IDeaS revives resorts council to broaden revenue focus

IDeaS has reconvened its Resorts Revenue Council, a group that brings together resort commercial leaders and industry specialists.

The council will focus on revenue management issues facing resorts as operators expand their commercial strategies beyond room sales.

Resort businesses are managing a broader mix of revenue sources, including different accommodation formats, package offers and ancillary spending. That is putting more pressure on commercial teams to assess demand, pricing and profitability across more of the guest journey.

IDeaS set up the council as a dedicated forum for resort-focused commercial discussions. Participating organisations are expected to share views on market trends and operating challenges, while helping the company identify areas for product development.

Broader focus

The move reflects a wider shift in resort revenue management away from a narrow focus on room rates. Operators are putting more emphasis on package performance, per-person pricing, group business, length-of-stay patterns and the contribution of non-room revenue.

IDeaS says it has updated its resort-related software and services since the council first met. The changes were designed to help customers manage complex inventory types, all-inclusive and package pricing structures, longer booking windows, negotiated group demand and profitability measures that go beyond room revenue.

It also highlighted resort-specific market pricing and the trade-offs between occupancy, rate and profit as areas that require closer attention from commercial teams.

Sanjay Nagalia, Co-Founder, Chief Technology Officer and Chief Operating Officer at IDeaS, described resorts as a demanding part of the hospitality market.

"Resorts are often at the forefront of some of the industry's most complex commercial decisions," Nagalia said.

He said changing guest expectations and business models are reshaping the operating environment for resort managers.

"As guest expectations and business models continue to evolve, it's important we stay closely connected with the operators navigating those changes firsthand. The Resorts Revenue Council ensures their perspectives inform where we focus our innovation efforts," Nagalia said.

Changing economics

Resort operators have traditionally relied heavily on room pricing as the main lever for revenue management. But the structure of many resort businesses now requires commercial teams to weigh a broader set of factors, including bundled offers, ancillary services and the balance between transient and group demand.

Many operators already benefit from healthy demand, shifting the challenge toward improving the value captured from each guest relationship. In that context, revenue management is increasingly tied to decisions across sales, distribution and broader commercial planning.

Nagalia said the issue for resort operators is no longer only how to fill rooms.

"Many resorts already have access to strong demand," he said. "The opportunity lies in understanding how to optimize the value of that demand across the full guest journey. Revenue management continues to evolve from focusing primarily on room pricing toward supporting more informed commercial decisions across the organization."

IDeaS is part of SAS and says it supports a range of hospitality businesses, including hotels, resorts, cruise lines and parking brands, with more than 34,000 installations globally.