Unrest in the Gulf, Paris and Southeast Asia puts autumn and winter bookings to the test

Operators say Saudi strikes are spilling into Gulf tourism. The manager of Six Senses Zighy Bay reports almost no international guests since February, with business mostly local and last-minute.

For advisors with winter Gulf or Oman clients, the commercial risk is cancellations, insurance exclusions and tightening government advisories. Check supplier cancellation terms and travel-insurance coverage now, and have alternates ready for clients who want warm-weather winter travel. Accor has also flagged the Middle East as a reason for caution in its outlook, which suggests the softness is not confined to one property.

Accor is building caution into its outlook over unrest in France, which accounts for 23% of its room revenue. Condé Nast Traveler is fielding the question of whether Paris is safe to visit amid the protests.

For Paris-bound clients, the practical steps are to favor flexible rates, confirm cancellation windows at palace hotels, and keep an eye on the neighborhoods where protests are concentrated. Accor's caution is a signal of demand risk in France, not a sign that Paris is closed.

Southeast Asian haze is hitting a Malaysian tourism year that was already flat. Inbound operators report November cancellations, and more than 2,600 Indonesian domestic flights have been disrupted.

Advisors with Bali, Singapore or Malaysia itineraries, including stays at Aman and Capella properties, should check air-quality exposure, build flexibility into domestic flight connections and confirm insurance coverage. Clients with outdoor-led programs are the most exposed.

Wyndham is giving AI booking agents a direct path to its rates and availability, part of a push for direct bookings. Commentary alongside it expects the token costs of AI travel agents to eventually appear in hotel commissions.

This is still an early signal and Wyndham is not an ultra-luxury brand. But it points to a new channel that could bypass advisors or reprice commissions, so watch how luxury groups respond and keep your own commission terms in view.

LHW's October additions include the Bensley-designed, 21-villa Pemako Punakha in Bhutan, Le Graal near the Dolomites in Cortina, and Hemingways Nairobi, the collection's first hotel in Kenya.

That gives advisors new bookable inventory in three markets: a design-led Bhutan option, a Cortina base for winter clients, and a Nairobi stay that can anchor Kenya safari itineraries. Separately, Global Hotel Alliance is adding Far East Hospitality's 26 hotels, effective early 2027. The 6,212 rooms across Singapore, Malaysia and Japan are mostly upscale, but they widen points-earning options for GHA DISCOVERY clients.

Crerar Hotels' collection of 10 Scottish country-house properties, including Dunkeld House and Fonab Castle, is on the market for £90 million. It could be sold whole or in sub-portfolios.

The properties are not ultra-luxury, but advisors who sell the Highlands should watch for ownership or branding changes and for any renegotiation of commission and rate agreements.

New York City will end horse-drawn carriage rides by 2028. The Central Park experience often appears in private New York itineraries.

Advisors should start lining up replacement experiences for carriage-ride requests, and expect a rush of final-season demand until the ban takes effect.