Arguably one of the biggest hospitality stories of 2025 was the reopening of the Waldorf Astoria New York, now operating both as a hotel and as branded residences. During a tour of the property, Hilton President & CEO Christopher Nassetta met with members of the media to discuss both brand growth and recent controversy.
The company has been a topic of debate on social media in recent weeks due to how Hilton-branded hotels in Minneapolis have responded to the ongoing presence of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in the city. Earlier in the month, an employee at a Hampton Inn outside Minneapolis, refused to accommodate ICE agents who had reserved rooms at the hotel. After discussions with the owner, Hilton’s leadership decided to deflag the property and remove it from the company's network.
“We're a very principled and purpose-based organization,” Nassetta told the media at the Waldorf Astoria, crediting those principles for the company’s culture. “We followed those principles, which is—we're a welcoming place for all.” If hoteliers decide who can and cannot stay at a property, he continued, “where would it end?” Nassetta said that he personally made the decision to remove the Hampton Inn from Hilton’s network—“and I would make it again,” he added. “It was an easy decision to make, because those are our principles. You’ve got to welcome all, or you can't be part of our system.”
This past week, two hotels owned by Mille Lacs Corporate Ventures, including The St. Paul DoubleTree Hotel, closed temporarily due to “safety and well-being” of both guests and employees. The DoubleTree, Nassetta said, was receiving bomb threats, and the owners did not feel comfortable operating the hotel under those circumstances. “A safety-and-security issue is a different issue,” he said. As such, the DoubleTree was not in danger of deflagging as it was closed to everyone, not only the agents.
Nassetta acknowledged the controversy surrounding the decision, but said he did not think it would damage the brand. “I certainly haven't sensed any [reluctance] to do business with us,” he said. “There's no hard evidence that suggests that there's been any impact.”
Next Steps
Hilton is “super focused” on resorts, Nassetta said, adding that the company’s partnership with Small Luxury Hotels of the World—now approaching two years—was “in part” because SLH is largely focused on leisure and resort properties.
Hilton launched two brands in 2025, and Nassetta expects more to come, primarily in the lifestyle space and in student housing. “I do not think we'll be buying brands … anytime soon,” he added. “I don't think we need to.” Hilton acquired the NoMad and Graduate brands in 2024 following “unique situations,” but Nassetta said he does not see similar situations on the horizon.
Instead, he expects organic growth in the lifestyle segment and adjacent. “I've talked about a brand underneath Graduate—maybe even Undergraduate for smaller college towns,” he said. He also expressed interest in furnished housing for students in markets where the company already has a presence and relationships both with established owners and loyal guests. In the meanwhile, he sees “a pretty big white space” for lifestyle development in between the Canopy and Motto brands.
Nassetta also expects the company to continue implementing technology, including AI, in its operations. “AI obviously affords us and everybody else some pretty cool opportunities, but you have to have the platform to take advantage,” he said. Similarly, he expects improved communications to help improve both the guest experience and guest loyalty. “A lot of service industries have never really cracked the code on real-time problem resolution,” he said. “We now have so many ways that people are communicating with us through direct channels—through our app, through texting, through social media—and we have the ability, in our scraping all of that information, to be able to resolve problems—or, more importantly, get ahead of problems.”