AI Adoption in European Hotels Stalls Amid Barriers

While interest in artificial intelligence is growing among European hotels, actual adoption remains limited and uneven. A recent survey by the University of Applied Sciences of Western Switzerland Valais (HES-SO Valais-Wallis), part of the national research project Resilient Tourism, shows a gap between intention and implementation. Among the 1,500 hotels surveyed across Austria, Germany, France, Greece, Italy, and Switzerland, 68% said AI could help with reservations, 62% with marketing, 51% with customer relationship management, and 49% with data analysis. Despite this optimism, only 41% of hotels are currently using AI, while 43% have yet to adopt any AI tools.

Most AI usage is concentrated in guest-facing and easily integrated solutions. About 74% of hotels using AI rely on content generation tools like ChatGPT or Gemini. Online review analysis and dynamic pricing systems are being used by 44% and 42% of hotels, respectively. However, adoption drops sharply when it comes to more complex tools such as chatbots (31%), facial recognition (2%), robotics (3%), and waste analytics (8%), indicating a reluctance to embrace infrastructure-heavy technologies.

The report attributes this hesitation to several key factors, including limited knowledge of available AI options (39%), high setup costs (35%), technical complexity (34%), and lack of in-house technical expertise (32%). These findings are echoed in Booking.com’s latest European Accommodation Barometer, which found 53% of respondents cited lack of technical skills as a barrier to AI adoption.

Concerns were also raised at HITEC 2025 in Indianapolis, where industry experts discussed skepticism about AI, hype fatigue, and the fragmented nature of the hotel sector. Data privacy concerns, integration issues, and questions about the return on investment further complicate the landscape.

Still, hotels that have adopted AI rate its benefits positively, averaging a score of 6.6 out of 10. The HES-SO Valais-Wallis report describes the current moment as a shift from the “curiosity phase” to the “operational anchoring phase” of AI in hospitality. Hotels are experimenting but not yet scaling their implementations. To move forward, the report suggests that tech vendors must focus on building AI into actionable workflows that address core challenges like market volatility, labor shortages, and guest communication.

The survey reinforces the belief that AI adoption will not follow a one-size-fits-all path. According to Sabre Hospitality President Scott Wilson, the key lies in identifying impactful use cases and building solutions around them. Smaller hotels will need simple, plug-and-play tools and training, while larger groups must focus on data governance and internal change management. Midsize hotels, as the report notes, are often caught in the middle, dealing with outdated systems and lacking the resources to fully scale.

As European hotels navigate this transitional phase, the need for tailored AI strategies and practical solutions will determine how widely and effectively the technology takes root in the hospitality sector.

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AI Adoption in European Hotels Stalls Amid Barriers

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