Travel Industry CEO Interviews

Kayak started the direct-booking trend among travel metasearch sites, but now CEO Steve Hafner says improvements have been made on partner sites so direct booking is no longer a priority and can hurt, rather than help, turning lookers into bookers. Have the conditions really changed or is this Priceline Group-speak?

At the core of Marriott's massive growth and marketing push is an attempt to evolve its hotel product to match guests' evolving expectations and not get left behind.

If Virgin Atlantic takes delivery of the 21 Dreamliners it has lined up, they will make up a majority of its fleet. With the airline's growth limited by Heathrow capacity constraints, taking advantage of the economic benefits of the new planes is of paramount importance.

Best Western has overcome its brand reputation in recent years to be recognized for its international foot print as well as innovation online and within properties.

Hotel Urbano is focused on being a Big Data-infused travel company with an online travel agency platform in Brazil, one of the largest emerging markets in the world. Hotel Urbano claims it is not only riding that demand, but is also creating it.

eDreams Odigeo's stock price has tanked since it started trading in April. Still, if you look at some of the company's technology advantages, the flight-search group has a lot of things going for it if the company can stick it out over the long term.

When online booking engines decimated the travel agent industry beginning in the late '90s, it was the "human vending machines" who went out of business, not the real travel advisors.

Given the consumer base of sister companies Booking.com, Agoda and Kayak, OpenTable now has the chance to expand beyond its traditional local orientation into a dining app for travelers, as well. Some of its learnings and technologies can also apply to hotels and tours and activities.

In the current M&A environment, HomeAway is both the pursued and the pursuer. And all of this takes place as HomeAway becomes an even more attractive acquisition target because it is getting aggressive and ahead of schedule, expecting a majority of its listings to be bookable online within two years.

Qunar CEO Chenchao "CC" Zhuang isn't like some travel bosses who claim their companies can differentiate themselves based on the experiences they provide. Zhuang wants to compete on comprehensiveness and price, and he claims Qunar's platform is driving such efficiencies that he can win on price and by showing loyalty to consumers' wallets.