Travel
How Four Women Are Revolutionizing the Hospitality and Travel Industry
This Saturday, International Women’s Day will be celebrated, marking over a century since it was first observed in 1911 in Austria, Denmark, Germany, and Switzerland. While women worldwide will be honoured for their achievements, for them many challenges persist into the 21st century, albeit in different forms.
“Women routinely face multiple barriers in the entrepreneurial sphere, and when it comes to achieving high growth, many of these challenges are compounded. For example, in 2022, of the UK’s multi-billion-pound venture capital funding, female entrepreneurs routinely received less than a 2% share of the investments made each year,” notes Anne Boden, Chair of the Women-Led High-Growth Enterprise Taskforce, and the first woman to found a British bank after a 30-year career in finance.
Over the past decades, across the world, scarcity of resources hasn’t stopped women from starting their own businesses from scratch, or reshaping traditional legacies – learning how to overcome challenges during the journey to build successful companies able to last into the next generation.
Meet four visionary leaders representing diverse facets of the global hospitality industry in 2025.
Vera Zeledón
Founder and Executive Advisor, Hotel Belmar
Vera Zeledón is the co-founder and Executive Advisor of Hotel Belmar, an eco-luxury enterprise in Costa Rica. Nearly four decades ago, she and her husband started building Hotel Belmar from the ground up, driven by a shared vision of sustainability and authentic Costa Rican hospitality.
“The greatest challenge at the beginning was not simply building a hotel but daring to take on such a monumental endeavor as a young mother in a male-dominated industry,” recalls Vera.
“In 1979, while living in Monteverde with my one- and three-year-old children, my husband and I took a leap of faith to create Hotel Belmar. Although I came from a family of hoteliers, this time was different—it was my project, my clients, my debts, and my commitment to upholding the high standards I envisioned.
“Reality struck fast. The debts grew, funds ran low, and time moved too quickly. When the money ran out before construction was finished, my family and I moved into an unfinished room, determined to see the project through. Days of relentless work, unwavering faith, and sheer perseverance followed, until finally, the moment arrived—guests were at the door, and our hotel was ready to welcome them.”
Beyond her passion for hospitality, Vera is deeply committed to cultural preservation. She founded Celajes de Mi Tierra, a folkloric dance group dedicated to sharing Costa Rica’s rich traditions with guests and the broader community. Through art, sustainability, and hospitality, she has built a multi-dimensional legacy that connects people to both nature and culture in an authentic way.
“Today, I face a different challenge: After decades of relentless work, I’m finally allowing myself to step back and appreciate the life I’ve created, surrounded by family and the grandchildren who have gifted me with a new perspective. My journey has come full circle, and with it, the certainty that every struggle, every risk, and every sacrifice was worth it,” celebrates Zeledón.
Aashica Khanna
Executive Director, Ananda in the Himalayas
With a deep-rooted passion for holistic wellbeing, Aashica Khanna plays a pivotal role as the Executive Director of premier wellness retreat, Ananda in the Himalayas. However, those who see Ananda thriving as a destination for wellness programs addressing chronic physical and mental health conditions may not realize the long road the spiritual retreat, set in the former Palace Estate of the Maharaja of Tehri-Garhwal in the Himalayan foothills of North India, had to endure 25 years ago.
“The journey to establish Ananda in the Himalayas was fraught with challenges. As a royal estate, the property could only be leased, requiring complex negotiations before construction could begin,” says Khanna.
Some of the challenges, though, were beyond human control.
“Natural obstacles such as storms and earthquakes created setbacks, yet the unique energy of the space kept us determined. Establishing a wellness destination in India was a pioneering vision—Ananda was the first of its kind in a market that only in recent years has become popular. The early years were particularly testing due to global events impacting business, but our commitment to transforming Ananda into a true wellness destination—rooted in the Indian philosophies of Ayurveda, yoga, and Vedanta—remained unwavering.”
The luxury wellness retreat, sprawling across the 100-acre grounds and described by Oprah Winfrey as “more like a pilgrimage than a visit,” has been moving beyond a traditional retreat model to becoming a long-term wellness partner. With year-round consultations and follow-ups, Ananda now plays a sustained role in clients’ well-being journeys, delivering truly sustainable results.
“The biggest challenge over the last 12 months has been staff retention. With so many wellness retreats opening across the world, we come into everyone’s attention as a place to find the best talent. Fortunately, we have people who value the power of the brand and its potential. And above all, they are happy where they work, as they see Ananda as being a positive influence in their personal and professional growth.”
