Over 200 top companies plan to attend Skift Global Forum East in Dubai on December 12-14. This includes household names like Air Arabia, Auberge Resorts, Booking.com, Emirates, Hilton, Seera, and Shangri-La Group, just to name a few. View the companies attending: Last Year’s Numbers Don’t Miss Out Your ticket also includes access to an opening reception at Cloud 22, all conference sessions...
Scammers have been targeting Booking.com customers for years, and in the latest attempt to find victims, they have reportedly been placing ads on the dark web to obtain the passwords of Booking’s hotel partners. “Hackers are increasing their attacks on Booking.com customers by posting adverts on dark web forums asking for help finding victims,” the BBC reported last week. “Cyber-criminals are...
United Airlines is the only carrier that charges passengers for a carry-on when they fly basic economy for domestic routes. As other carriers have started including carry-ons into their basic economy fares, United chief commercial officer Andrew Nocella said the Chicago-based airline may reevaluate its policy in the future. Nocella said the main reason why United still charges for basic economy...
U.S. hotels have finally joined Europe and China in feeling a performance bite directly tied to the Omicron variant. Analysts were hesitant over the last few weeks to directly tie any performance dip seen around the world to Omicron due to the winter holidays. But U.S. hotel revenue per available room — the industry’s key performance metric — was down nearly 18 percent from the same week two...
In the first entry in our Fact from Fiction series on sustainability issues in tourism, we tackled the emergence of “regenerative tourism” and applied a critical lens that highlighted some of the opportunities and risks. We summarized it as a leap forward from sustainable tourism in that it seeks to maximize positive impacts rather than merely minimizing harms. That’s a common definition but one...
When your portfolio is lean in the part of the world that is performing relatively well through the pandemic, it might be time to panic. But Accor’s leaders have almost written off the idea of gaining more ground in the U.S. “We’re probably going to be nine months to 12 months late to the recovery cycle compared to pretty much everyone else,” Accor CEO Sebastien Bazin said this month at the...
Saudi Arabia wants to write and uphold official “7-star standards” at its upcoming ultra-luxury Sindalah Island. The idea of ‘7-star’ anything dates back to the opening of Dubai’s Burj Al Arab hotel, a distinction that operator Jumeirah has never liked using, nor has the emirate officiated. But Saudi Arabia wants to make it the real deal. Its $500 billion giga-project, NEOM, is hiring...
Travelport said Monday that it has raised $570 million in new equity from investors. Travelport said the deal creates a “new ownership structure” to include Elliott Investment Management, Davidson Kempner Capital Management, Canyon Partners, Siris Capital and other institutional investors. The company said in March that it had received a $200 million investment from its owners, which it...
Podcasts
Hyatt’s Resort Target, Despegar’s Acquisition and Hotels vs. OTAs
In major hospitality news, Hyatt is in talks to acquire Playa Hotels & Resorts, Despegar has agreed to a $1.7 billion buyout by Prosus, and a Skift Research report suggests hotel websites could surpass OTAs by 2030 – or maybe not.
Rashaad Jorden | 3 days ago
Podcasts
Hyatt’s Resort Target, Despegar’s Acquisition and Hotels vs. OTAs
In major hospitality news, Hyatt is in talks to acquire Playa Hotels & Resorts, Despegar has agreed to a $1.7 billion buyout by Prosus, and a Skift Research report suggests hotel websites could surpass OTAs by 2030 – or maybe not.
Rashaad Jorden | 2 days ago