Latest Hospitality and leisure industry News

US adds a robust 254,000 jobs and unemployment dips to 4.1% in sign of still-sturdy labor market

Oct. 04, 2024 12:36 PM EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — America’s employers added a surprisingly strong 254,000 jobs in September, easing concerns about a weakening labor market and suggesting that the pace of hiring is still solid enough to support a growing economy. Last month’s gain was far more than economists...

After Helene's destruction, a mountain town reliant on fall tourism wonders what's next

Oct. 01, 2024 16:42 PM EDT

BOONE, N.C. (AP) — Freddie Pell helps lift a vintage wooden chair off the sidewalk and back inside his art gallery. It's starting to rain in downtown Boone, and he doesn't want it to get soaked — again. Inside, vast muddy puddles spread across the room as workers use mops to...

Historic ship could soon become the world's largest artificial reef

Oct. 01, 2024 16:38 PM EDT

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — A historic ocean liner that once ferried immigrants, Hollywood stars and heads of state may soon find its final resting place at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico, after a Florida county inked a tentative deal to turn the ship into the world’s largest artificial reef. ...

A tiny tribe is getting pushback for betting big on a $600M casino in California's wine country

Oct. 01, 2024 13:47 PM EDT

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — For decades a small, landless tribe in Northern California has been on a mission to get land, open a casino and tap into the gaming market enjoyed by so many other tribes that earn millions of dollars annually. The Koi Nation's chances of owning a Las...

Ex-regulator wants better protection for young adult gamblers, including uniform betting age

Sep. 27, 2024 13:53 PM EDT

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — New Jersey's former top gambling regulator with a nationwide reputation for strengthening oversight of the industry to make it safer says rules need to be toughened to protect young adults from developing addictions. In recommendations that could become...

Diners are skipping restaurants and making more meals at home as inflation trend inverts

Sep. 26, 2024 12:06 PM EDT

NEW YORK (AP) — Eating in is in and eating out is out. That's the message that inflation-squeezed consumer s have been sending to fast-food companies and other restaurants. Meanwhile food producers are benefitting from more palatable prices in grocery store aisles. ...

US company accuses Mexico of expropriating its property on the Caribbean coast

Sep. 24, 2024 22:23 PM EDT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — An American quarry company said Tuesday the Mexican government carried out a de facto expropriation of its properties on Mexico’s Caribbean coast. Mexico's Interior Department issued a decree late Monday declaring the firm’s seaport and quarries to be a...

Boyd Gaming buys Resorts Digital online gambling operation

Sep. 23, 2024 13:59 PM EDT

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — Boyd Interactive has purchased Resorts Digital, the online gambling arm of Atlantic City's Resorts casino, for an undisclosed amount. Mark Giannantonio, president of Resorts, said Monday that the transaction was finalized on Sept. 1. Neither company would...

Motel 6 sold to Indian hotel operator for $525 million

Sep. 21, 2024 11:41 AM EDT

The budget motel chain Motel 6 is being acquired by the parent company of Oyo, a hotel operator based in India. The New York-based investment firm Blackstone, which owns Motel 6’s parent company G6 Hospitality, announced Friday that the deal would be an all-cash transaction worth...

Vermont caps emergency motel housing for homeless, forcing many to leave this month

Sep. 19, 2024 11:37 AM EDT

BERLIN, Vt. (AP) — This fall, hundreds of the most vulnerable people experiencing homelessness in Vermont must leave state-funded motel rooms where they’ve been living as the state winds down its pandemic-era motel voucher program. The move is prompting outcry from municipal leaders and...