Hospitality in Words vs. Corporate Beige: What Hotel Newsletters Can Learn from La Rentrée

September in France is called La Rentrée. Schools restart, cafés refill, the city exhales, and there’s this crackle of new beginnings. For hotels, it’s also a fresh notebook moment — but too often their newsletters sound less like fresh ink and more like corporate beige paint drying.

The Problem with Beige

Luxury hotels like the Okura may have Michelin stars and panoramic views, but their newsletters often read like press releases. Over-formatted, over-polished, under-felt. Guests don’t feel spoken to — they feel managed.

The La Rentrée Alternative

Hospitality isn’t beige. It’s sensory, emotional, personal. A September newsletter could smell of coffee and chestnut leaves, or capture the bittersweet taste of the last wild blackberries. That’s how you turn an email into an experience, not a transaction.

Practical Takeaways for Hotels

1. Lead with a scene, not a sale. (Start with what September feels like where you are.)

2. Write in first person. (A GM’s Note that actually feels like a person wrote it.)

3. Balance content and offers. (90% inspiration, 10% booking CTA.)

4. Be local, be now. (Your insider tip beats a TripAdvisor list every time.)

Hospitality isn’t about polished marble and hushed corridors; it’s about people, moments, and words that land in the heart. Inboxes don’t need more beige. They need more hospitality.

CTA: Want your newsletter to feel less corporate beige and more La Rentrée? Let’s talk.