兼并收购在2015年将成为酒店业的主要话题，大型酒店集团为了实现业务增长很有可能会去收购其它的酒店集团，同时它们也有可能成为其它大型酒店集团的收购目标。
展望2015年，据欧洲权威酒店业资讯机构预计：由于现在的经济预期比较乐观，酒店客房需求量也在一天一天增长，欧洲许多地区都产生了对酒店客房未来的需求，所以现在是开发、收购或投资酒店的绝佳时机。欧洲酒店市场预计未来几年仍将保持这种增长势头。
自然增长对于酒店企业来讲是一种缓慢的扩张，所以要想快速成长就必须寻找那些能够实现跃升的机会，典型的做法是收购其它酒店企业，通过规模经济创造更多价值。对于全球性的酒店公司，现在的形势就是要么去收购其它公司，要么被其它公司收购。
虽然伦敦、巴黎、罗马和阿姆斯特丹这样的大城市仍然是酒店投资的主要区域，但像巴塞罗那、汉堡、慕尼黑这样的城市也已经成为酒店投资新的“热点”。而雅典、布达佩斯、基辅、维也纳和华沙等城市目前则不适合进行酒店开发。
商务和休闲需求预计增长的城市，以及房地产投资预计可获得高回报的城市被列为“热点城市”，目前的市场形势使投资者可以在欧洲四大旅游目的地之外寻找更多的投资机会。
然而，目前市场上酒店客房供应不足却意味着酒店交易量远低于2005-2007年的水平。
预计未来将有来自保险公司、对冲基金、主权财富基金、高净值个体投资者、私募股权投资基金的大量新投资者进入酒店投资市场。预计今年大宗的酒店投资交易将主要由私募股权投资基金完成。
酒店客房供应不足、需求增长以及盈利预期意味着在可预见的未来酒店的价值将持续攀升。
Looking to the year ahead, according to an European authoritative consultant agency, now is a good time to develop, acquire or invest in hotels as economic prospects are encouraging with demand for hotel rooms increasing and many parts of Europe having capacity for further rooms.
As conditions in Europe's hotel markets continue to improve, values are mostly on the rise and are expected to continue to do so for the next few years.
Organic growth is a relatively slow way to expand, so hotel companies will be looking for opportunities to make quantum leaps, typically by buying other hotel companies and driving more value through economies of scale. Global hotel companies either have to acquire to maintain their growth strategy, or be prepared to be someone else's target for acquisition. If you're not dining, your dinner.
While the major cities of London, Paris, Rome and Amsterdam remain prime investment locations, hotel investors are also looking at cities such as Barcelona, Hamburg, and Munich, which are highlighted as development 'hot-spots'. Cities to be avoided for new hotel development currently include Athens, Budapest, Kiev, Vienna and Warsaw.
The hot cities are those which we expect to see an increase in both business and leisure demand and where real estate investors are likely to see a bigger return. It's encouraging that investors are now looking beyond Europe's four most popular destinations.
However, a lack of available hotels on the market means that hotel transaction volumes are currently well below the levels experienced in 2005-2007.
We are seeing a number of new investors in the sector including insurance companies and hedge funds, which together with sovereign wealth funds, high net worth individuals and private equity firms ensure there is keen interest. Indeed, it is likely that the major hotel transactions this year will be dominated by private equity buyers.
Lack of availability as well as improved demand and profitability should mean that hotel values continue to rise for the foreseeable future.