How Airlines and Hospitality Companies Can Engage and Attract Talent for the Future

With airline and hospitality industries set for a strong recovery in 2022, the smartest companies are positioning themselves to attract a pool of global talent in an ever more competitive environment, embracing the opportunities and challenges that come along with it. -Boston Consulting Group

The island where Venice began

Torcello, in the north of the Venetian lagoon, has a handful of residents -- but one of Europe's finest Byzantine churches. Legend has it that this is where Venice began -- but now archeologists think differently.

A twist on Oliver: a Dickens-themed family holiday in Broadstairs, Kent

A Victorian cottage paying homage to Oliver Twist is the perfect place for children to indulge in make-believe. Plus seven more magical themed places to stay in the UK Among all the TV specials and stage productions at this time of year, one story is always guaranteed to be retold – A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens. Fans might be jollied to know about a new holiday cottage near the seafront in Broadstairs, Kent, which recreates a setting in another favourite Dickens novel – Oliver Twist. Fagin’s Den – which its owners claim is the first Dickens-themed escape in the UK – has been styled as a Victorian thieves’ hideout, like that of the book’s shifty pickpocketing character. Continue reading...

48 test positive for Covid on world's biggest cruise ship

Despite stringent measures supposed to keep ocean cruises Covid-free, operator Royal Caribbean says at least 48 people on board one of its ships that docked in Miami at the weekend have tested positive for the virus.

Space Tourism for the Elite Advances With Japan Billionaire’s Trip

Yusaku Maezawa reportedly paid about $1.9 billion for the space voyage, a trial run of sorts for a moon orbit of on an Elon Musk's SpaceX vehicle, slated for 2023. You can scoff at space tourism for now, but in a decade it could be a thing in ultra-luxury travel. -Dennis Schaal

Travel Tech Firm Mondee to Go Public in $1 Billion SPAC Deal

Mondee has been moving quickly during the pandemic to gain customers and acquire companies. An influx of cash from the IPO will accelerate its efforts. -Jason Clampet

Germany tightens restrictions on travel from UK to curb Omicron spread

Carriers banned from transporting British tourists to Germany as it classifies UK as virus variant area of concern * Coronavirus – latest updates * See all our coronavirus coverage Germany is tightening restrictions on travel from the UK in an attempt to curb the spread of the Omicron variant, the country’s public health authority said on Saturday. From midnight on Sunday – or 11pm UK time – carriers such as airlines are banned from transporting British tourists to Germany. Only German citizens and residents, their partners and children, and transit passengers will be allowed to travel to the country from the UK. Continue reading...

Radisson Will Need More Than a New CEO to Get Back on Track

It's time to think big and give some distinct purpose to individual brands if Radisson wants to stay relevant against the competitors that are eating its lunch. -Cameron Sperance

France to Back Ski Resorts Hurting From British Tourists Ban

Urban destinations in France may be miffed by the government's vow to push domestic tourists toward the slopes to make up for the loss of UK skiers. But you can't please everyone. -Dennis Schaal

Germany to Mandate Quarantines on Travelers From UK

It's going to be a long winter as Omicron triggers lockdowns, and hospitals in some destinations get overwhelmed. -Dennis Schaal

10 of Cornwall’s best winter holiday stays

Log fires, bracing walks and empty beaches – plus low-season prices – make Cornwall the perfect cosy winter destination The Golden Lion pub, perched high above the harbour in Port Isaac, has it all – snuggly wood panelling, a roaring fire and good beer. Winter is the perfect time to visit this fishing village – the gift shops may be closed, but the village won’t be swamped with the Doc Martin fanclub. There’s a spectacular circular walk past Kellan Head to Port Quin – or continue on to the Rumps, an iron age fort jutting out from the Pentire headland. Stay in a former pilchard cellar, a National Trust property nestled right on the shingle at Port Quin – and brace yourself for a gale. Carolina Cellar, from £307 for two nights in January, nationaltrust.org.uk Continue reading...

A local’s guide to Edinburgh: the best bookshops, restaurants and bars

A food writer picks her favourite spots away from the usual touristy suspects, including parks, walks and inspiring galleries Caroline Eden has made Edinburgh her home since 2014 Continue reading...

The colorful island of Burano preserves a piece of Venice's past

A boat ride across the Venetian lagoon begins a journey to a centuries-old identity.

