Raini Hamdi, Skift
After Indonesia, Grab’s next biggest battleground is Vietnam. No surprise there, it's a rapidly growing economy with all the ingredients for a ridehailing explosion. Naturally Grab is not alone — rivals are aplenty.
3 weeks ago
Dennis Schaal, Skift
TripAdvisor's new ad campaign is more hip than its usual fare. It also shows where its business is heading with hotel booking eventually having to share the limelight with tours and dining.
4 weeks ago
Patrick Whyte, Skift
CEO Gary Morrison has shaken things up since taking over at Hostelworld last year. His new strategy will take time to play out, but as a niche business, it seems sensible to try and do things differently from the big, generalist online travel agencies.
4 weeks ago
Dennis Schaal, Skift
Whether it's payments or overtourism, Booking Holdings CEO Glenn Fogel has a lot to say about — and a lot of influence over — the future of travel. His views, you'll see, aren't always politically correct.
4 weeks ago
Sean O'Neill, Skift
It's no surprise to see Skyscanner absorb the last bits of the user-generated reviews brand formerly known as Gogobot. But the price-comparison search company's bet on soliciting reviews from its own customers remains intriguing. The move highlights its ambition to become a superapp for travel.
1 month ago
John Lauerman and Lisa Pham, Bloomberg
A drop in the value of the British pound relative to the euro and the dollar is pressuring On the Beach. Smaller players like this UK-based packaged-vacation seller can't afford the currency hedges and other benefits of scale that larger players can. More industry consolidation is likely as a result.
1 month ago
Dennis Schaal, Skift
A new loyalty program and a brand campaign to bolster direct traffic and user engagement are among the measures TripAdvisor is working on to counter the fact that Google is getting more stingy in providing free traffic. But TripAdvisor is also hoping — and anticipating — that U.S. regulators will step in.
1 month ago
Patrick Whyte, Skift
On the back of an impressive set of first-half results, Lastminute.com is casting the net further afield in the search for new acquisitions. Buying up companies in other parts of the world doesn't always work out, so executives will have to choose wisely.
1 month ago
Dennis Schaal, Skift
Booking Holdings, along with Expedia Group, have both had to deal with acquisitions and integrations that have been taking too long. Booking officials are undoubtedly frustrated with the pace of progress at OpenTable and Rentalcars.com. At Expedia Group, Vrbo has been a multiyear reclamation project. To the speedster go the spoils.
1 month ago
Dennis Schaal, Skift
It appears as though big hotel brands that scream the loudest can get a reprieve from Booking.com's resort-fee commission charges. But that reprieve appears to only be temporary.
1 month ago
Dennis Schaal, Skift
The professionalization of Airbnb may mean cleaner bedsheets and more front desks. But it may also contribute to higher home prices to the detriment of housing-squeezed neighborhoods — and a brand identity that is in dire need of a reboot.
1 month ago
Dennis Schaal, Skift
Glenn Fogel adding CEO to his Booking.com title as Gillian Tans transitioned to a one-year chairwoman role was not the only element of the management shakeup at the parent company's largest brand in June. The executive changes were more far-reaching, and the implications are open-ended.
2 months ago
