation will only hinder a hotel's efficiency, leaving them with two options as they grow: either hire more staff to handle manual tasks or risk falling behind in operational effectiveness.

In hospitality, there’s a unique value placed on warm, face-to-face interactions. These physical exchanges set the tone for how guests perceive their stay from the very first impression. However, for younger, tech-savvy generations, there’s a growing preference for minimal interaction. Automated check-ins, mobile apps, and kiosks are increasingly seen as attractive features, as many younger guests prefer human-free experiences to be an integral part of hotel operations.

Let’s talk numbers

• 29% of Millennials in the UAE prefer human-free check-ins, compared to 21% globally.

• 28% of UAE guests said that lengthy check-in and check-outs stops them from rebooking with the same hotel.

What do these stats tell us?

• Human-free check-ins and other ways of self-service contactless payments  will rise dramatically: While only 29% of Millennials in the UAE currently prefer human-free check-ins, we think this number will climb as more hotels introduce services like payments through wearable devices as a niche experience, differentiating it from competitors. 

• Mobile-first solutions will take center stage: Guests will increasingly expect mobile apps and kiosks for room bookings, check-ins, and services, mirroring the trend seen in retail and travel industries.

Even though we call these “hospitality trends,” they are actually part of a broader evolution driven by technological advancements in this industry. Guest expectations are changing, and hotels must keep pace to stay competitive. Guests no longer want to wait in lines to get what they want, and back-end processes need to seamlessly support this demand for instant, effortless service.

Whether it’s through offering a frictionless booking experience, adopting automation to streamline operations, or integrating self-service solutions, hotels in the UAE must be ready to meet the expectations of the modern guest in 2025. By embracing these trends, hotels can not only enhance guest satisfaction but also optimize their operations for long-term success.