What's On Our Radar: JW Marriott Costa Elena Goes All-Inclusive, Imperial Hotel Kyoto and Christmas as a Destination
The Digital Concierge, edition of 9 October 2026
In brief: JW Marriott Costa Elena Resort & Spa has opened in Guanacaste, Costa Rica, as the first all-inclusive resort in JW Marriott's history, with 415 rooms, 17 pools and 15 restaurants and bars. Guanacaste's luxury line-up now runs from Four Seasons to a Ritz-Carlton Reserve and JW Marriott. The Imperial Hotel Kyoto opened in March 2026 inside the historic Yasaka Kaikan in Gion. Plus a new book on the future of luxury, the race to own the guest relationship as AI reshapes hotel search, and Christmas at the Princess in Scottsdale.
JW Marriott just opened its first all-inclusive anywhere in the world, and Guanacaste is suddenly the most watched stretch of coastline in the Americas. Kyoto has a new heritage address in the heart of Gion. And hotels are learning to sell Christmas as a reason to travel.
Here's what's worth knowing this week.
NEWS OF THE WEEK
JW Marriott Costa Elena: JW Marriott's first ever all-inclusive just opened - and the category will never be the same
JW Marriott Costa Elena Resort & Spa opened in October 2026 in Guanacaste, Costa Rica - the first all-inclusive JW Marriott anywhere in the world. 415 rooms above the bay of Playa El Jobo, 17 pools, 15 restaurants and bars, and rates from $900 per person per night, based on double occupancy.
The culinary programme is the statement. Leal offers a seven-course tasting journey inspired by the provinces of Costa Rica. Casado is a wood-fired coastal grill. LaGloria is a nine-seat root beer stand nodding to J. Willard Marriott's first business in Washington D.C. - the kind of brand storytelling detail that separates a genuinely considered product from an amenity list.
For the industry, the signal is clear. The all-inclusive category is being rebuilt from the top down, and the most prestigious names in hospitality are now leading it. The question is no longer whether luxury and all-inclusive are compatible. JW Marriott just answered that.
Sources: Travelweek, Caribbean Journal
DESTINATION OF THE WEEK
Guanacaste, Costa Rica: the Pacific coast that just became the most watched luxury destination in the Americas
Guanacaste has been quietly building one of the most compelling luxury hospitality ecosystems in Latin America for years. Nekajui, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, opened in 2025. Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica at Peninsula Papagayo has been setting the standard for more than two decades. And now JW Marriott has chosen Playa El Jobo for its most significant brand evolution in a generation.
The destination rewards that attention. Volcanic peaks, some of the most biodiverse coastline on earth, and a dry season that runs from December to April, making the months ahead one of the most reliably beautiful travel windows in the Western Hemisphere. Guanacaste is no longer a destination the luxury market is discovering. It is one the world's greatest hotel brands are racing to own.
Sources: The Tico Times, Four Seasons
HOTEL OF THE WEEK
Imperial Hotel Kyoto: the most considered new address in Japan's most extraordinary district
Inside the historic Yasaka Kaikan in Gion - the neighbourhood that has defined Kyoto's identity for centuries - the Imperial Hotel Kyoto opened on 5 March 2026 as one of the most carefully considered new addresses in Japan. 55 rooms, including heritage rooms in the preserved main building and tatami rooms in the new North Building, with interiors that draw directly from the architectural language of Gion rather than imposing something new upon it.
With Kyoto's autumn colour forecast to peak from late November, when the city is at its most extraordinary, this is the property that puts the experience in its proper context. The kind of address that makes you understand why people keep returning to this city.
BOOK OF THE WEEK
The Future of Luxury: An Evolution of Culture, Capital & Consciousness
Just announced this autumn and edited by Viet N'Guyen, this new academic text brings together leading industry contributors to examine how global luxury is being reshaped by generational shifts, digital transformation, sustainability, and shifting ethical expectations. Due from Cambridge Scholars Publishing this autumn, it is built around the thesis that luxury is no longer defined by price or exclusivity alone, but by meaning, cultural relevance, and conscious consumption.
For anyone working in luxury hospitality right now, this is the kind of title worth seeking out. The questions it explores - what luxury means to the next generation of guests, how brands maintain authenticity at scale, and where the industry's values need to land in a world that is watching more closely than ever - are the same questions shaping every significant business decision in the sector. Worth adding to the reading list before the end of the year.
Sources: PR Newswire
TREND OF THE WEEK
The super-app race: hospitality brands are fighting to own the entire guest journey
Google's AI Mode can now track hotel prices and help travellers book, and Ahrefs data shows click-through rates fall by 58% on searches where an AI Overview appears. OTA commissions still typically sit between 15% and 25%. The distribution landscape has fundamentally shifted in the space of a year.
The brands responding most aggressively are not waiting for the dust to settle. Marriott, Hilton, and IHG are all accelerating their direct booking ecosystems with AI concierge tools, pre-arrival personalisation that begins weeks before arrival, and loyalty extensions that pull guests away from third-party platforms entirely. The goal is not a better booking experience. It is ownership of the entire guest relationship - from first search to post-stay follow-up. The brands that build that end-to-end connection will not need to compete on OTA pricing. The ones that don't will find the cost of distribution rising every year.
Sources: TechCrunch, Hotel Online
Related reading: How AI decides which hotels to recommend
EXPERIENCE OF THE WEEK
Christmas as a luxury destination: hotels are turning the festive season into an experience worth travelling for
A new category is emerging in luxury hospitality as we enter Q4 - the hotel as Christmas destination. Properties across New York, Hawaii, and Scottsdale are building immersive festive experiences so complete that the hotel itself becomes the reason to travel, not just where you sleep when you get there. Dedicated Christmas suites, private Santa experiences, decorated lobbies that function as seasonal installations, and programming that runs from late November through New Year.
The Fairmont Scottsdale Princess has turned Christmas at the Princess, now in its 17th season and running from 20 November to 2 January, into an award-winning event in its own right.
Manhattan's landmark hotels are programming entire festive seasons with multiple activations per week. For properties with genuine winter appeal - and for those without it - the Christmas season is increasingly a commercial opportunity to engineer demand rather than simply accommodate it.
Sources: Christmas at the Princess
Quick answers
What is JW Marriott's first all-inclusive resort?
JW Marriott Costa Elena Resort & Spa, All-Inclusive, in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. It opened in October 2026 with 415 rooms, 17 pools and 15 restaurants and bars, with rates from $900 per person per night based on double occupancy.
When did the Imperial Hotel Kyoto open?
The Imperial Hotel Kyoto opened on 5 March 2026 in Gion, Kyoto, inside part of the historic Yasaka Kaikan. It has 55 rooms.
When is the dry season in Guanacaste, Costa Rica?
Guanacaste's dry season runs from December to April.
When is Christmas at the Princess 2026?
Christmas at the Princess at the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess runs from 20 November 2026 to 2 January 2027. It is the event's 17th season.
About The Digital Concierge: The Digital Concierge is the weekly briefing on luxury travel and hospitality from For Digital Sakes, written for hoteliers, travel advisors and luxury hospitality professionals. Subscribe at fordigitalsakes.com.
Image credits: Cover - Marriott International. News - Marriott International. Destination - Luis Diego Aguilar via Unsplash. Hotel - Imperial Hotel, Ltd. Book - Cambridge Scholars Publishing (cover), Brett Wharton via Unsplash (background). Trend - Patrick Tomasso via Unsplash. Experience - Fairmont Scottsdale Princess (Christmas at the Princess).
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