Peden Doma Bhutia

Peden Doma Bhutia is Asia Editor at Skift, where she covers the travel industry across Southeast Asia and the broader Asia-Pacific region. Based in India, she reports on airlines, online travel companies, hospitality, travel technology and the business of travel, with a focus on how emerging markets are shaping global trends.

Tourism

Chinese Travelers Embrace AI While Outbound Travel Surges Back

The world’s biggest travel market is now being shaped by algorithms, as Chinese travelers lean on AI to plan trips, book last-minute, and travel more independently than ever.

Peden Doma Bhutia | 10 months ago

Hotels

Hotel Deals in Asia Pacific Fell Hard, but JLL Predicts a Fast Bounce Back

Hotel investment in Asia Pacific slowed sharply in the first half of 2025, but the pullback looks temporary. Lifestyle hotels, fueled by demand for design and experience, are positioned to drive the rebound.

Peden Doma Bhutia | 10 months ago

Airlines

Hong Kong Grounds Flights for 36 Hours Over Super Typhoon Threat

Hong Kong is a major aviation and logistics hub. A 36-hour suspension, or even a day of heavily curtailed operations, would ripple through global supply chains and connecting flights.

Peden Doma Bhutia | 10 months ago

Online Travel

Travel Legends Unplugged Tony Fernandes, Manfredi Lefebvre d’Ovidio and Bill Heinecke – Full Video

When three industry titans swap war stories and one-liners, you get more than laughs... You get a masterclass on how no industry mixes grit, glamour, and gut instinct quite like travel.

Peden Doma Bhutia | 10 months ago

Tourism

Skift Global Forum 2025: 13 Things We Learned

What's next for Airbnb? How are the most important travel companies using AI? And do travelers have 'price fatigue'? Here's what we heard from more than two dozen executives at the Skift Global Forum.

Lex Haris, Darin Graham, Dennis Schaal, Luke Martin, Meghna Maharishi, Peden Doma Bhutia, Rashaad Jorden, and Sean O'Neill | 10 months ago

Online Travel

Agoda’s Job Cuts Spark Outrage Over Clauses Silencing Workers

Agoda trimmed jobs in Singapore, Shanghai, and Budapest, but the layoffs aren’t what landed the online travel agency in trouble. The bigger controversy is how the company warned employees not to seek help from authorities or unions, with severance pay on the line if they did.

Peden Doma Bhutia | 10 months ago

Hotels

Oyo-Parent Prism Unifies Premium Hotels Under New ‘CheckIn’ Brand

CheckIn shows how Prism is trying to reinvent itself for a new kind of Indian traveler. It built its empire on budget hotels, but the company now sees its future in catering to people willing to pay more for better stays.

Peden Doma Bhutia | 10 months ago

Online Travel

How the Trip.com-Traveloka Deal Fits the Wider Asian OTA Picture

Two of the biggest online travel agencies in Asia have decided that sharing inventory is a faster route to scale than going it alone. That is the key takeaway.

Peden Doma Bhutia | 10 months ago

Skift CEO Rafat Ali in conversation with Group CEO and Founder of Prism, Ritesh Agarwal at the Skift Global Forum in New York on September 17.

Hotels

Oyo CEO Signals IPO Plans Under Review: “Actively Evaluating”

An Oyo IPO has been rumored for years, but CEO Ritesh Agarwal's shifting tone signals momentum. A listing in India would spotlight how the world’s fastest-growing travel market is also producing global hospitality players with scale and ambition to match.

Peden Doma Bhutia | 10 months ago

Hotels

Treebo to Spin Off Hotel Superhero Tech Platform, Plans Mid-Market Expansion

Treebo’s decision to spin off Hotel Superhero signals a bolder tech bet as it aims for a standalone revenue stream and broader customer base beyond its own hotels.

Peden Doma Bhutia | 10 months ago