Expedia’s Layoffs, Airbnb's Co-Founder Mode and Disney’s Hurricane Closures

Skift Daily Briefing Podcast

Listen to the day’s top travel stories in under four minutes every weekday.

Good morning from Skift. It’s Wednesday, March 5. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.

Expedia Group laid off hundreds of members of its marketing teams around the world ahead of a reorganization to come on March 12, reports Executive Editor Dennis Schaal. 

Schall notes the layoffs mostly impacted staff working in content creation. However, team members involved in performance marketing and media buying were largely unaffected. This is Expedia’s second round of layoffs since last year, when the company announced it was trimming around 1,500 workers — roughly 9% of its workforce.    

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Next, Airbnb is distancing itself from the personal opinions of co-founder Joe Gebbia, a vocal supporter of President Trump and member of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, writes Schaal. 

Gebbia has also served as chair of the nonprofit Airbnb.org since its inception in 2020. Airbnb.org has helped provide temporary housing to refugees, asylum seekers and victims of natural disasters. However, Gebbia has heavily criticized European and U.S. refugee policies. 

A spokesperson for Airbnb told Skift that Gebbia’s personal views don’t reflect those of Airbnb or Airbnb.org. Nulty added that Gebbia hasn’t held an operating role at Airbnb since July 2022. 

Finally, Walt Disney World has seen shutdowns caused by extreme weather become more frequent over the past decade, writes Climate Reporter Darin Graham. 

The Florida theme park has either closed partly or completely at least 12 times since 2016 due to hurricanes. Walt Disney World only had four hurricane-related closures between 2000 and 2016. International Theme Park Services Chief Executive Dennis Speigel estimates that Walt Disney World loses around $45 million each day it closes, not including any losses from damage to park infrastructure.