U.S. Travel Just Got More Complicated

Subscribe Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube | RSS

New U.S. entry rules and fees are adding friction for travelers, as hotel giants quietly reshape midscale stays and buffets face a sustainability overhaul.

On today’s Skift Daily Briefing, Sarah Dandashy breaks down what travelers actually need to know about new U.S. entry requirements, why more hotels will look familiar, but feel more consistent, and how food waste cuts could change the classic hotel breakfast.

This episode is presented by ⁠⁠⁠⁠Lodgify!⁠⁠⁠⁠

Articles Referenced: Honorable Mention: @AskAConcierge on IG
U.S. Travel Restrictions 2026: What Travelers Need to Know
IHG, Marriott, Hyatt Lean on Conversions for Midscale Growth
Hotels Target Buffets in Push to Cut Food Waste

Watch This Episode

Welcome back to the Skift Daily Briefing.

It’s Friday, April 3rd. I’m Sarah Dandashy, and today we’re talking about new friction points entering the US, a wave of mid-scale hotel conversions from the big brands, and why hotel buffets are officially in the sustainability hot seat.

Let’s get into it. First up, where US travel restrictions stand today. So if you’re planning a US trip this year, the rules and fees have gotten a whole lot, I don’t know, noisier.

Skift breaks down what’s in effect, what’s proposed, and what’s still not live just yet.

So what’s real right now includes higher costs in a few places, like a higher ESTA fee for visa waiver travelers, an increased I-94 fee for some land entries and new national park pricing for non-US residents in certain parks.

Now the big one that everyone keeps hearing about is a 250 visa integrity fee. It’s signed into law, but still not implemented just yet. And even advocates say confusion about it is already impacting perception.

So the bottom line is if you’re traveling to the US, double check requirements early, not just because everything has changed, but because the uncertainty itself is becoming part of the travel experience. Next up, same place, new name.

Mid-scale growth is coming through conversions. A big shift you’ll already notice when booking hotels. IHG, Marriott, Hyatt are leaning into mid-scale growth by converting existing hotels instead of building new ones.

Why will construction costs are up? Financing is tighter. And in expensive cities, it’s harder to make the math work for new mid-scale builds.

Conversions are, of course, faster, cheaper, and they get the brand on the map quickly.

IHG, for example, says conversions drove 52% of its room openings in 2025, and its Garner brand hit 100 open hotels fast, while Hyatt and Marriott are expanding newer mid-scale flags and pushing into Europe with conversion-friendly models.

The takeaway here, travelers are going to see familiar brands on buildings that used to be independent, and ideally that means more consistency at a price point people actually want right now.

And finally, buffets are first in line as hotels pledge to have food waste. Hotels and travel companies are putting buffets under the microscope.

A group of 11 companies signed a UN-backed pledge to have food waste, and operators are calling out breakfast buffets as a major source of waste, understandably so, and also a hidden cost line.

One industry stat cited, up to 15% of purchased food is never even consumed, and some brands are shifting toward smaller portions, more made-to-order cooking and tighter tracking, including tech that weighs and identifies what’s being tossed.

The bottom line here is that this is one of those changes that’s good for the planet, but hotels are doing it because it’s also good for margins, and that may quietly change what breakfast included actually looks like for the future.

Well, that’s it for the Skift Daily Briefing. For more travel industry news and analysis, head to skift.com. And to subscribe to the Skift Daily Briefing, go to skift.com/daily.

Thanks so much for listening.