VA-HILTON
In a year when the travel industry faced challenges like never before, Hilton (NYSE: HLT) weathered the storm by staying true to its founding purpose – to fill the earth with the light and warmth of hospitality. As the COVID-19 pandemic created unprecedented challenges for the travel and tourism industry, Hilton developed industry-leading guest innovations, reached significant growth milestones and continued to positively impact communities around the world.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201215005839/en/
Even as the company faced the biggest test in its 101-year history, Hilton’s resilient, capital-light business model enabled it to organically reach its 1 million room milestone in the fourth quarter.
Three of the hotels that helped the company cross this important threshold paint a picture of Hilton’s global growth story: Hilton Garden Inn Umhlanga Arch in South Africa, illustrating the company’s expansion into Africa; Tru by Hilton Savannah Airport , showcasing the power of the fastest-growing new brand in Hilton’s portfolio; and the Hilton Garden Inn Guizhou Maotai Town in China, helping deliver on the company’s ambitious growth goals in the APAC market.
Meanwhile, Hilton’s overall development pipeline remains strong, with 2,640 hotels and more than 408,000 rooms globally*.
“It’s been a year unlike any other, but even in the face of incredible challenges, our Team Members and owners have proven that travel is an unstoppable force for good,” said Chris Nassetta, president & CEO, Hilton. “Thanks to their grit and determination, Hilton has made a difference in the lives of so many and positively impacted communities at a time when our hospitality is needed more than ever – and together we look forward to creating even more meaningful memories in the year ahead.”
Throughout 2020, Hilton, in partnership with its hotel ownership community, has found innovative and meaningful ways to adapt to the changing needs of its guests, Team Members and communities:
Guest Experience
The pandemic rapidly changed guest behavior, priorities and concerns. Hilton responded with start-up style speed, grounded in more than a century of hospitality know-how to provide reassurance to travelers.
Among the innovations:
- Launched Hilton CleanStay TM , an industry-defining standard of cleanliness and disinfection in collaboration with RB, maker of Lysol and Dettol and in consultation with Mayo Clinic
- Redesigned meeting and event experiences and set new standards for event cleanliness and customer service with the launch of Hilton EventReady with CleanStay TM
- Modified cancellation policies and took a number of steps to provide even more flexibility for Hilton Honors members including status and Points extensions
- Created opportunities for Hilton Honors members to respond to the global pandemic by donating their Points to convert into cash and send directly to organizations including World Central Kitchen , Clean the World , Project Hope or Direct Relief
- Provided alternative remote working options through the launch of WorkSpaces by Hilton in the U.S., Canada and the United Kingdom
- Continued to provide contactless guest experience options through the free Hilton Honors app , enabling guests to personalize their experience with the ability to choose their rooms, check-in and out digitally and use their phones as digital keys. Guests have now used Hilton’s Digital Key to open more than 100 million doors worldwide
- Inspired travelers to make new memories with the global launch of our insights-driven marketing campaign, “To New Memories ”
- Revealed, for the first time ever, DoubleTree by Hilton’s official chocolate chip cookie recipe so guests could create an at-home version of this iconic travel treat
Response to Communities
Hilton continued to find inventive ways to address some of the most critical, immediate needs of the communities where it operates.
- Partnered with American Express to donate up to 1 million hotel room nights across the U.S. for frontline medical professionals leading the fight against COVID-19
- Expanded partnership with American Express through a $1 million contribution from American Express to World Central Kitchen , to provide healthy, freshly prepared meals to the frontline healthcare professionals who stayed at Hilton properties in cities across the U.S. during the coronavirus pandemic
- Revealed 2020 Hilton Effect Foundation Grants and reached more than $1 million in global COVID-19 community response efforts
- Extended Hilton’s hospitality to help the travel industry come together to overcome the global pandemic including sharing countless stories of teams around the world supporting each other and helping their communities
- Supported Hilton Team Members searching for virtual and remote volunteer opportunities, including during its annual Hilton Effect Week volunteer event and through innovative partnerships with groups including Clean the World, Meals on Wheels and more
- Remained committed to the company’s Travel with Purpose 2030 Goals to cut the company’s environmental footprint in half and double its social impact investments worldwide. These efforts led to Hilton being named the global industry leader in sustainability for the second consecutive year on the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices
Continued Global Growth and Expansion
Hilton kept dreams of traveling alive by opening exciting new properties around the world. All the while, the company advocated on behalf of owners, many of whom are small businesses, who struggled with the travel decline.