Portugal’s Tourism Will Be Big Factor in Its Economic Recovery in 2022

Portugal exports are expected to grow to 13 percent in 2022 versus 10 percent this year. Leading that charge will be tourism, the Bank of Portugal reports. Will Omicron require a revision on that bullish prediction? -Tom Lowry

‘It began, like all the best travel discoveries, by chance’: 21 writers on their finds of 2021

It’s been a year bookended by travel restrictions, but our writers still found plenty of fabulous destinations, both at home and abroad I spent September travelling around Sicily alone, mostly on foot, and I wanted to flop on a beach before going home. I settled on Cefalù on the north coast, because of its rare combination of sandy beach and medieval town – and it was love at first sight. I had heard that the tiny town gets unpleasantly packed in summer, but by late September there was just a lively buzz. Cefalù seemed a distillation of everywhere else I had been: Sicily in miniature. I gazed up at the mosaic-bright Christ Pantocrator in the twin-towered Arab-Norman cathedral. I came face to face with Antonello da Messina’s enigmatic Portrait of an Unknown Man, a masterpiece in the unassuming (and empty) Museo Mandralisca. I climbed La Rocca, a huge crag that looms over the town, to a fourth- or fifth-century temple and ruined castle. Continue reading...

Airbnb and Vrbo Start Sharing Information on Party House Offenders

The party house problem is a persistent one in the short-term rental industry. The more industrywide collaboration the better. -Dennis Schaal

CDC Is Handing Out Free Covid Home Test Kits at U.S. Airports

Considering the Omicron variant's high rate of transmission, this appears to be a symbolic extra layer of protection more than anything. -Matthew Parsons

PCR travel tests need better policing, warns ex-watchdog boss Andrew Tyrie

Former CMA chair calls for enforcement of at least minimum standards in sector which is becoming ‘a massive rip-off’ Poor service from suppliers of PCR travel tests is “an issue of national significance”, and regulators are not doing enough to police hundreds of new businesses that have moved into the market, the former competition boss Andrew Tyrie has said. In an interview with the Guardian, Lord Tyrie, who was chairman of the Competition and Markets Authority until last year, called for a clean up of the list of PCR test providers published on the government website, which many travellers consult before buying a kit. Continue reading...

Mexico’s GuruHotel Raises $2.1 Million: Travel Startup Funding This Week

This week, travel startups announced more than $200 million in funding, including GuruHotel, a startup that helps smaller hotels accept direct bookings and market their properties. -Sean O'Neill

What does France’s travel ban mean for UK holiday plans?

As ban takes effect from midnight, UK travel operators say news is ‘devastating for ski industry’ * Coronavirus – latest updates * See all our coronavirus coverage France has banned all non-essential travel from the UK, starting on Friday night. We explain what it means if you have planned to visit over the festive period. Continue reading...

Paris Squeezes Short-Term Rentals With New Restrictions on Commercial Spaces

Airbnb and competitors continue to feel the pressure from large European cities that are committed to seeing traditional commerce survive, especially after Covid. -Tom Lowry

How The Venetian Resort Is Welcoming Back Leisure Travelers Celebrating Life’s Milestones

As leisure travel finally returns to Las Vegas, The Venetian Resort is welcoming guests back to celebrate their shared milestones together and make up for lost time with friends and family. -The Venetian Resort Las Vegas

Trip.com Sees China Potentially Easing Travel Curbs in 2022

Six months or a year seem like way longer than that in the Covid era, and anything can happen in the interim. But it is significant that the executive chairman of China's largest online travel agency is postulating that inbound and outbound travel curbs could be softened next year. -Dennis Schaal

Estonia in winter: into the wilds by canoe and ‘bog shoe’

The peatlands of Soomaa national park are host to a stunning variety of birds and beasts – and even the odd white-thighed bog swimmer Ahead, the jellied earth sways. As I approach a natural pool at the edge of a wide, wild expanse in central Estonia, the bog feels untrustworthy, if not quite menacing. This far into the Soomaa national park, the ground is so unsure of itself that even trees have given up. My guide, Aivar Ruukel, tells me that it’s not the same animals – wolves and bears are among the creatures that patrol these lands, hoping to find a meal trapped in the mire. Elsewhere in this wilderness there are elk and raccoon dogs. Recently, wolverines from the north have been spotted, too. “People have been seeing golden jackals,” says Aivar, “and normally they are in Turkey.” The reason for this extraordinary menagerie is, perhaps inevitably, linked to Estonia’s low human population. Despite being slightly larger than the Netherlands, Estonia has about 7.5% of its population, making it one of the most sparsely populated nations in Europe. In Soomaa, it’s easy to believe these stats. Continue reading...

