hotels

All eyes are on the World Cup games that will land in Kansas City in less than a month, but the self-described "Soccer City USA" also has its eyes on 2031, with a bid to host women's World Cup games.

Nearly 90% of Kansas City hotels surveyed reported that bookings were running below projections — worse than any other host city, and with only weeks to go before the World Cup.

Hotel industry leaders worry that the World Cup's promised "hotel boom" is failing to materialize, while advocacy groups issued a travel advisory warning international visitors of likely civil rights violations by the Trump administration. But so far, Kansas City officials are sticking by their ambitious estimates.

With six months to go before the first matches, there are still reasonably priced rooms in the metro. More homeowners can also rent out their houses after local governments eased rules for short-term rentals.

With more than 6,000 open food service job listings and no coordinated plan to address staffing, Kansas City restaurant leaders worry they won’t be ready for the massive influx of World Cup visitors in 2026.

Hotel rooms, buses, and liquor laws are just a few of the problems that Kansas City will need to figure out in the next year, before the first World Cup games kick off at Arrowhead Stadium next June.

Prairie Village City Council voted 10-2 effectively ban short-term rentals inside the city, requiring all such properties have a minimum of a 30-day stay. Current owners will need to find a new use for their spaces by Nov. 1, 2025, or face fines of up to $500 per day.

The proposals would generate an estimated $6 million in revenue and are part of City Council’s recent efforts to better regulate short-term rentals, particularly after city reports showed an overwhelming majority of Airbnbs are unlicensed and skirt city law.

The audit estimates there are more than 1,800 short-term rentals in Kansas City — the equivalent of two downtown convention hotels — that aren't feeding into the local tax base

Port KC has approved the Origin Hotel with an exemption of roughly 62% of its total property tax over 20 years. Kansas City Public Schools called it an “inappropriate ask.”

Take a break from the planning, cooking and cleaning required for holiday entertaining with an evening of food and relaxation.

Hotels throughout metro Kansas City have been hit hard as meetings and conventions are canceled due to the pandemic and government-ordered lockdowns.