Coronavirus and Travel

Airbnb is indeed showing strength, but is its hubris about leading the travel recovery a bit overblown?

These latest company budgets and stricter travel programs are concrete evidence that there's simply no going back to 2019 levels.

Major hotel companies don’t want to ruffle any investor feathers at a time when profitability is just returning and labor remains fragile. But it’s better to be honest — and prepared — about what the next few months could look like with new strains of the virus and deploy a new recovery strategy.

While much of the talk these days is about digital nomads and remote workers, both Expedia Group and Booking Holdings have doubled down on commitments to brick and mortar headquarters. Which could mean that there may be real offices again after the pandemic.

What is required for the new normal of crossing borders while living with Covid is government coordination, user experience, simplicity, and accessibility when it comes to registering and sharing data. The best countries with the smartest, most streamlined approaches will win out.

It's the first big light in the tunnel for Fiji Islands as vaccinations put the remote islands on the path to restarting tourism by December, with a new leader at the helm.

Luxury and lifestyle hotels are the industry's new battlefield for growth. IHG's rapid growth in this sector with new brands over the last few years boils down to one thing: This company isn't just ceding high-end customers to companies like Accor, Hilton, and Marriott.

Profitability is basically a foregone conclusion at this point for IHG, given its significant presence in the drive-to and leisure space. Investors now want to see how the company can beef up its growth trajectory coming out of the pandemic.

Accor has plenty of opportunities to transform itself into more of a lifestyle brand, but every one of its competitors is playing this strategy to some degree. Finding a way to stand out is easier said than done.

The U.S. hotel industry’s recovery is volatile heading into fall, especially in major cities. A vaccine mandate like at Ian Schrager’s Public Hotel is an added security blanket — but a bigger hotel company might face legal challenges trying to implement something like this in more anti-vax parts of the country.