U.S. Airline CEOs Support Dropping Mask Mandates on Planes

That got ugly quick. A lovefest between U.S. senators and airline executives on the success of the federal Payroll Support Program quickly devolved into a shouting match over vaccine and mask mandates. -Madhu Unnikrishnan

Property Manager AvantStay Adds $160 Million in Funding for Expansion

AvantStay's move into brokerage services sets it apart from most of its peers. But as Zillow's experience of flipping houses and getting burned highlights, real estate can be a very risky sector. -Dennis Schaal

Startups El Camino and Regenerative Travel Tap Subscription Model

A couple more U.S.-based startups — El Camino Travel and Regenerative Travel — have recently announced subscription-based products. What's noteworthy is how they're using subscriptions to build communities. -Sean O'Neill

Arches National Park introducing timed entry amid overcrowding

One of America's most popular national parks -- Arches National Park in Utah -- is rolling out a timed entry system in a bid to prevent overtourism.

Hilton CEO Nassetta on Managing Through the Current Crisis

Many travel CEOs have talked about the opportunities that the Covice crisis brought about, but it will be some time before we see which ones actually took advantage of this period to improve things for their guests or other travelers. -Jason Clampet

Sajid Javid clears England’s travel red list as Omicron takes hold

All 11 countries to be removed from list as concerns about importing variant diminish * Coronavirus – latest updates * See all our coronavirus coverage All 11 countries on England’s travel red list are to be taken off it from 4am on Wednesday, amid diminishing concern about Omicron cases being imported into the country. Given that the variant has already taken hold in the UK – making up a third of new infections in London – the health secretary, Sajid Javid, announced that mandatory hotel quarantine for those arriving from some southern African countries was set to end. Continue reading...

Asia Pacific Travel Optimism Turns Sour: New Skift Recovery Index

There is still so much uncertainty around the Omicron variant, but already much needed recovery in Asia Pacific is stalling as reopenings are postponed. -Wouter Geerts

Tell us about your best travel discovery of 2021 – you could win a £200 holiday voucher

We’d love to hear about places in the UK or in Europe you’ve enjoyed over the past year – the best tip wins £200 towards a Sawday’s stay Share details of your favourite travel discovery over the past year, whether it was in the UK or further afield. It might be a fantastic place to stay, an amazing historic site, a beautiful area off the beaten track, restaurant, an unsung town or city … anywhere that felt special. If you have a relevant photo, do send it in – but it’s your words that will be judged for the competition. Continue reading...

MGM Resorts Is Selling The Mirage to Hard Rock for $1.1 Billion

True to his word, MGM Resorts CEO William Hornbuckle is offloading the property amid a shift to digital gaming. -Matthew Parsons

UK Airlines Want Less Covid Testing and More Government Support

Passengers may not mind so much the testing if the process wasn't so sloppy and haphazard. Nearly 20 months into this pandemic, you'd think the government would make it easier to comply with safety measures. -Jason Clampet

Skift IDEA Awards 2021: See the Winners

The 2021 Skift IDEA Awards honors the companies, projects and campaigns driving the travel industry forward. See the winning projects from this year's program. -Matt Heidkamp

Skyscraper superyacht with two infinity pools

Gigantic superyachts have long been nicknamed "floating skyscrapers," but this new innovative concept from studio Rodriguez Design has taken that notion to an entirely new level.

Podcast: Airbnb CEO on the New Age of Mobility

Listen now for a conversation with Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky from Skift Aviation Forum in September 2021. -Jason Clampet

How Maradona inspired Paolo Sorrentino’s film about Naples, Hand of God – and inadvertently saved his life

The Italian director’s new, semi-autobiographical film reveals a charming and rarely seen side of his home city ‘This, for me, is the most beautiful place on Earth,” Paolo Sorrentino told Filippo Scotti, the actor playing the director’s younger self in his latest film, as their 1980s Riva speedboat chopped the waves of the Bay of Naples. Their view stretched from the precipitous peninsula of Sorrento all the way west towards Posillipo. The two promontories flank the sprawling port city, offering a warm embrace to all those who disembark there. Sorrentino’s new film, the Hand of God, opens with that same view: the sun-mottled bay, whose peace is disturbed by the sound of four Rivas as they speed towards the shore. The film is both a love letter to, and a portal into, Paolo Sorrentino’s Naples. In cinemas now and on Netflix this week, The Hand of God sees the Academy award-winning director return to his home city for the first time since One Man Up, his 2001 debut. Sorrentino tells the story of his own coming of age, up to the moment when his life is shattered by the death of his parents in a tragic accident. Sorrentino’s story is a tale of great grief, loss and perseverance, set in a middle-class part of Naples, a far cry from the impoverished neighbourhoods shown in the city’s other recent portraits: Elena Ferrante’s My Brilliant Friend or the mafia-focused Gomorrah series. Continue reading...

