Furloughed Japanese airline staff to work as Shinto shrine attendants during New Year's holidays

Around the world, many furloughed employees are toughing out the coronavirus pandemic by taking second or third jobs.

Sonesta International to Acquire Red Lion Hotels

Sonesta continues its streak as one of the hotel industry’s biggest pandemic success stories with plans to acquire RLH Corp. -Cameron Sperance

10 songs that bring back memories of my travels: Cerys Matthews’ playlist

The musician and radio presenter is transported to a porch in Mississippi, a dance floor in Santiago de Cuba and a bar stool on the Wild Atlantic Way “Go to Addis!” Three words from author and poet Lemn Sissay made me book a flight and finally head to Ethiopia – a land of music, history, food and nature. The trip was too short, though we did meet Mulatu Astatke, father of Ethio-jazz, on his home turf, visited a coffee plantation and drank the best coffee in the world, saw several hippos and fell in love with the marabou storks, as tall as me and as characterful as our older generations. We tried tej (honey wine) at the Fendika Cultural Centre in Addis Ababa, saw the young generation play and dance to ancient songs , then watched a DJ session by Melaku, surrounded by his record collection. Also check out Hailu Mergia and Homesickness by Tsegué Maryam Guèbronwells. Continue reading...

Country diary: a 'mountain' town much like Chamonix

Keswick, Cumbria: The comparatively diminutive stature is more than made up for by the zeal with which its residents practise the religions of the outdoors The car hums along the dual carriageway, a warm, dark cocoon for two slumbering children after the stimulus of nursery. The sodium glow from the lights of Keswick slides into view and my eye is drawn to the encircling peaks. I trace the muscular outline of Skiddaw and find what I’m looking for, pinpricks of light dancing downward on a huge black triangular canvas. Nestled in a cradle of enclosing hills, Keswick is most certainly a “mountain” town in the same sense as Chamonix or Banff. The comparatively diminutive stature of the Lakeland fells is more than made up for by the zeal with which its residents practise the religions of the outdoors – walking, running, riding, climbing, flying, paddling or sliding. Continue reading...

New Year's Eve celebrations around the world: readers’ travel tips

Our tipsters have seen in the new year stargazing in the Atacama desert, partying hard in New Orleans and jiving in Cape Town Our all-girls group’s plans to celebrate New Year’s Eve while camping and stargazing in Chile’s eerie Atacama Desert almost went wrong. Thanks to Jesus, it all worked out. Our tight budget led us to rent a Jeep from a backstreet car-hire firm in San Pedro. Result – a breakdown in the middle of nowhere. Fortunately, a friendly group of locals led by the aptly named Jesus, who had some mechanical knowledge, were also heading out to the desert and stopped to help us. Result: a shared trip, wine, food, campfires and songs in English and Spanish under the mystical Atacama skies to see out and welcome in the year in a stunning setting and with great company. Yasmin Cox Continue reading...

The Best Travel Writing of the Year: Our Favorite Stories of 2020

In a year when the pandemic defined our coverage for its devastation to travel and, yes, at times, its opportunities, we asked Skift’s tireless reporters and editors to pick their favorite stories from 2020. Here’s an inside look at how those stories came to be, how they were reported, and what it was like to chronicle a year that none of us will ever forget. -Tom Lowry

American Airlines Completes First U.S. 737 Max Flight After 20-Month Safety Ban

A huge media spectacle on Tuesday for the return of the Boeing 737 Max to U.S. skies, which the manufacturer and the airline industry hope goes a long way to reassuring the public that the jet is safe to fly. -Tom Lowry

Airlines Tweak Their Pricing Strategies to Adopt New Ways to Boost Revenue

Airlines need to shift from forecasting models that rely primarily on historical data to ones that analyze real-time demand. That's how Amazon and other e-commerce companies handle pricing. No wonder travel tech players PROs, Amadeus, Sabre, and Flyr spy an opportunity. -Sean O'Neill

Airplanes to Be Regulated for Greenhouse Gas Emissions Under New U.S. Environmental Standards

Until now. airplanes have been the largest source of transportation greenhouse gas emissions not subject to rules in the U.S. These new regs will play catch-up to the rest of the world. -Tom Lowry

Boeing 737 Max Set to Resume U.S. Flights Tuesday But Flyers Still Wary: New Poll

The airlines still have some convincing to do to make passengers feel safe about flying on the Boeing 737 Max again, this poll suggests. American Airlines will put the jet back in the air on Tuesday. -Tom Lowry

Pandemic Travel Buzzwords We Hope Get Left Behind in 2020

Hygiene theater. Pivot. Revenge travel, and many more. It looks like it's going to take a lot more than a pandemic to end the travel industry's love of pithy, jargony buzzwords and phrases. -Tom Lowry

2020 wasn't all terrible. Here's how travel benefited from a bad year

Brilliant tour operators going out of business. Airlines reliant on government handouts. Travelers left out of pocket on canceled trips they'd spent years planning.

