With Azerbaijan’s accession as a full member, the HSU continues to expand its unified and quality-focused hotel classification system beyond the core European region. The country on the Caspian Sea has taken a determined and exemplary path towards implementing the HSU system: Azerbaijan joined the HSU as an observer country in 2019, followed by an application for associate membership in 2020. Preparations for implementation began immediately thereafter, and by 2021, the country had achieved "implementing status" – a key milestone that has now led to full membership.
“Azerbaijan has shown both seriousness and ambition in implementing the HSU hotel classification,” said HSU President Markus Luthe during the General Assembly. “We are grateful for their consistent and ongoing commitment to our harmonised approach and are pleased to see the geographic expansion of HSU within Europe.”
Gunay Saglam, CEO of the Azerbaijan Hotel Association, added: “We are very pleased that Azerbaijan is now a full member of the Hotelstars Union! Since joining in 2019, we have worked intensively to implement the HSU system with the support of our association, the State Tourism Agency, the Azerbaijan Tourism Board, the Hotelstars Union, and especially HotellerieSuisse. This membership places us among Europe’s top destinations in terms of hotel quality – and we will continue to raise the standard of hospitality in our country.”
A highlight of the General Assembly was a keynote speech by business consultant and sales expert Michael Hucho. Titled "The Impact of Quality on Sales Success," his presentation explored the economic significance of both subjective and objective quality in the hospitality industry, as well as the role of hotel classifications and guest reviews as active management tools. According to Hucho, stars are far more than decorative symbols: “They represent a transparent and reliable promise of performance to the guest – and, thus, a measurable commitment to quality.”
Hucho particularly emphasised the measurable link between the consistent communication of quality through hotel classification and the economic success of accommodation providers, as demonstrated by key performance indicators. Clear positioning through star ratings builds guest confidence, has a proven influence on booking decisions and directly impacts business performance. He highlighted the successful combination of subjective quality communicated to the market through distribution partners (push) and objective quality in direct guest interactions (pull). Strategic quality management across all guest touchpoints – before, during, and after travel – reduces dependencies and creates direct demand. “Those who proactively make quality visible send a strong signal to the market and successfully meet the evolving expectations of guests,” concluded Hucho.
HSU President Markus Luthe concluded: “The admission of Azerbaijan as a full member is an impressive vote of confidence in our shared understanding of quality in the hotel industry. As we have seen today through evidence-based insights, hotel stars are far more than just a rating – they are a recognised and binding performance promise to our guests. They stand for transparency, comparability, and reliability. That is why they remain an indispensable marketing tool in a dynamic market environment. The Hotelstars Union will continue to advocate for strengthening, internationally establishing, and actively further developing this hallmark of quality.”
About Hotelstars Union
Under the patronage of HOTREC Hospitality Europe, the hotel associations of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Georgia, Greece, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, and Hungary form the Hotelstars Union. Founded in 2009, it has been operating as an association under Belgian law since 2021, with its headquarters in Brussels. Hotelstars Union classifies hotels reliably into categories from 1 to 5 stars based on a uniform set of criteria. It offers transparency, quality, and safety for guests and hoteliers in its member countries, with over 22,000 classified hotels and 1.2 million classified hotel rooms. For more information, visit www.hotelstars.eu.