Editor's Note: Some linked articles may be behind subscription paywalls.
1. Wildfires rage in southern Europe
Extreme temperatures have fueled wildfires in southern Europe, where thousands of firefighters have struggled to contain the fires due to high winds, the New York Times reports. There have been six recorded deaths from the fires, with dozens more injured. Spain, Greece, Turkey, Montenegro and Albania are the countries dealing with wildfires.
Greece has deployed around 5,000 firefighters, 62 aircraft and several Coast Guard vessels to attend to the fires. Vassilis Vathrakoyiannis, Greece's fire service spokesman, said strong winds were blowing on the island of Chios, a popular tourist destination.
2. NYC hiring slows in first half of 2025
Employers in New York City significantly reduced hiring in the first half of 2025, including in the hospitality sector, the New York Times reports. During the first half of the year, there were only 956 private-sector jobs added — over the same timeframe in 2024, companies hired 66,000 workers.
“The New York City economy has gone sideways so far this year,” said Mark Zandi, the chief economist of Moody’s Analytics. “New York is a leading indicator, and the flattening of employment is now showing up nationally.”
A survey of 300 hospitality establishments by the New York City Hospitality Alliance found that the majority of them reported sales under expectations last quarter, and about half of the respondents said they were pessimistic about business improving in the third quarter.
3. Hotel revenue managers retain prudent pricing strategies
It's been a difficult demand environment, but hotel revenue managers have overall done a solid job of doing what they can to ensure their pricing strategies are the right ones, Priya Chandnani, senior vice president of sales, revenue and distribution strategy at Sage Hospitality, said on the CoStar News Hotels podcast.
"I think my favorite takeaway from today — and I think we should all do this in hospitality, we've learned this a number of times before — is to continue to hold on that pricing," she said. "Continue to hold on rate. We've seen this movie before. We've read this book before. Dropping rate does not trigger demand."
4. Air Canada to cancel flights ahead of potential labor strike
Air Canada will begin a gradual cancellation of flights on Wednesday as Canada's largest airline faces a potential flight attendant strike starting on Saturday, the Associated Press reports. The union representing about 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants issued a 72-hour strike notice on Wednesday.
The union's main sticking points are around "poverty wages" and unpaid labor when planes aren't in the air, the AP reports. Customers who have their flights canceled are eligible to receive a full refund.
“We regret the impact a disruption will have on our customers, our stakeholders and the communities we serve,” Air Canada CEO Michael Rousseau said in a statement.
5. Kenyan activist protests Ritz-Carlton opening
Meitamei Olol Dapash, director of the Institute for Maasai Education, Research and Conservation, filed a lawsuit in Kenyan court against Ritz-Carlton, Marriott, developer Lazizi Mara Limited and Kenyan officials to protest the imminent opening of Ritz-Carlton's new safari lodge in Kenya's Maasai Mara reserve this Friday, Reuters reports.
Dapash argues that the lodge obstructs a crucial migration corridor between Maasai Mara and Tanzania's Serengeti. Migration allows wildebeest to find food and maintain genetic diversity among herds, the news outlet reports.
Marriott said in a statement that it was committed to respecting the environment, and the developer received the proper approvals.