Skift Podcast: Travel's Tough Truths and Inspirations

Skift Take

Skift Founder and CEO Rafat Ali sparked some heated debate with a recent story on lessons he's learned about travel in the six years since he started the company. In this podcast, he riffs with Co-Founder Jason Clampet on uncomfortable observations as well as inspirations.

Skift Podcast

Compelling discussions with travel industry leaders and creatives who are helping to shape the future of travel.

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Skift has never been shy about provoking our readers, and one recent story — The 21 Uncomfortable Truths That I Have Learned About the Travel Industry – certainly did that job. It was the musing of Skift Founder and CEO Rafat Ali, timed to run as the company marked its sixth year.

The response, as Ali has noted, was overwhelming. “Awesome truth bombs,” one person wrote on LinkedIn. Others were less enamored. As a follow-up, Ali recently wrote a love letter of sorts to travel, naming 25 things that inspire him about the industry.

On this episode of the Skift podcast, we talk about uncomfortable and occasionally unpopular observations about travel. Are industry associations useless? Is domestic travel ignored? Why, for the love of god, is MICE a term that the industry has embraced? (We’ll also touch on the inspiring stuff, like travel's role in creating a global middle class.)

Our guests were Ali and co-founder Jason Clampet.

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