Articles tagged “business travel”

Lola's new group management travel tools are useful for small companies that don't want to deal with the hassle of creating a heavily managed travel program. Its upcoming marketing push will likely prove crucial as the company looks to attract more customers in a crowded business travel booking sector.

American's bare-bones basic economy fares are about to start appearing on long-haul routes.

Now that Hogg Robinson Group is out of the picture because of a merger, Australia's Corporate Travel Management is one of the largest public corporate travel management companies in the world. It's setting its sights on expansion in the U.S., but entering the market has its challenges.

When we asked then-Expedia CEO Dara Khosrowshahi in 2016 whether Airbnb was going to eat his lunch, he responded that he was very well-nourished. But it now appears as though Airbnb has an insatiable appetite. Join us on a Skift Call March 13 to assess the Airbnb threat to hotels and online travel agencies.

The foundational work is being done to help corporate travel catch up to online travel in terms of booking technology and service delivery, although no one is really sure when the foundational work will end.

Even big travel management companies, which usually resist change, are planning ahead to better anticipate traveler and travel manager needs. No one's quite sure when this more connected and insightful future will arrive, though.

Both Qantas and Virgin Australia should have Wi-Fi available on all domestic flights by the end of 2018. While travelers want to stay connected, they probably won’t pay for Wi-Fi, but might choose flights on the basis of internet coverage, especially on longer routes.

Consolidation has been expected across corporate travel, but it was surprising to see American Express Global Business Travel emerge as a buyer so soon after its integration of KDS. As business travel has gone increasingly global, the combination with Hogg Robinson would be in a good spot to service clients across the world.

Any research into cutting down the congestion and confusion at the boarding gate is welcome in our books.

American Express Global Business Travel is making a shrewd, and expensive, move to become the world's biggest travel management company by a wide margin. More consolidation is almost certain to hit corporate travel as a result.