Coronavirus Travel News

Join Skift Airline Weekly and Skift aviation business editors this week for a dive into the top shifts happening across the airline industry. March was a month of historic tumult for airlines, and the prospects are not looking any better in April.

Silver Lake and Sixth Street likely got a very attractive deal in exchange for their investment.

Carnival is facing two unprecedented crises: Lost revenue from the complete cessation of its cruising operations and an optics nightmare that puts the future of cruising's popularity in genuine doubt.

New tech can screen passengers for elevated heart rates, respiratory rates, and temperatures. The kiosks sound minimal enough. But their accuracy and speed still need to be proven under busy airport conditions.

The Hilton and American Express partnership is the latest in a growing list of hospitality companies looking to pump life into empty hotels during the coronavirus downturn in travel.

As realization sinks in that the coronavirus catastrophe will change travel behaviors, marketers are figuring out how the crisis will reshape clients and and how their brands can remain relevant.

Crisis or not, the U.S. government made it clear that airlines owe refunds to a lot of customers. Airlines don't want to see cash go out the door, so look for more carriers to take creative approaches to try to buy passengers off and keep them from asking for their money back.

Quarantines and lockdowns are driving huge spikes in online traffic, and digital marketing may be more effective than ever when the crisis ends. In the meantime, ad tech companies need to prove their worth by helping suppliers plan how to re-activate their marketing campaigns at the right time — and in the best ways.

The association's nod to airlines that they can withhold cash will not mean much without official government recognition, meaning the refund debate has just become political.

With borders shut and hotels closed during the coronavirus pandemic, this could be the moment for remote training — and virtual reality’s role — in hospitality to shine and take off.