- Announced key additions to Hilton’s robust pipeline including Waldorf Astoria Monarch Beach Resort & Club and Resorts World Las Vegas (featuring Hilton Hotels & Resorts, Conrad Hotels & Resorts and LXR Hotels & Resorts brands) in the Americas, Conrad Abu Dhabi Etihad Towers in EMEA and Waldorf Astoria Tokyo Nihonbashi and Hilton Singapore Orchard in APAC
- Opened new notable properties around the world including Conrad Punta de Mita in the Americas and Susona Bodrum, LXR Hotels & Resorts in EMEA, Hilton Goa Resort and Hilton Okinawa Sesoko Resort in APAC
- Launched Tempo by Hilton , an elevated and approachable lifestyle brand offering thoughtful design, efficient service and exciting partnerships and reached notable brand milestones including the 600th DoubleTree by Hilton
Response to Team Members
2020 saw Hilton go from being named the #1 Best Company to Work for in the U.S. to, weeks later, having to furlough thousands of Team Members due to the impact of COVID-19 on travel and tourism. At every turn, the company leaned into its values to navigate these tough decisions.
- Activated Hilton’s Team Member Assistance Fund to support Hilton Team Members who have been directly impacted by COVID-19 or have a family member impacted by the virus
- Reversed its recruitment engine to connect Team Members impacted by furloughs and layoffs with access to more than a million job opportunities through the Hilton Workforce Resource Center
- Launched a new Hilton Alumni Network portal with access to relevant career opportunities, resources, news and information
- Committed to an expedited recruitment process for Team Members who reapply for future roles when conditions allow
- Extended Team Member Hilton Honors status and access to Go Hilton, Hilton’s industry-leading Team Member travel program, for departing Team Members, and offered improved Honors status to current Team Members
- Continued to earn recognition as a top workplace, even as the pandemic continued, including being named to the top spot on the 2020 list of Best Workplaces in Greater China
- Recognized the heroic actions of frontline Team Members with the creation of a new Hospitality Heroes Award
- Listened to Team Members and relaunched the network of eight Team Member Resource Groups committed to building communities across the organization, and introduced a Courageous Conversation series to foster meaningful dialogue to bring about lasting change in the midst of an evolving social justice landscape
To learn more about Hilton, please visit: newsroom.hilton.com .
* Unless otherwise indicated, all hotel data reflects Hilton’s third quarter 2020 announcement (November 4). More information can be found on Hilton’s Investor Relations website.
About Hilton
Hilton (NYSE: HLT) is a leading global hospitality company with a portfolio of 18 world-class brands comprising more than 6,300 properties and more than one million rooms, in 118 countries and territories. Dedicated to fulfilling its mission to be the world’s most hospitable company, Hilton has welcomed more than 3 billion guests in its more than 100-year history, earned a top spot on the 2020 World’s Best Workplaces list, and was named the 2020 Global Industry Leader on the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices. In 2020, Hilton CleanStay was introduced, bringing an industry-defining standard of cleanliness and disinfection to hotels worldwide. Through the award-winning guest loyalty program Hilton Honors, the more than 110 million members who book directly with Hilton can earn Points for hotel stays and experiences money can’t buy, plus enjoy instant benefits, including contactless check-in with room selection, Digital Key, and Connected Room. Visit newsroom.hilton.com for more information, and connect with Hilton on Facebook , Twitter , LinkedIn , Instagram and YouTube .
