Google Maps Expands Activities Offerings

Good morning from Skift. It’s Wednesday, October 12. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.

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Episode Notes

Business travel is still not back to pre-pandemic levels, but it is making steady progress. Take United Airlines, which recorded a post-Labor Day increase in corporate travel bookings that brought them up to 70 percent of 2019 levels, reports Edward Russell, editor of Airline Weekly, a Skift brand.

Glenn Hollister, the company’s vice president of sales strategy and effectiveness, said United doesn’t see any changes in corporate booking activity during the rest of 2022. The Global Business Travel Association has said it doesn’t expect the sector to make a full recovery until 2026.

Next, Google has taken a major step in making Google Maps an even more critical resource in trip planning. The tech giant announced on Tuesday that it’s now expanding its Things to Do feature into Google Maps, reports Executive Editor Dennis Schaal in this week’s Online Travel Briefing.

Richard Holden, Google’s vice president of travel products, said travelers will be able to compare the prices of attraction tickets, for example, in Things to Do on Google Maps. Google started displaying ticket booking links in Google Search last year to help travelers quickly compare admission prices across different partners.

In addition, Google said it’s in the initial stages of introducing links in Google Search for tours connected to attractions. Schaal cited a combined tour of the Vatican and the Colosseum as an example.

Finally, Delta Air Lines had been hesitant to become involved in the growing electric air taxi market. But the Atlanta-based airline has finally joined the fray, with plans to invest as much as $200 million in electric air taxi developer Joby Aviation, reports Rusell, editor of Airline Weekly, a Skift brand.

Delta will initially invest $60 million in Joby, a figure that could increase to $200 million if Joby meets certain development milestones. The deal could bring Delta into the electric air taxi market as soon as 2024. However, Russell writes that timeline is suspect due to uncertainty surrounding the certification of such aircraft.

Delta joins rivals such as American Airlines and United Airlines in the electric air taxi market amid an industry push to increase travelers’ trips to and from nearby airports. Delta and Joby plan to transport passengers in the Los Angeles and New York markets initially before expanding to other areas.