Skift Take
Today’s edition of Skift’s daily podcast examines Israel’s tourist shutdown, the end of Airbnb Plus, and Puerto Rico’s brand-new marketing campaign.
Rashaad Jorden
Excellent early morning from Skift. It’s Tuesday, October 10. Here’s what you require to know about business of travel today.
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Episode Notes
Israel had high hopes this year for its tourism sector this year as it looked for to surpass 2019 visitor numbers. But Hamas’ surprise attack on the nation, which has actually led to a minimum of 1,000 deaths, has totally halted Israel’s tourist industry, composes Middle East Reporter Josh Corder and Asia Editor Peden Doma Bhutia.
Corder and Bhutia report that significant airlines worldwide, consisting of American Airlines and Air India, have actually stopped paths to Israel. Meanwhile, a number of governments, such as the U.S., have actually released “Do Not Travel” cautions to Gaza and advised their residents to work out care when taking a trip to Israel.
Israeli officials had actually expressed optimism earlier this year the country could set tourism records in 2023. However, Israel was currently having a hard time to meet its targets before the recent attacks. Moreover, carriers stopping flights from the Americas and Europe, both large source markets, will likely have a major effect on visitor numbers for the rest of the year.
Next, Airbnb is ending its Airbnb Plus program, reports Managing editor Dennis Schaal.
Schaal writes Airbnb viewed the program as a way to get and promote and press unique listings that satisfied roughly 100 style expectations. Nevertheless, he notes that Airbnb Plus sputtered and never ever came close to meeting expectations, with numerous industry professionals questioning the effectiveness of it for both hosts and visitors. In addition, Airbnb hasn’t onboarded any brand-new Airbnb Plus listings in some time.
The official end date for the program is November 6.
Finally, Puerto Rico is introducing a brand-new tourism project geared towards travelers unable to take specific journeys since they couldn’t obtain their passport in time, composes Global Tourism Reporter Dawit Habtemariam.
Habtemariam reports that the “No Passport, No Problem” campaign will introduce next month. It intends to remind Americans they don’t need a passport to visit Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory. Discover Puerto Rico Chief Marketing Officer Leah Chandler stated about a 3rd of Americans are unaware that journeys to the island do not require a passport.
While the number of Americans traveling abroad is continuing to surge, Habtemariam notes that the typical wait time to get a U.S. passport is in between 10 and 13 weeks.