Skift Take

Hitting the road, train station, bus station, or airport for Thanksgiving? Take these podcasts with you to ease the stress.

Thanksgiving is one of the more horrendous travel windows of the year, filled with delays and cancellations, clogged roadways and adverse weather, and that’s before the family gathering — potentially a minefield of political tension, especially this year.

So do yourself a favor: Block out the noise and tune into one of our favorite podcasts from 2016. You won’t regret it.

>>What’s Next for Choice and Loyalty in Air Travel

The experience of booking and taking flights has changed dramatically as airlines deconstruct their products to give passengers more choices for extra fees. At the same time, the value of loyalty programs has diminished, and credit card companies are trying to fill the void.

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>>What Online Travel Legends Say About the Future of Travel

You can’t afford to miss these heavy hitters: Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of Expedia Inc.; Jay Walker, founder of Priceline and CEO of Upside; Brad Gerstner, founder and CEO of Altimeter Capital; and Rich Barton, founder of Expedia and current executive chairman of Zillow Group.

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>>The Serious Business of Modern Theme Parks

North American theme park companies are finding new audiences in burgeoning markets like China, even as top players in Orlando and California keep upping their technology and raising prices.

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>>What Happens When Travel Meets Politics and Global Unrest

We recorded this episode well before the presidential election, but the conversation about how the travel industry can weather unexpected events is still well worth a listen.

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>>U.S. Workers and Their No-Vacation Nation

Headlines and surveys tell us that Americans are facing a leisure crisis by leaving millions of vacation days on the table. Why is the United States a no-vacation nation? And why does it matter?

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Tags: podcast, thanksgiving

Photo credit: People move about Grand Central Station in New York. Thanksgiving is one of the largest American migrations of the year. Frank Franklin II / Associated Press

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