Dutch Hotel schools share knowledge in Breda

On Thursday 8 October 2026, lecturers, researchers, managers, directors and a number of students from the Dutch hotel schools came together at BUas in Breda. They discussed the future of hospitality and what it means for higher education in hotel management in the Netherlands. The theme of this edition: Dream On.

BUas Hotel Management, Hotelschool Den Haag, Hotel Management School Maastricht, Saxion University of Applied Sciences - Hotel Management and NHL Stenden - Hotel Management School Leeuwarden meet at this event every year. One of the schools acts as host each time. This year, BUas Hotel Management welcomed its colleagues to the former convent that houses the Academy for Hotel & Facility (AHF). It was a special edition, as the hotel school in Breda is 25 years old and BUas is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year.

 

Thinking in possibilities

The theme ‘Dream On’ comes from the 1973 Aerosmith song, which sings of a past that went by as if from dusk to dawn. The world today is uncertain. Technology, politics and the economy are accelerating, and the assumptions beneath them are shifting too. Education and research in hospitality therefore call for imagination, not predictions.

Here, thinking in possibilities is a way of working. How do you teach students to think in possibilities, using scenario models, system maps and experience design? And how do we, as lecturers and researchers, take a fresh look at food, revenue models, societal impact and the organisation of work? Those were the questions the day began with.

 

This event again highlighted the value of collaboration between the Dutch hotel schools, particularly in research and education. In a world of economic and geopolitical instability, alliances between our institutes and a strong focus on creativity are essential if the Netherlands is to remain a leading environment for innovation in hospitality. (Michel Brokke - Sr Lecturer and Researcher Hospitality Design at Breda University of Applied Sciences)

 

Keynote by Stefaan Vandist

In the chapel (our lecture hall), Stefaan Vandist took the audience through his keynote ‘From Stay to Story’. What happens when running clubs replace dating apps, nightclubs become wellness resorts and festival brands open hotels? Vandist is the author of Provotyping the Future, which was awarded ‘Managementboek van het Jaar 2025’ (Dutch Management Book of the Year 2025). He had everyone form a vision of the future of the sector from their own perspective.

During his talk, he received unexpected help. Robot George from the BUas AI Makerspace walked down the central aisle of the chapel to the front and handed him the microphone. Technology and hospitality on one stage.

 

Workshops on AI, Careers and Crisis

After the keynote, participants attended workshops in two rounds, led by colleagues from the hotel schools. Many sessions bridged the gap between dream and practice.

One workshop, for instance, explored how AI can strengthen authentic learning. Another asked how the role of the lecturer changes now that generative AI puts knowledge within students’ easy reach. With LEGO® Serious Play®, participants built the hospitality professional of the future. A third session looked at women’s careers in the sector: only 26 to 32% of hotel general managers in the Netherlands are women. What can education and industry do about this?

Other sessions covered hospitality in times of crisis, the question of whether ocean plastic is a raw material or a waste stream, and collaboration between hotel schools and companies. At ‘Sensing the Future’, scent, colour and texture came together in a short sensory manifesto on the future of hotel education. Those who wanted to taste could write their own tasting notes at the wine workshop.

 

Carousels: Peers around the table

The carousels are an important part of the day. Here, lecturers from all the hotel schools meet peers and discuss their experiences and challenges in their own subject area in roundtables.

Each table has its own theme. This year, attention went to the board of examiners and assessment, and to the curriculum committee and selection. Other groups addressed components of the curriculum, such as practice-based education, work placements, marketing, finance, HRM, hotel operations, technology, sustainability and languages. The managers of the bachelor’s degree programmes also had a table of their own.

The conversations do not end after the day. Through a shared Teams environment, the groups stay in touch throughout the year, with a separate channel for each theme. This way, they share documents and examples of good practice and coordinate with one another.

 

Closing: From dream to deed

The day closed in the chapel with the second part of the keynote and a joint closing session. Afterwards, there was time to continue the conversations over drinks and nibbles in the Small Atrium.

The question the organisation opened the day with lingered: how do we get from dream to deed? There is no clear-cut answer. There is, however, a starting point. Those who share knowledge and dare to think in possibilities together are already a step further along.