2 Delta passengers open the door of a moving plane and slide out (with a dog) at LaGuardia Airport

Two passengers on a Delta flight bound for Atlanta opened a cabin door and activated the slide to exit the plane while it was taxiing to a runway at New York's LaGuardia Airport on Monday morning, an airline spokesman said.

The chateaux’s shut: will a yurt do? Staycations keep millions at home

Domestic holidays are booked solid – but uncertainty over lockdowns has hit foreign travel * Coronavirus – latest updates * See all our coronavirus coverage The fresh round of travel restrictions and lockdowns in the UK is set to stretch the summer staycation boom well into 2021, as consumers anxious about travelling abroad plan domestic breaks to have something to look forward to in the grim months ahead. From canal boat holidays in obscure rural outposts to cosy self-catering cottages and glamping, Britons are organising local breaks in favour of traditional family holidays abroad, operators say. Continue reading...

The bumper Boxing Day travel quiz

Panto trip this year? Oh, no there isn’t. Instead, charge everyone’s glass and take a whirl around the world with our fiendish quiz? How many countries border Germany? Six Seven Eight Nine Which country is Christmas Island an external territory of? Australia Canada New Zealand United Kingdom In which modern-day country was St Nicholas born? Israel Lapland Syria Turkey How many countries border Brazil? 6 8 10 12 Lilongwe is the capital of which African country? Zaire Malawi Eswatini Mozambique Which city would you be in if you’d landed at Louis Armstrong airport? New Orleans Chicago Nashville Kansas City Good King Wenceslas was a 10th-century ruler of Bohemia, which is in which modern-day country? Poland Slovakia Czech Republic Hungary In which country do they tuck into deep-fried Emperor moth caterpillars on Christmas Day? Colombia Australia Thailand South Africa In which country is eating KFC a Christmas tradition? Japan Mexico Egypt Taiwan What traditional food do the Portuguese eat with boiled vegetables on Christmas Eve? Clams Alheira sausage Bacalão, or salt cod Tripe Which country gobbles up the most turkey per head in a year? United States Israel Mexico United Kingdom Which is Canada’s largest province by area – and second by population? British Columbia Ontario Northwest territories Quebec The world’s oldest national park opened in 1872. Where is it? The Lake District, called by William Wordsworth a "sort of national property, in which every man has a right and interest". Yosemite, California Yellowstone, mostly in Wyoming Royal National Park, New South Wales Mount Chimborazo in Ecuador is known for being? The furthest point from the centre of the planet The highest mountain in the Americas north of Peru A double volcano, one on top of the other All of the above The world’s largest iceberg (known as A68a) is currently on a collison course with which island? Tierra del Fuego South Georgia Tasmania Newfoundland On which actual island is Love Island filmed? Corfu Ibiza Lanzarote Mallorca Which is the largest country in Africa by territory? Sudan Algeria Chad Libya Altitude sickness-inducing La Paz is well known as the world's highest-altitude capital. But which is the lowest? Baku, Azerbaijan Amsterdam Tunis Victoria, Seychelles The Caspian Sea is officially the world's largest lake, but its waters are slightly salty. Which is the largest freshwater lake by volume? Lake Superior Lake Victoria Lake Michigan Lake Baikal Kazakhstan is the largest of the Central Asia 'stans (and eighth largest country in the world). But which is the smallest 'stan? Turkmenistan Uzbekistan Tajikistan Turkmenistan 18 and above. Behold you have reached the top of travel mountain! Astonishing work 13 and above. Impressive … but a little shy of travel greatness 7 and above. Hmm, not terrible, but more travel knowledge is needed 0 and above. Well now, this is awkward. Better luck next time. Continue reading...

U.S. to Require Negative Covid Tests for Inbound Airline Passengers From the UK

Voluntary measures by airlines were just made mandatory by the U.S. government starting Monday. Smart move, since there are so many unknown variables about this new strain of coronavirus. -Tom Lowry

See what Bethlehem is like this Christmas

This Christmas is like no other in Bethlehem -- the biblical birthplace of Jesus Christ. Christmas celebrations are scaled back and social distancing measures are in place to curb the spread of Covid-19. Elliot Gotkine reports.

