2020 Archives

There's always some give-and-take whenever any customer places a big order for anything. But did Airbus go too far to try to sway AirAsia? And what will this mean for CEO Tony Fernandes' grand digital plans?

Travel companies with a big exposure to China are already feeling the impact of the coronavirus outbreak. For others, the opposite is true — at least for now.

U.S. hoteliers are finding their pricing options constrained because of an influx of both short-term rental supply during peak periods, and because of hotel construction. Hoteliers may decide to get into the short-term rental market or not, but they increasingly have to take it into account when fine-tuning pricing strategies.

Responding to the burden that tourism can bring requires more than tacking on the idea of management to tourism boards’ activities; it requires a paradigm shift in how destinations operate. That shift is under way.

In hospitality news this week, hotels are finding it confusing to straddle state and federal laws when it comes to marijuana. Is legal pot a liability or opportunity? Plus, fast-rising Oyo Hotels & Homes has slammed on the brakes in the U.S., laying off a third of its team and switching up its strategy.

This week in digital news, swiping a credit card to make a purchase suddenly seems dated. In a field rife with options, travel brands should take care to make sure customers can pay by their preferred method. Plus, a wave of new regulatory reviews of online travel platforms could reveal key business practices that were previously shrouded.

This week in aviation news, carbon offsetting has become a popular way for airlines to improve their image, but the reality is they are still pumping millions of tons of CO2 into the air. In addition, the coronavirus continued to hamper travel, including cancelled flights for airlines.

Airlines have tried to get out in front of regulators when it comes to sustainability. But their tweaks and solutions only scratch the surface of the problem. In 20 years' time, will we all look back on an era of frequent flying as one of dangerous excess?

Frontify helps companies like Lufthansa keep their brand assets in order, while Upgrade Pack offers a subscription service for access to exclusive discounts on flight and hotel upgrades, plus other interesting startup ideas in this week's funding roundup.

Once again a deadly health scare proves to be the only thing that can stop travel. The older Asian tourism members understand this from the SARS crisis, and now the millennials are witnessing it too.