2026 will be defined by two forces: frictionless travel experiences and the industry’s struggle to keep up with AI driven change. The hotel industry needs to move from fragmentation to a unified system, but the speed of AI innovation is creating both opportunities and uncertainty.
Biometrics bonanza
The 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup will be one of the defining global travel and hospitality events of the year. This edition, from 11 June to 19 July, will be the largest ever staged, with 48 teams and 104 matches played across three countries: the United States (11 cities), Canada (2 cities), and Mexico (3 cities). Visitor estimates range from 5 to 6 million with a significant proportion coming from overseas. Host cities can expect a sizeable economic boost.
The US has rolled out new biometric and social media screening requirements for international travellers in the run up to the World Cup. The new requirements are controversial, and critics believe they could deter visitors and conflict with the tournament’s welcoming spirit.
Elsewhere, biometric technology is receiving an altogether more positive reception. Dubai has announced the citywide introduction of a one-time contactless hotel guest check-in solution.
In a press release, His Highness Sheikh Hamdan said: “We are not only enhancing the visitor journey, but also strategically positioning Dubai for sustained tourism growth.”
The biometric and digital check-in allows guests to upload their IDs and biometrics once via mobile, complete all formalities before arrival, and skip in-person check-in at participating hotels. Data remains valid until the ID expires, meaning faster contactless check-in on subsequent visits, further enhancing the visitor experience for repeat guests.
Voicebots make a comeback
As biometrics reshape the arrivals experience, another guest facing technology is evolving. Voicebots have had a chequered record in hospitality. Some high-profile brands stepped back from AI voice ordering, especially at the drive-in. McDonald’s ended a pilot with IBM in 2024 and more recently, Taco Bell pulled the brakes after one customer appeared to crash the system by ordering 18,000 cups of water.
Still, such episodes have not deterred others, and AI phone answering technology is making greater inroads in hospitality.
US seafood chain Red Lobster is using SoundHound’s technology that can answer multiple calls at the same time and answer common questions about menus, times and locations. The system takes phone orders for takeout and inputs them directly into Red Lobster’s point-of-sale system.
Already available to its US customers, AI voice ordering is among several new services the restaurant EPOS platform Square is bringing to the UK from February 2026.
Nestor Stay, a collection of 13 London hotels and short-term rentals, is another business trying out AI voice agents. Group head of operations Javier Llorente said: “The voice agent can take a thousand calls at the same time, so the three human agents might be busy, but the AI agent deals with the rest.”
Convergence and convenience
Voicebots are one example of operators trying to keep up with demand. But the bigger story in 2026 is not about individual tools. It’s about the industry’s push toward simplification and convergence.
Custódio Barreiros, Founder & CEO, EIP MGT, commented: “The average hotel operates 20-40 different technology platforms. Expect CIOs to invest significantly in vendor consolidation. The focus will shift from ‘what new tool can we add?’ to ‘how do we create an integrated ecosystem where guest data flows seamlessly, staff aren't logging into multiple systems, and technology investments actually communicate with each other?’”
We will likely see more consolidation in the name of convenience at all levels during 2026. There is growing evidence that the age of multiple apps is coming to an end.
In daily life, will we still subscribe to several TV streaming services, or will AI provide a new solution? Will a super app emerge? WeChat in China is already a prime example of a multifunctional app essential for everyday life. Convenience points towards the bundling of services. Since May 2025, Airbnb not only offers accommodations and experiences, but also haircuts, beauty, wellness, and catering.
“At both a professional and personal level, we no longer want to deal with 50 apps and the replacement for those 50 apps will be a single AI solution that does it all for you,” reckoned John Burns, president, Hotel Technology Consultants.
Booking hotels within AI
Booking hotels directly within AI chatbots like ChatGPT will become more commonplace in 2026. This is problematic for hotels because AI chooses the more costly OTA channels over brand.com hotel websites. What action are hotel companies taking in the face of this distribution disruption?
Model Context Protocol (MCP) is a standardised framework that enables AI to communicate effectively with data sources, such as hotel inventory. Burns commented: “We may put MCP in each one of our websites, and think that’s good, although it may be a whole lot more difficult than that. There’s still a lot of discussion about what format does AI want our data in? Why is AI going to Reddit rather than Marriott.com?”
A recent study found that, in terms of citations, ChatGPT refers to Wikipedia and Reddit more than any other specific websites.
Standardisation
In spite of MCP, interfaces between AI and the hotel industry are fractured and fragmented, said Burns: “It’s a mess and something is going to sort it out.”
“I’ve talked to a lot of hotels about whether it makes sense to try to come up with a uniform singular response, something like Cisco’s Ultra Switch 25 years ago which was built to allow hotels to talk to GDS like Sabre and Travelport,” he added.
Again, a dominant standard or middleware layer will need to emerge to deal with AI to hotel connectivity, or the industry will continue struggling with fragmentation. The solution could take several forms: an ‘AI switch’ that sits between PMS/CRS and AI systems, an industry standard like HTNG 2.0 but enforced, or a dominant vendor creating a de facto standard.
Pace of change
Major hotel brands have taskforces looking at direct booking within AI but they are acting alone and without the larger and concentrated resources of the OTAs. They are also acting within a rapidly changing tech landscape.
“Three months ago, I didn’t know what MCP was,” said Burns. “Now it’s in every conversation, but it’s almost being eclipsed by the phrase A2A [agent to agent]. So, I worry that A2A, or its successor in three months’ time, may render our current thinking obsolete.”
If the prospect of AI disrupting distribution is worrying, then hoteliers do have options. One, practiced by many successful hotels, would be not to accept OTA or AI bookings.
The fight for hospitality’s soul
And if AI and consolidation point towards a sterile digital world of sameness, then it’s worth remembering that, at the same time, the physical and experiential side of hospitality is constantly reinventing itself with new brands, new concepts, and human creativity.
As a final thought, Barreiros said: “Technology in 2026 won't be about what's technically possible. It will be about what preserves hospitality's soul. Properties viewing AI as cost-cutting will deploy it poorly and damage guest experience. Those viewing AI as elevating team capabilities will achieve both operational efficiency and service excellence.”
By Ben Walker, Questex
