Take Off! Challenge 2025: a New Local Approach to Shape a More Inclusive Hospitality

Today, Accor launches the renewed 14th edition of the Take Off! Student Challenge. In 2025, we are taking a transformative step forward by bringing the competition closer to local markets, ensuring greater inclusivity, accessibility, and real-world impact.

For over 13 years, Accor’s Take Off! Student Challenge has been a global stage for innovation, inspiring students to rethink the future of hospitality through bold and visionary ideas. By engaging directly with our teams on the ground, participants gain invaluable insights and hands-on experience, preparing them for careers in the dynamic world of hospitality operations. To date, nearly 6,500 students from diverse backgrounds across 5 continents have taken part in the initiative.

This year, Take Off! is evolving into a locally driven competition, replacing the global English-language format with country-specific challenges conducted in local languages across a pilot group of countries, including Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Brazil, China, Colombia, Argentina, Peru, Chile, and Mexico, etc. This shift is designed to break down barriers, making participation more accessible to a broader and more varied pool of students worldwide. More than just a competition, Take Off! 2025 is an opportunity for students to immerse themselves in real-life hospitality challenges and discover the industry firsthand, ensuring that every idea proposed is concrete, actionable, and deeply connected to the day-to-day reality of hospitality.

The 2025 edition of Take Off! challenges students to develop innovative initiatives that enhance accessibility and inclusivity across Accor hotels, guaranteeing that every guest feels truly welcomed. At Accor, accessibility and inclusivity are at the core of our mission, with the Paris 2024 Games having served as a catalyst for improving how we accommodate travelers with disabilities. More than 400 Accor hotels have been certified under the French government’s “Tourisme & Handicap” certification, verifying that our hotels address the specific needs of all guests by offering a high-quality accessibility approach and promoting inclusive tourism. By encouraging students to rethink accessibility in our hotels, we aim to foster innovative solutions that break down barriers and enhance the guest experience for individuals with diverse needs. This business case reflects our deep commitment to creating a more inclusive and welcoming hospitality industry for all.

At Accor, we believe that the future of hospitality lies also in the hands of the next generation. By localizing the Take Off! Challenge, we are not only empowering students to develop real-world solutions but also reinforcing our commitment to accessibility and inclusion. Hospitality should be welcoming to all, and through this initiative, we are paving the way for a more inclusive future.  Laurence Dambrine, Chief Talent & Culture Officer at Accor