DACH Hospitality Benchmark 2026: Hotels Recognize Their Revenue Potential but Rarely Tap It
New Smart Host study of 87 hotels reveals why many hotels fall short of their own goals in guest loyalty, CRM and direct revenue.
Hotels in the DACH region increasingly recognize the economic value of long-term guest relationships, yet many still fail to put that potential into practice. That's the key finding of the new Guest Value Report 2026, published by owner-managed hotel CRM provider Smart Host together with hotels from Germany, Austria, Switzerland and South Tyrol. Over six weeks, 87 hotels were surveyed on strategic priorities, ancillary revenue, KPIs and barriers to growth.
The most striking result: 56 percent of hoteliers see guest loyalty and repeat guests as their biggest untapped revenue opportunity. At the same time, this very topic ranks last on their list of priorities for the next twelve months.
For the study's publishers, this is a central strategic contradiction within the industry. "Hotels today know exactly where their economic levers are. But many still struggle to act on that knowledge," says Julian Leitner, founder and CEO of Smart Host.
Ambitions are ahead of operations
The study shows an industry in transition. Classic KPIs such as occupancy and rate optimization still dominate day-to-day business, but the focus is shifting toward direct bookings, loyalty and guest value. 55 percent of the hotels surveyed are already actively working to generate more direct bookings, and just as many are investing more in guest loyalty and repeat stays.
Operational reality often hasn't caught up yet:
44 percent of hotels want to increase revenue per guest, but only 10 percent actively measure it.
45 percent don't track TRevPOR (Total Revenue per Occupied Room) at all.
40 percent see the greatest ancillary revenue potential before arrival, yet 81 percent of ancillary revenue is generated during the stay.
According to the report, the pre-arrival phase, one of the most valuable moments for guest communication, is still clearly underused.
"Measure first, then optimize. If you don't know your TRevPOR, you're optimizing in the dark. But more software doesn't solve a process problem. That's why guest loyalty belongs in first place, not fourth," adds Timm Heeg, Chief Revenue Officer at Smart Host.
The biggest barriers are internal
According to the study, the causes lie less in the market and more in internal structures. Lack of time and lack of processes are each named by 47 percent of respondents as the biggest barriers to growth, well ahead of lack of demand (32 percent) and staff shortages (14 percent). Only 14 percent of hotels have clearly defined and regularly evaluated processes for managing ancillary revenue. With rising distribution costs and growing margin pressure, Smart Host expects revenue per guest to become even more strategically important.
The study makes one thing clear: for many hotels, the biggest growth lever now lies in their own processes. The full Guest Value Report 2026 is available as a free download.
