Startups

There aren’t expectations for major shifts in vacation booking trends in 2013, but the marketplace for the services that offer is becoming more crowded than ever.

This week's SkiftSeedlings all tackle some component of trip planning whether it be searching for flights, discovering social activities, or creating customizable itineraries. These startups follow in the well-trodden footsteps…

It's likely the search giant will add Frommer's content into the mix once it gets normalized, if it hasn't already under Zagat branding.

SkiftSocial, our first data dashboard, is a window that allows the travel industry to discover the latest patterns and trends in the new social-driven world.

Given the huge concerns inherent in home exchanges, CasaHop may have been doomed from the beginning.

Neither company will likely make their goal of launching in 2014, but rather than spend millions on a spaceport, Branson would be wiser to look into acquiring the rocket scientists running XCOR.

"We're trying to create a conversation with our next best customer." That's AA's rationale, which if done well, could be a smart move long term.

UberTAXI claims to get users inside city cabs quicker, but at the cost of a $2 dispatch fee and mandatory 20 percent tip.

Everplaces is one of the few social travel apps to realize that more than photo and tip-sharing is needed to create a lucrative business, and then act to fill a niche in the travel sector.