U.S. Push to Attract Chinese Tourists Faces Flight Limit Hurdle

Good morning from Skift. It’s Tuesday, July 11. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.

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Episode Notes

U.S. destination marketing organizations are eager to increase their marketing activities in China later this year. So how successful will those efforts be? Global Tourism Reporter Dawit Habtemariam writes that any success depends on flights between the countries returning to pre-pandemic levels. 

Gloria Lan, CEO of tour operator Tour America, said a lot of destination marketing organizations are planning to travel to China to start soliciting business. Habtemariam cites Visit California as one travel brand sending representatives to China in the near future. However, weekly flights between the two countries are far below 2019 levels. Habtemariam adds some destination marketing organizations don’t plan to invest heavily in China until air connectivity improves, citing Meet Boston as one example.

We turn next to a comparison between hotel giants Marriott and Hilton. Skift Research’s new report examines the fierce competition the two companies are engaged in, especially in areas such as net unit growth.

Senior Research Analyst Pranavi Agarwal writes Skift Research compares Marriott and Hilton and analyzes the differences in net unit growth, segment mix and profit margins coming into the second half of 2023. While Marriott is the largest branded hotel in the U.S., Agarwal notes its pipeline isn’t growing as fast as Hilton’s. 

Finally, India’s aviation industry is poised for a major hiring surge, writes Middle East and Asia Reporter Amrita Ghosh in Skift’s India Newsletter. 

Ghosh reports that Air India recently announced it would hire more than 1,000 pilots to support its fleet expansion. That comes after its low-cost subsidiary Air India Express hired more than 280 pilots and 250 cabin crew during a recruitment drive across three major cities. In addition, India’s civil aviation ministry has created more than 1,200 new jobs — close to 800 of which are to help overcome a shortage of air traffic control officers.