Why Barcelona Is Becoming a Hub for Travel Startups

A new study highlights Barcelona's recent growth as a hub for travel startups. A rich tourism history, a sun-dappled location, and a favorable cost-of-living. The pitch is certainly attractive. -Sean O'Neill

The Biggest Challenge to the Recovery of Hotels in 2021

Leisure travelers proved there was pent-up vacation demand once travel restrictions lifted. Hotel owners need the corporate travel and events sector to follow suit in 2021. -Cameron Sperance

Expedia’s Shuttering of Another Brand Points to a Clash of Online Travel Strategies

Stay deep or go wide? Online travel companies from Expedia to Airbnb and Booking.com are grappling with these issues. Focusing on core products can clearly be a winning formula, but when you are a public company, pressure to generate growth from new areas is a constant conundrum. -Dennis Schaal

Video: A Candid Talk on Conservation and Equity in the American West at Skift Short-Term Rental & Outdoor Summit 🔒

Striking a balance between the need for tourist dollars and protecting fragile ecosystems and sacred sites is a growing challenge, particularly in the American West. The pandemic has driven people to the great outdoors. Catch up with some innovative ideas here that are addressing these concerns. -Tom Lowry

10 songs that bring back memories of my travels: Johny Pitts's playlist

The TV presenter and author’s personal selection basks in memories of Route 66, Marseille, Tokyo and Miami Vice My dad passed away in December 2019. Shortly before he died, after reading my book Afropean, Dad told me to listen to Miles Davis’s output during the 1980s, specifically “the Miles Davis reggae track” from the album Tutu. Despite winning a Grammy, this album emerged during Davis’s late period, when his star was burning out (with a cameo as a pimp in Miami Vice, and so on), and isn’t necessarily the era jazz aficionados look to when talking about Miles. To me, though, it evokes a sort of experimental, peripheral black space – out of sync with expectations, yet the ultimate expression of the African diaspora. I could imagine this music providing the score to an independent film noir by Melvin Van Peebles, for instance. Tutu transports me to that imaginative African geography known as “the Black Atlantic”, and was the album that got me through 2020; don’t lose your mind, indeed. Thank you, Dad. Continue reading...

Trucks turned away from ferry port as France shuts border with UK

A growing number of European countries halted flights from the UK following the discovery of a new variant of Covid-19, said by officials to spread faster than others. CNN's Salma Abdelaziz has more.

Buy the smell of 'home' with a bottle of UK air – yours for £25

Whiff of desperation? Inhale the aroma of Snowdonia and even the London tube – or just enjoy a cheeky novelty gift of an empty bottle Just when you thought things couldn’t get more ridiculous in this most surreal of years, a company is now selling empty bottles for £25. Relocation website My Baggage is marketing “bottled air” from different parts of the UK, claiming a whiff of home can help homesick expats “reconnect” with their roots – and could appeal to those in lockdown, too. Continue reading...

Hotels See Higher Payroll Relief Under New Government Aid But Say More Stimulus Needed

The hotel industry qualifies for larger small business loans under the new coronavirus relief measure. That's reason for it to celebrate, but the industry will still need what it considers a real stimulus bill with incentives to revive travel demand in the long-term. -Cameron Sperance

United Promises to Leave No Covid-Infected Pilot Behind

Ordinarily, an airline might refuse to transport a passenger with Covid-19. But airlines know they need to repatriate crew members who develop Covid-19 abroad. If they do not, crew members might refuse to fly the trips, and airlines would lose revenue. -Brian Sumers

Llivia: The Spanish town stranded in France

The view from the castle is so magnificent that it's easy to understand why warring empires didn't want to concede this gentle green valley, tucked between the snow-capped peaks of the Catalan Pyrenees.

Airport Startup Aims to Help Frazzled Traveling Families as Part-Nanny, Part-Concierge

Families traveling by air have often been seen as a nuisance by fellow travelers and airlines alike. How can air travel be more appealing for families with small children after the pandemic? -Ruthy Muñoz

New Covid Strain in UK Prompts Travel Bans Across Europe

A harsh reminder that recent cheers for vaccine deliveries does not mean this pandemic is over yet. New travel bans are being put in place as the UK grapples with the spread of a new coronavirus strain. -Tom Lowry

‘I’m living the dream’: how Shrewsbury's rough sleepers found room at one special inn

Hotelier who has taken in homeless people urges others to follow his lead In the wood-panelled restaurant of the Prince Rupert hotel, a four-star Tudor building in the centre of historic Shrewsbury, Richard Marshall, 31, is sitting near a table full of donated Christmas presents, talking about how his life has changed. In March, Marshall went from being a rough sleeper to a guest at the hotel as part of the government’s Everyone In scheme – which spent £3.2m to get about 90% of the homeless population in England into accommodation. Continue reading...

Michelle Paver: Alaska's ice cave left me fizzing with ideas

The children’s author remembers an exhilarating hike to a glacier north of Juneau as research for one of her Wolf Brother books We’d flown over the ice field on the approach to Juneau, and my spirits had soared. Ice was what I’d come for. I needed a giant ice cave for the book I was writing, and I’d arranged a guided hike to a glacier the following day. I was on a month-long research trip for the latest of my Wolf Brother books, taking in Alaska’s Inside Passage and the remote Canadian islands of Haida Gwaii, where there’d be plenty of ice, even in early summer. When the plane landed, I was disconcerted to find the temperature around 30C. Tourists ambled around in T-shirts (I’d only brought one). Ravens – Juneau has lots – panted on rooftops with their wings half-spread to catch the breeze. But from my room at the Goldbelt Hotel, I could see snow on the surrounding peaks, and I had a glorious view of the harbour, just across the road. While I was unpacking, a whale spouted and dived, right in front of my window. Continue reading...

A New Tourism Future and 12 Other Top Travel Stories This Week

In Skift's top travel stories this week, Sri Lanka is reinventing its tourism future, airlines and global distribution systems made peace, Google faced a bevy of lawsuits, an airline launched in the middle of the pandemic, and Hilton proved that mergers aren't the only way to grow. -Dennis Schaal

Katherine Rundell: how a snowy New York inspired my writing

The novelist wanted her latest book, The Good Thieves, to be full of all the places she loves in Manhattan ‘How do you get to Carnegie Hall?” goes the old joke. “Practise.” Unless you are an elephant, in which case the process is different. In 1934, an elephant stepped on to the stage of Carnegie Hall. Exactly what it did once there is not recorded, but its arrival was celebrated in print, before and afterwards. An article from 6 August 1934 in the New York Times read: “Circus in Carnegie Hall … Elephants, ponies, dogs and other familiar attractions of the tanbark will be seen in Carnegie Hall this season, with the presentation there of a genuine indoor circus.” Continue reading...

Artificial Intelligence Wants to Help Covid-Wary Biz Travelers Be Smarter About Flying

With emotions likely to be high in 2021, it will be interesting to see how effective data crunching is when it comes to restarting travel. -Matthew Parsons

Tell us where you're dreaming of going in 2021 to win a £200 prize

The UK coast or countryside was about as far as most of us went this year, but tell us where you’re yearning to visit once travel opens up again. The best idea wins £200 towards a Sawday’s stay After an extraordinary year when few of us managed any overseas trips, many people are developing seriously itchy feet. In a spirit of hope about the less-restricted world we may start to be able to enjoy, we’d love you to share your holiday hopes and dreams for 2021. You may be heading back to a much-missed favourite destination or ticking something off a bucket list suspended by the pandemic. Hopefully some of us will remember how skies cleared and pollution fell last spring and opt for some sort of low-carbon dream fulfilment. Continue reading...

The true and unadulterated history of the drop bear, Australia's most deadly -- and most fake -- predator

Ask almost any Australian about a drop bear, and they'll likely recount a close encounter with this carnivorous, fanged cousin of the Australian koala.

United Arab Emirates Pushes Ahead Attracting Visitors: Latest Skift Recovery Index

November: The U.S. chose a new president and vaccine manufacturers showed promising test results, but Europe saw coronavirus cases rising and the Singapore-Hong Kong bubble burst before it even took off. Out of it all came some surprising frontrunners. -Wouter Geerts

10 of the best winter landscapes: readers' travel tips

Clear light, bare trees and solitude make for memorable winter experiences, as our tipsters found from Northern Ireland to northern Italy My favourite winter landscape is the woodland at Mugdock country park north of Glasgow. I’d recommend April to see the bluebells lit up by the sun and autumn to see red deer tiptoeing through the thicket. But winter is the time to see the trees – their gnarled, twisted, moss-covered branches reaching out in every direction to grab at you. Even on a clear December day there’s a darkness. Battles were fought here between the Picts and the Britons, and witches were drowned in the lake. It may sound like fantasy film but step off the path into the trees and it’s not hard to imagine. Marie Continue reading...