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201215005839/en/
Link:
About Business Wire
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Making Science Unveils ‘AWAKE’: The AI Venture Studio Industrialising Startup Creation and AI-First Innovative Solutions23.12.2025 20:51:00 CET | Press release
The disruption generated by AI enables the acceleration and industrialisation of the creation of internal solutions and start-ups through centres of excellence in Chicago, Madrid and Tbilisi.This model has already proven its commercial and innovative power through the acceleration of startups like ad-machina, which has multiplied its value by 10 since joining the Making Science ecosystem. Making Science, the global digital acceleration consultancy, today announced the launch of AWAKE Venture Studio. This "AI-first" model represents a new era in systematic innovation, designed to identify, prototype, and scale both internal proprietary solutions and independent AI-native startups with global reach. The launch of AWAKE is motivated by the significant efficiency gains of orders of magnitude that Making Science has already achieved through the internal integration of AI. By applying these methods, the firm has achieved a 2x acceleration in tech feature development reducing time in the depl
FDA Clears First Extended Depth of Focus Contact Lens for Presbyopia23.12.2025 18:07:00 CET | Press release
Deseyne® (vifilcon C) Daily Disposable Soft (Hydrophilic) Contact Lens for Presbyopia with Extended Depth of Focus (EDOF) Delivers Continuous Vision at All Distances—Redefining Presbyopia Correction The Cataltheia Group and its U.S. subsidiary, Bruno Vision Care LLC, a leader in eye health innovation, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared the first and only Daily Disposable Soft (Hydrophilic) Contact Lens for Presbyopia utilizing patented Extended Depth of Focus (EDOF) optical design technology, enabling commercial distribution in the United States. Deseyne® delivers smooth, continuous focus across near, intermediate, and distance vision, providing clear, natural vision without compromise. This performance is enabled by Cataltheia’s patented hyper-refractive central zone, engineered to precisely redirect light in a controlled manner. The result is a clear clinical advantage over the only other available contact lens option for presbyopia, multifoc
Aramco Awards SLB Long-Term Contract to Support Kingdom’s Unconventional Gas Production Growth23.12.2025 14:58:00 CET | Press release
Five-year contract to drive innovation in stimulation, intervention, digital and frac automationAgreement underscores gas as a pivotal fuel for global energy demand and a bridge to lower-carbon systems Global technology company SLB (NYSE: SLB) has been awarded a five-year contract by Aramco to provide stimulation services for its unconventional gas fields. This award is part of a broader multi-billion contract, supporting one of the largest unconventional gas development programs globally. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251223074948/en/ The contract encompasses advanced stimulation, well intervention, frac automation, and digital solutions, which are important to unlocking the potential of Saudi Arabia’s unconventional gas resources. The contract encompasses advanced stimulation, well intervention, frac automation, and digital solutions, which are important to unlocking the potential of Saudi Arabia’s unconve
Tabelog, Japan's Largest (*1)Restaurant Search and Reservation Service,Launches Multilingual App for International Visitors23.12.2025 14:00:00 CET | Press release
Experience Japan's Authentic Culinary Scene in Your Language — From Search to Reservation, All on Your SmartphoneRanked No. 1 in Downloads Among "Japanese Gourmet Search Apps" Chosen by International Travelers (*2) Tabelog (https://tabelog.com/en/), Japan's largest restaurant search and reservation service operated by Kakaku.com, Inc., launched its multilingual smartphone application (iOS/Android) for international travelers on Monday, November 17, 2025. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251221963753/en/ The Tabelog Multilingual App for International Travelers — Japan's Largest Restaurant Search and Reservation Service With approximately 100 million monthly users(*3), Tabelog is Japan's premier service widely used by Japanese locals for daily restaurant discovery. Its database is unrivaled domestically, featuring information on approximately 890,000 establishments nationwide and over 85 million reviews and photo
BeOne Medicines to Present at the 44th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference23.12.2025 12:01:00 CET | Press release
BeOne Medicines Ltd. (NASDAQ: ONC; HKEX: 06160; SSE: 688235), a global oncology company, today announced it will participate in the 44th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference on Tuesday, January 13, 2026, with a presentation at 7:30 am PST. Live webcasts of these events can be accessed from the investors section of the Company’s website at https://ir.beonemedicines.com, https://hkexir.beonemedicines.com, https://sseir.beonemedicines.com. Archived replays will be available on the Company’s website. About BeOne Medicines BeOne Medicines is a global oncology company based in Switzerland that is discovering and developing innovative treatments that are more accessible to cancer patients worldwide. With a portfolio spanning hematology and solid tumors, BeOne is expediting development of its diverse pipeline of novel therapeutics through its internal capabilities and collaborations. With a growing global team of nearly 12,000 colleagues spanning six continents, the Company is committed to
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom
