About the Hotelstars Union
A dynamic and harmonised system
Founded in 2009 under the patronage of HOTREC – Hospitality Europe, the Hotelstars Union began as a collaboration among hotel associations from Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, the Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland. Since then, the Union’s star family has grown to welcome new member countries, as shown below.
Membership in the Hotelstars Union is open to all HOTREC members. This joint hotel classification system is constantly evolving, with criteria and procedures regularly reviewed and enhanced to meet the ever-changing expectations of guests.
Do you have a question?
Royal Dutch Hotel Association
P.O. Box 566
3440 AN Woerden
The Netherlands
2023 // Armenia
Armenia joined the Hotelstars Union in 2023. For contact details, please look here:
2022 // Poland
Poland joined the Hotelstars Union in 2022. For contact details, please look here:
2021 // Georgia
Georgia joined the Hotelstars Union in 2021. For contact details, please look here:
On 25 March 2021, almost 12 years after its foundation, the Hotelstars Union was transformed into an international non-profit organisation under Belgian law (AISBL) with its registered office in Brussels.
2020 // Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan joined the Hotelstars Union in 2020. For contact details, please look here:
2017 // Slovenia
“The Hotelstars criteria represent unified criteria for the categorisation of hotels in most of European countries, which is very important for Slovenia, because in this way we offer guests information about the guaranteed quality they can expect.“
2015 // Liechtenstein
Liechtenstein joined the Hotelstars Union in 2015. For contact details, please look here:
2013 // Denmark
“Denmark is a small country, and too little to carry its own classification system. We wanted to join an international recognizable Star Raing system, and found HSU to be the only professional and transparent solution. We like to be part of the “Family” and enjoy the recognition and high standards rating wise, which HSU gives the Danish hotels.“
2013 // Belgium
Belgium joined the Hotelstars Union in 2013. For contact details, please look here:
2012 // Malta
Malta decided to join the Hotelstars Union in 2012 and decided to join both through its government entity responsible for tourism (MTA) and the main non-governmental association representing collective tourism accommodation (the MHRA).
The search for a standardisation of the star-rating system for hotels was always a struggle and therefore an opportunity to join such community across Europe was not to be missed. Through the membership Malta gained access to the standard that is recognised across Europe, networking opportunities, access to resources and support.
2011 // Luxembourg
“The Hotelstarsunion classification makes hotel stars comparable across Europe, creating transparency and a degree of security for customers.“
2011 // Lithuania
Lithuania's participation in the European Hotelstars classification system is crucial important for ensuring standardized quality and transparency in the hospitality industry. Being part of HSU family enhances Lithuania's reputation as a reliable and professional destination, attracting more tourists and boosting the local economy.
2011 // Latvia
Latvia joined the Hotelstars Union in 2011. For contact details, please look here:
2011 // Estonia
“Joining the Hotelstars Union has brought consistency and transparency to hotel classification in Estonia, aligning our standards with a trusted international system. It’s a great tool and as a bonus comes dedicated network of colleagues in HSU family for support and networking.“
with Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, the Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland
“Achieving agreement among seven countries with different hotel classification systems marked
a significant milestone in the international standardisation of hotel classification,
leading to the creation of the Hotelstars Union."