Introducing Skift Live: How to Access Every Skift Event in 2021

Thousands of you joined us this year for our events and we'd like to see you again in the coming year. Learn more about what we'll be sharing throughout 2021. -Jason Clampet

Travelport Agrees to Sell Enett to Wex at a Bargain Price

Wex Chair and CEO Melissa Smith has proven her mettle by being a shrewd negotiator, going up against the famously ferocious activist investor Elliott Management, part-owner of Travelport. -Sean O'Neill

Advocates Push for Fairness by Asking to Delay Election for UN Tourism Agency Leadership

Calling for an ethical nomination process, a new petition spearheaded by respected voices in the industry— including former secretary general Taleb Rifai — could lead to a potential shakedown at UNWTO in 2021, just as travel enters a year in which a unified tourism voice will be sorely needed. -Lebawit Lily Girma

Singapore announces plans to allow entry to business travelers from all countries

Singapore is set to launch a new segregated travel lane for business travelers on short-term stays, Chan Chun Sing, the country's Minister for Trade and Industry announced on Tuesday via a post on his verified Facebook account.

UK's 'test to release' Covid scheme for travellers gets off to chaotic start

Most private providers are unable to offer the service, which should have cut quarantine from to 10 days to five * Coronavirus – latest updates * See all our coronavirus coverage The UK government’s long-awaited test to release scheme, designed to allow travellers to cut quarantine, was embroiled in chaos on its first day of operation after the last-minute publication of 11 private providers, most of whom appeared unable to offer the service on Tuesday morning. Airports, many of which have had testing centres in place for weeks or months, were perplexed at being left off the Department for Transport’s approved list, as they reported a surge in bookings in the run-up to the festive season. Continue reading...

Singapore’s New Travel Bubble Is Designed for Wealthy Travelers

It's not cheap to ensure health and safety, which makes Davos expats the perfect guinea pigs for this program. But will these travelers really settle for such a sterile experience or sit out the event this year? -Jason Clampet

How Europe's night trains came back from the dead

Going to bed in one major city and waking up in another; toasting the landscape as a new country slips past; being rocked to sleep as you rattle across a continent. It's no wonder that the night trains of Europe have been a byword for romance, immortalized by writers such as Agatha Christie.

Border Security Officials Face Tough Tech Investment Choices When Travel Eventually Returns

Many border security agencies aren't ready to cope with a return to pre-pandemic levels of travel if they have to track additional pieces of information like traveler health. Blame the holdup on a debate about tactics and tech, not just budgetary shortfalls. -Sean O'Neill

New Zealand and Australia to Create Quarantine-Free Travel Bubble in 2021

Leaders and citizens of New Zealand and Australia took Covid 19 seriously and acted decisively. Now they get to travel again. Good things come when people make smart choices. -Jason Clampet

Souk it and see: a virtual guided shopping tour of Marrakech

Like many holiday destinations, Morocco is reeling from the pandemic, but a new online tour is connecting artisans with shoppers – and a bringing glimmer of hope It is lunchtime in Marrakech, but the Djemaa el-Fna is so deserted it takes me a minute to recognise what is usually the medina’s social nexus. There are no snake charmers wielding pungi flutes, nor are there any henna artists on plastic stools fanning themselves with their pattern cards in the midday heat. Yet some things remain reassuringly familiar: the sky is blue, the Koutoubia mosque still cuts through the skyline, and my guide nearly gets run over by a motorbike within five minutes of introducing himself. I should have been in Marrakech this week, but there is no travel corridor with the UK and the Foreign Office is still warning against all but essential travel to Morocco. My flights were cancelled by the airline, so I’m doing the next best thing: a virtual tour of the city. It’s a pilot for a new venture between Swedish startup Local Purse and adventure travel company Intrepid. Continue reading...

What it's like to travel to Hawaii right now

Hawaii reopened to tourism in October after a seven month lockdown. Here's what it's to visit the Aloha state during Covid-19.

China Monitors Domestic Tourism Destination Hainan After Rise in Covid Cases

When there's travel, there is Covid — regardless of the country. China had a surge of cases after Golden Week, and now Hainan apparently has a cluster. Vaccines will take a long time to roll out, and their distribution will be uneven. -Dennis Schaal