Hospitality Email Open Rates Are Broken—Here’s How to Fix That
How do top brands like Ritz-Carlton create content people actually want to read? 🧠Discover three smart strategies arts, culture, and hospitality pros can steal to improve their email open rates.
Hospitality Industry Open Rates
Email marketing remains one of the most effective ways to build lasting relationships. Study after study puts the ROI somewhere between $36 and $42 for every dollar spent. And the channel also happens to be the best way to create build meaningful relationships with your audience—making it ideal for long-term growth. So why are hospitality industry open rates so low?
And what does relationship-building actually mean in practice? And can that lead to more revenue for hospitality, arts, and cultural organizations?
Short answer: yes.
But like anything that drives sustainable returns, email marketing needs a strategic approach. “Don’t forget to send the newsletter this week” is not a strategy. Email has to be part of your marketing and revenue growth planning for it to work well.
Hospitality Industry Email Open Rates: Where We Stand
Let’s look at the numbers. According to MailerLite’s latest (2025) industry benchmarks, the travel and transportation sector has one of the lowest open rates in email marketing: just 22.57%.
To put that in context:
- Publishing: 30.91%
- Ecommerce: 31.08%
- Nonprofits: 53.21%
- Religion: 59.70%
The gap is hard to ignore.
Why the Gap?
Part of the issue? The hospitality industry has been slow to track—or at least share—detailed email performance metrics across all subsectors. So there might not be a real disconnect, just a lack of good reporting to benchmark the industry as a whole
Revinate offers some useful data, but it’s mostly hotel-focused. If you’re in arts, culture, or heritage, it might not provide enough useful intel.
So we look at what we can measure and what we know to be true, and go from there.
What’s Not Working
At first glance, the problem seems obvious. There are two parallel strategies, and neither seems to be working. Larger hospitality orgs often push whatever’s on sale. Smaller orgs rush to hit “send” before a deadline. Neither approach is especially strategic.
Neither asks: What does my audience actually want from us?
If you’re chasing better open rates or more consistent list engagement, email can’t be an afterthought. It has to sit at the table—not as an extra, but as an engine.
Buy, Buy, Buy… Bye!
A lot of travel and hospitality emails follow a predictable script:
💸 Here’s what’s on sale.
🏨 Here’s what to book.
🌅 Here’s how to get a room with a view for $10 more.
📅 Book now—or miss out!
That kind of urgency-heavy messaging might work for giant brands with millions of subscribers. (Amazon’s open rate could be 5% and they’d still make bank.)
But for smaller orgs—especially in arts and culture—this strategy just doesn’t hold. With lists of a few thousand people, an open rate of 20% is a missed opportunity. And one that’s easy to fix
What Actually Works in Travel Email Marketing
âś… Content-first
âś… Curiosity-driven
âś… Value-led
That’s the kind of email that builds trust before the ask.
Just look at the success of storytelling-driven platforms like Atlas Obscura or Only in Your State. They attract millions of subscribers because they are about more than transactions. They deliver surprise, wonder, and something to talk about.
Mission-Driven = Momentum
Email open rates for nonprofits (53%) and even religion (nearly 60%) tell a clear story:
People want to feel connected to a mission. They find value in opening those emails.
That’s good news for cultural orgs, many of which already sit at the intersection of mission and commerce.
Creators are another success story. In 2024, Kit.com saw average open rates of 44% across all its creator-led emails. Kit.com users added 230+ million subscribers in one year by sending human-first, value-rich messages—built around identity, aspiration, and curiosity. (Kit.com is a leading email service provider, with a special focus on “creators” – individuals selling entertainment, education or information.)
Kit’s business model demonstrates a significant shift in how business is being done. Smart marketers are paying attention to the fact that the “royal we” in business is giving way to the individual voices that collectively make up the “we.”
Curtis del Principe, the Managing Editor of Hubspot’s Masters in Marketing agrees.
In practical terms, that means highlighting the humanity behind your brand. Take a scroll through any HubSpot blog or email and notice that we no longer use the “royal we.” Three years ago, I would have written this as HubSpot. Now I get to write it as Curt, a human being who happens to be an employee of HubSpot. (Nice to meet you!)
Content Creates Demand
A solid email strategy almost always follows a solid content strategy.
You know the 80/20 rule:
80% value. 20% sales.
But too many emails still flip that script:
“Let’s tell them what we want them to do.”
instead of
“Let’s give them something they want to read.”
Think about it: Red Bull isn’t just selling drinks. It’s a global media brand that creates sports content, events, and storytelling assets—all designed to drive demand.
“Everything revolves around one concept: creating content and experiences people would be interested in, even if they don’t care about energy drinks.” – Breonna Bergstrom, CoSchedule
Cultural tourism and hospitality orgs can take the same approach.
Your value doesn’t start with the room, ticket, or exhibit. It should drive interest, even for people who might not be interested in booking now.
Travel Businesses Are Demand Creators
Sometimes, the hospitality sector forgets what business it’s in:
You’re not just order-takers. You are also demand creators.
Many make the “Book Now” button huge. That’s fine if you’re trying to bypass OTAs. But here’s the better question:
Where’s the “Subscribe Now” button to keep future guests in the buying loop?
One case in point: Motel 6. It has a nearly hidden travel blog (“Open Road”), which is an incredible tie-in to their “We’ll leave the light on for you” brand. But it’s buried in the footer. The content is underdeveloped. Worst of all? There’s no apparent way to subscribe for future updates.
Contrast that with Ritz-Carlton. You may never book a room—but you sure want to subscribe to their newsletter after spending time on their site. In particular, after scrolling through their “The Journey” blog. Discovery is baked into every article, every gallery, every story. (Side note: I used to write for the Ritz-Carlton magazine. So yes, I am biased.)
So How Do You Increase Open Rates?
If your emails aren’t getting enough opens, clicks, or saves—it may be time to rethink your approach. Instead of chasing the algorithm, revisit your strategy:
âś… Create emails people look forward to
âś… Ask what ideas your audience wants to explore or share
âś… Use email to create future demand, not just push sales
Let’s Connect on Social Media
Let’s Explore Your Big Idea
Send a message or schedule a free Vision Call.
Schedule a Vision Call🔥 Free Download 🔥
Destination: Inbox
The essential guide to email marketing workbook for arts, heritage & hospitality organizations.
When funding dries up and algorithms shift, email marketing still delivers. This planner dives into how to build stronger relationships and nurture your list with purpose so you can drive more bookings and save valuable time every month.
You will also be subscribed to💥Let’s Make Some Noise💥– weekly marketing tips for creative and hospitality pros telling the story of place. Smarter marketing, without selling out. (Unsubscribe anytime.)
Ready to Grow Your Business?
Questions about email marketing? Ready to build a relationship system that works? Schedule a free Vision Call and let’s talk about your cultural tourism vision.
No obligation, no sales script. Just great conversation.
Schedule NowEmail Marketing Articles
Let’s Connect on Social Media
Let’s Explore Your Big Idea
Send a message or schedule a free Vision Call.
Schedule a Vision Call