Travel

Skift Take Hyatt’s brand muse Crystal Vinisse Thomas reveals the thinking behind her seven-figure marketing campaign for luxury lifestyle brand Andaz. Sean O’Neill Hyatt’s luxury lifestyle brand, Andaz, launched a brand awareness campaign in November called Be Like No One’s Watching. The campaign illustrates the many challenges and opportunities that hotel groups face as they

Skift Take Eight things jumped out at us from Wyndham annual financial filing. One surprise was that it has introduced an AI risk disclosure. That is something we expect will become commonplace in travel company filings. Sean O’Neill Wyndham is the world’s largest hotel franchisor, and we found a handful of noteworthy details in its

Skift Take More renewable jet fuel companies are raising money to develop products, but a lot more money is needed to reach the industry’s zero-emissions goals by 2050. Justin Dawes Three travel startups have announced fundraises of nearly $90 million over the last week.  >>Velocys, which develops tech to enable renewable jet fuel production, has

Skift Take The activist investor gained two seats on JetBlue’s board after acquiring a nearly 10% stake in the company. Meghna Maharishi JetBlue Airways announced Friday that two independent directors would join its board as part of a deal with activist investor Carl Icahn. Jesse Lynn, the general counsel of Icahn Enterprises, and Steve Miller,

Most tourism board CEOs come from the hotel or tourism industry. But Tourism Ireland’s new chief executive, Alice Mansergh, came from Google’s marketing side.  Mansergh took over in September, and was previously managing director for Google Customer Solutions for the UK and Ireland. She replaced Niall Gibbons, who had been CEO of Tourism Ireland for

Skift Take Today’s podcast looks at the impact of Choice Hotels on Wyndham’s fourth quarter, Expedia Group’s controversial ad, and Bali’s overtourism prevention tactics. Rashaad Jorden Good morning from Skift. It’s Friday, February 16. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel. Listen Now 🎧 Subscribe Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Overcast | Google Podcasts | Amazon Podcasts Episode Notes

Skift Take A potential buyer could decide to break up Tripadvisor’s parts, including Viator, TheFork, and metasearch, under the theory that the parts are worth more than the whole. Dennis Schaal The prospect of a deal to acquire Tripadvisor hung over the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call Thursday and executives didn’t offer any further details. Tripadvisor

Skift Take Today’s podcast looks at Marriott and Hilton’s top annual report takeaways, Airbnb’s artificial intelligence pathway to new verticals, and American Express’ new largest Centurion Lounge. Rashaad Jorden Good morning from Skift. It’s Thursday, February 15. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel. Listen Now 🎧 Subscribe Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Overcast | Google Podcasts | Amazon

Skift Take No, Brian Chesky isn’t necessarily talking about launching flights on Airbnb when he refers to becoming a “cross-vertical company.” Google Flights, relax. Dennis Schaal On the back of its November acquisition of GamePlanner.AI, Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky said his company can create a new AI interface, and that it will help transform Airbnb

Skift Take Ayodhya is at the center of hospitality development in India. IHCL, Radisson, and ITC are rapidly establishing their presence in the city to benefit from the tourist influx post the consecration ceremony of Ram Temple. Bulbul Dhawan EaseMyTrip.com has entered the hospitality market with the announcement of a five-star hotel in Ayodhya. The

Skift Take Icahn’s stake in JetBlue now makes him the third-largest investor in the airline. Meghna Maharishi JetBlue’s stock fell by nearly 50% in the past year as it reeled from the loss of its merger with Spirit Airlines and declining revenues.  Enter Carl Icahn.  The activist investor reported a 9.1% stake in JetBlue, saying

Skift Take As the travel industry grows in India, backed by investments in infrastructure and increased disposable income, MakeMyTrip is expanding its offerings. Bulbul Dhawan Online travel agency MakeMyTrip has announced the launch of ‘Business Class Funnel’ for international flights, with the aim of enhancing the booking experience of first- and business-class travelers. According to

Skift Take This collection and remittance is separate from Airbnb’s tax settlement of $620 million with Italy in December 2023. Srividya Kalyanaraman A new Italian law requires platforms like Airbnb to collect and remit tourist taxes in Italy. It starts Thursday, February 15, and Airbnb said it will comply beginning with more than 1,200 towns

Skift Take North Korea just might become a popular location for Russian travelers, with many destinations still having closed their doors to the group. Rashaad Jorden About 100 Russians flew to North Korea on Friday for a private tour, becoming the first foreign group to visit the reclusive state following the Covid-19 pandemic in a

Skift Take In May 2022, Marriott said it would let non-hotel marketers place ads on its site, lobby TVs, and guest-room Wi-Fi portals. But it’s been largely quiet since then. Here’s an update. Sean O’Neill In May 2022, Marriott launched the Marriott Media Network: The goal had been to let non-hotel marketers place ads on

It was another busy week for travel startup funding, and this time it was all early rounds with lower amounts. Eight industry startups from a variety of sectors and geographies announced fundraises of more than $30 million over the last week. Cosmic Aerospace: $4.5 million Cosmic Aerospace, which is developing an electric aircraft for flights

Skift Take Xīn nián kuài lè! (Happy Chinese Lunar New Year, to those who celebrate.) Sean O’Neill Yuwei Zhangzou represents a new type of Chinese tourist. Last month, the Shanghai-based fashion influencer had close encounters with reindeer, visited Santa’s village and stayed in a glass-enclosed treehouse during a trip that she organised herself to Finland.

Skift Take Big travel companies had higher priorities than to share data among one another. That’s one of the reasons Journera didn’t succeed. Dennis Schaal Seven-year-old travel tech startup Journera, which aimed to provide data to hotels and airlines to enable seamless customer trips, announced Thursday that it ceased operations. The company said it didn’t