Sofia Mascotena
Owner, Founding Member, and CEO, Naya Traveler
With a background in humanitarian and cultural studies, Sofia Mascotena built a career in the luxury travel sector before deciding to start anew as a business owner.
“Back in 2015, I was at the peak of my professional career. I had been working for an ultra-luxury travel agency for five years and had reached the highest position possible within the company. I felt comfortable, stable, and secure. So, the biggest challenge was leaving that behind—resigning from my job and stepping away from the stability I had built to venture into something entirely new and unknown: starting my own business,” says Mascotena, founding member and CEO of Naya Traveler, a travel agency launched in 2016 and led by three women, focusing on immersive experiences designed to foster meaningful connections between travelers and the communities they visit.
“It wasn’t just about leaving my job; several factors made the leap even more challenging. I was under 30, with no prior experience running a company, and I was diving into an industry that was still very traditional, where fully digital businesses were rare. I had to build everything from scratch, from operations to brand trust, while proving that a new way of doing things could work.”
Offering curated journeys, the agency has been connecting women for almost 10 years through solo adventures in destinations like Japan, Iceland, Peru, and Morocco, as well as bespoke women’s group trips designed around themes of adventure, culture, and wellness.
Over the past year, Mascotena has faced several new challenges, including becoming the sole owner of Naya Traveler in February 2024.
“Naya Traveler was launched in 2016 by myself and two women. Until February 2024, it operated as a shared partnership. That meant that responsibilities, risks, concerns, decision-making, successes, and even mistakes were always shared. Taking full ownership meant carrying the entire weight on my shoulders—both the rewards and the challenges. The biggest challenge was making that decision, knowing that from that moment on, every aspect of the business would depend entirely on me,” she says.
Since then, a recent challenge has been keeping the entrepreneur busy: adapting to the rapid advancements in artificial intelligence.
“AI has introduced powerful new tools, enabling not only new players to enter the market but also allowing individuals to bypass traditional agencies and directly access services. The challenge lies not only in learning how to effectively integrate these technologies into the business but also in finding ways to continuously stand out and offer something unique. It’s an exciting challenge because it pushes us to evolve, innovate, and avoid stagnation. It forces us out of our comfort zone, encouraging continuous growth and improvement.”
Stefania Bettoja
Food and Beverage Manager and Designer, Bettoja Hotels
For over 150 years, family-owned and operated Bettoja Hotels has been welcoming guests with its passion for hospitality at their three hotels located right in the heart of Rome. In 2017, Stefania Bettoja joined her late husband Valerio Bettoja’s family business.
Having trained at the prestigious Cordon Bleu cooking school and pursued additional courses in hospitality and restaurant management, it was natural for Stefania to begin her journey in the business by focusing on the culinary experience, identifying areas for improvement, and introducing a fresh perspective to the group’s restaurants.
“Gaining the trust and appreciation of my in-laws was definitely one of the biggest challenges. Since they didn’t know me very well at first, I had to prove my dedication, skills, and vision for the family business. Over time, through hard work and a genuine passion for hospitality, they gradually discovered my strengths, and I was able to carve out my own space within the company,” says the award-winning former host of children’s TV programs in Italy who went on to become a sporting events presenter before turning her attention to hospitality.
Once at the Bettoja Hotels, Stefania refined the menu by incorporating new recipes with a strong focus on seasonality and presentation of dishes—an essential aspect of the guest experience.
Bringing creativity from her years as a television host and entertainer, she managed to combine artistic sensibility with a strong focus on the guest experience. As a result, Stefania became involved in overseeing the hotels’ redesign on multiple fronts, including the Ligea Lounge Bar rooftop at the Art Deco Hotel Mediterraneo and several key venues in Hotel Atlantico and Hotel Massimo d’Azeglio.
Over the past months, a Catholic event that takes place in Italy every 25 years and that in 2025 is being held in Rome and Vatican City, has created the demand that makes Stefania Bettoja thrive.
“The Jubilee has been a major challenge. While January followed a similar trend to the previous year, February showed a significant increase in tourist numbers. This surge in visitors led to higher revenue but also put additional pressure on our hotels and staff. Managing this growth while maintaining the highest standards of service has been both demanding and rewarding, requiring careful planning and adaptability to meet the evolving needs of our guests.”
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