Travel’s Pandemic Myths: 7 Facts That Prove Them Wrong

Perhaps the only thing worse than no information is bad information. Let's bust some modern travel myths stemming from the pandemic that are dangerously common. -Seth Borko

Flying with kids this holiday? Try these tips

Dr. Harvey Karp is best known for his infant calming and sleep techniques. He shares his top tips for traveling comfortably with children this holiday season.

Crafty breaks: 10 of the UK’s best creative learning holidays

Fancy making your own festive wreath, chair or canoe? Get creative on a weekend away Opened last year, Birch was hitting the zeitgeist when it put pottery, painting and macramé classes at the centre of its offerings. Now it is hosting a festive wreath-making class on 15 December to get you in the mood for Christmas. There are also three restaurants and 140 minimalist, millennial-minded rooms that spread out from the original Victorian mansion. Classes from £25, double rooms from £120, room only £120 as part of a three-night weekend booking, £140 as a single midweek booking, birchcommunity.com Continue reading...

Finding a slow but steady rhythm: a self-guided skiing tour through Norway’s forests

Cross-country ski-touring needs navigation skills and stamina, but after exhilarating days on the snow, Norway’s network of winter huts offer cosy respite Winter storms in the hills can change the best of plans. Outside the door of the tiny Norwegian touring cabin, snow is blowing sideways and drifting across our tracks. Wreaths of mist filter the surrounding trees into charcoal smudges. Walking to the woodshed, let alone a long day travelling on skis with heavy rucksacks, seems unappealing. So we throw another log into the woodburner and break out the cards and Kindles to wait out the weather. Continue reading...

Golden Nugget’s Parent Calls off $8.6 Billion Merger

There's no golden payoff — yet — for Golden Nugget owner Fertitta Entertainment after it called off a planned $8.6 billion SPAC listing. -Edward Russell

A local’s guide to Munich: great museums, taverns (obviously) and a Christmas treat

Judith Csiki delights in the city’s art galleries, vibrant music scene, swims in the Isar river ... and sweet, fluffy pancakes Judith Csiki is an art historian and curator at Sammlung Moderne Kunst in the Pinakothek der Moderne, focusing on contemporary art from the Middle East and east Asia Continue reading...

Fiji’s Clueless New Tourism Campaign and 8 Other Top Travel Stories This Week

In Skift's top stories this week, Fiji's new tourism campaign resurrects old colonial tropes and ignores its host communities, Vacasa goes public with, well, meh results, and Marriott puts a fresh coat of paint on its Courtyard Hotels, but so much more, too, in an overdue refresh. -Tom Lowry

Christmas travel gift guide: 20 sustainable presents

We pick recycled, organic and sustainably made gifts that are perfect for those who travel far and wide – or just like to dream about it Travel gift sets Kip Hideaways, a members-only boutique staycation site, has two new gift sets: the travel set and the sleep set. Each includes a year’s membership (the company plants a tree for every member), plus Bramley toiletries and Elizabeth Scarlett embroidered accessories. From £53, kiphideaways.com Continue reading...

How a photo from the other side of the world sparked a continent-spanning pandemic love story

When Kathy Antoine posted a Facebook photograph of the view from her window in Tahiti in May 2020, the image caught the attention of Reggie Laroche, who lived 5,000 miles away in Florida. Here's how the two strangers connected and what happened next.

A great walk to a great pub: Christmas at the Churchill Arms, Kensington, London

A stroll through three of London’s famous parks ends in a big Christmas bauble of a pub Start Churchill War Rooms, King Charles St, SW1 Distance 3.8 miles Time 2 hours Total ascent Negligible Difficulty Easy Continue reading...

The Best of Daily Lodging Report for the Week Ending December 10

Leisure travel will continue to dominate hotel booking patterns into the new year, even if Omicron is only a minor blip on performance. -Cameron Sperance

Easol Raises $25 Million: Travel Startup Funding This Week

Easol, which is like a Shopify for experience operators, has gotten backing from top-tier investor Tiger Global. Meanwhile, BookMe, a startup in Pakistan, has also raised money. -Sean O'Neill