A Lisbon Luxury Hotel Group's Experience Hosting Erasmus+ Hospitality Interns

Estrela Hotel Group had tried managing international interns independently, but the administrative complexity — from Erasmus+ agreements to accommodation logistics to insurance — was overwhelming their small HR team. They needed a partner who understood both hospitality and mobility programme requirements.

Piktalent's hospitality recruitment team matched the hotel group with candidates from hospitality management programmes across France, Germany, and the Netherlands. Each intern was screened for language skills, service orientation, and cultural adaptability before being proposed to Estrela.

The results spoke for themselves. Interns brought multilingual capabilities that directly improved guest interactions, particularly with international visitors. The hotels saw measurable improvements in guest satisfaction scores during intern cohort periods. Two standout interns were offered permanent management trainee positions.

Sofia Mendes, Estrela's HR Director, credits the partnership's success to Piktalent's understanding of the hospitality sector: 'They don't just find us interns — they find us future hoteliers who share our service philosophy.'

The intern rotation across the group's three properties is now a structured pipeline: front-office at the boutique flagship in Chiado, food-and-beverage at the riverside property in Belém, and revenue / events at the smallest property in Príncipe Real. Each intern spends roughly four weeks in two of those settings, giving them a 360° view of luxury operations and giving Estrela a deeper read on which functions each candidate is suited to before any conversation about a permanent contract.