Trump vs. Harris: What Each Administration Would Mean for the Travel Industry

President Joe Biden’s decision to leave the 2024 U.S. presidential race put an unprecedented twist on what was always going to be an unconventional election. But one thing is clear: Each potential administration’s policies will be wildly different – and have significant implications on the global travel industry.
-Sarah Kopit

Delta CEO Apologizes for Ongoing Flight Disruptions Caused by IT Outage

Since Friday's outage, Delta has struggled to bounce back. CEO Ed Bastian said an issue with Delta's crew scheduling tool caused the continued flight disruptions. -Meghna Maharishi

Vacation Rentals and Luxury Trips: Travel Startups Raise $106 Million

Niche vacation rental platforms are still raising money, just not quite as often as during pandemic times. -Justin Dawes

10 of the best beaches and islands in Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland

With miles of dune-backed beaches and charming seaside towns, Scandinavia and Finland make great destinations for a beach holiday. Here’s our pick

Sun-seekers and sea-dippers have been heading to Søndervig – known as the Gateway to the North Sea – for more than a century, drawn to its silver-gold sand and grass-tufted dunes. There are good facilities – mini-golf, tennis, trampolines and Segways are all available close to the beach, with a clutch of excellent fish restaurants in the town. The town’s biggest draw is the extraordinary sand sculpture festival, which runs from May until October, with a wild animal theme this year. Stay at Fjordgaarden, a stylish spa hotel 10 minutes’ drive (or a regular bus connection) from the beach.
Doubles from £143 B&B; fjordgaarden.dk Continue reading...

Taj-Parent IHCL Ventures Into Branded Residences with Chennai Launch

As more people in India are seeking upscale living options that blend luxury with convenience, IHCL is leveraging its strong brand and hospitality expertise, to step into this space to meet these evolving demands. -Peden Doma Bhutia

The other Dordogne: exploring France’s unspoiled Périgord region

The department’s sleepy capital and historic market towns offer a snapshot of an old-fashioned rural way of life far removed from the tourist trail

It’s always good to be back in Périgueux. Though the administrative capital of the Dordogne lies in one of the French regions best known to British holidaymakers, it manages to remain relatively innocent of tourism. Yet this sleepy flâneur of a town, built on limestone quays above the River Isle, is full of charm.

It is, after all, at the heart of a proudly gastronomic region. Tourism contributes almost a quarter of the department’s income. But call the area by its regional name, Périgord, and the lens shifts. This is the country of truffles and cèpes, walnuts, poultry, confit duck and (like it or not) foie gras; of cheeses and sunflowers; figs and freshwater fish; buttery tartines and heady vin de noix. Continue reading...

AI vs. Travel Advisors: When Humans Win

Chatbots are relying on 20 years of bad travel writing, while travel advisors can be a real source of truth. -Lex Haris

Air France-KLM CEO Ben Smith Sees a Long-Term Olympics Boost – Skift Travel Podcast

Air France-KLM said revenue will come in below what it was expecting due to the Paris Olympics, but CEO Ben Smith sees value in the global exposure. -Rashaad Jorden

From Normandy to Provence via Alsace: readers’ favourite unsung places in France

Summer night markets, fairytale villages and painterly beaches feature among our tipsters’ travels

At Chantelle village, 40 miles north of Clermont-Ferrand in the Auvergne, the organic butcher and deli offers game, pâtés, and wine, while fresh croissants await every morning at the boulangerie. The abbey, brocantes (secondhand shops) and bar are also popular with visitors, mostly from France. Visits here are made even more magical by hikes through the Gorge de la Bouble, lake swims, gourmet farmers’ markets in surrounding villages and plentiful live music all summer. I return every summer, following Anne of France’s footsteps in the 15th and early 16th centuries. She sought refuge here in the abbey, where she could retreat from the politicking of the French court.
Anne Page Continue reading...

Hyatt and The Standard, United and ULCCs and Columbus and Tourists

Today's podcast looks at the chances of a new deal for Hyatt, United's latest reactions to the low-cost carrier model, and destinations' methods for calculating visitor numbers. -Rashaad Jorden

Nice and easy: a leisurely cycle, with dog, along the final stage of the Tour de France

The riders won’t have time to take in the beauty of Nice’s Promenade des Anglais, but they’re missing two centuries of seaside architectural treasures

The Tour de France ends in Nice this Sunday – the first time the race will finish outside Paris since it started in 1903, and the first time since 1989 that the winner’s yellow jersey will be decided by a final-day time trial.

The Tour’s arrival in Nice also coincides with the 200th anniversary of the city’s Promenade des Anglais, the seafront walkway partly funded by English chaplain Lewis Way. The rest of the work on the paved Camin dei Ingles, as it was originally known, was paid for by Way’s congregation, and the first section was finished in 1824. Two hundred years on, I’m cycling along the rosé-coloured promenade with my dog Rio in the front basket, his ears fluttering in the sea breeze as we head for the Plage des Chiens, halfway to the airport. Continue reading...

Intrepid’s 2030 Tourism Targets: Can India’s Travel Ecosystem Support Them?

Intrepid's vision for India is ambitious. However, the concerns of international travelers need to be addressed by India before inbound numbers can substantially increase. -Bulbul Dhawan

‘There’s Just No New Opportunities’: United Airlines Execs Rip Into Low-Cost Rivals

As Delta and United continue to rake in huge profits, both airlines think low-cost carriers have limited recourse.
-Meghna Maharishi

Hyatt in Advanced Talks to Acquire Standard Hotels

Major hotel groups continue to be eager to collect lifestyle and luxury brands. -Sean O'Neill

Baltic beauty: exploring Estonia’s northern coast

Sunny beaches, summer cabins and mossy marshes surrounded by flowers recall the childhood idyll of Tove Jansson’s The Summer Book, set in the Gulf of Finland

Draw a horizontal line west across the globe from the northern coast of Estonia and it will pass through the southernmost tip of Greenland. Hence my surprise to be looking out on an Estonian beach and seeing sunny sand where children are playing while their parents get the picnics out.

My guide, Signe, is foraging along the line of vegetation between the sand and the pine trees. Continue reading...

Paytm’s Latest Moves in Travel – India Report

Paytm is a major fintech player in India and has a strong user base in smaller towns of India. This user base gives it a slight advantage over other OTAs.  -Bulbul Dhawan

Mews Founder Says More Acquisitions ‘Definitely’ Are Coming

Mews has made nine company acquisitions so far and it's got the funding to do more deals. -Justin Dawes

Western Airlines Are Pulling Out of China – Virgin Is the Latest

After leaving Hong Kong in 2022, Shanghai was Virgin Atlantic's final Chinese destination. The development comes amid a broader retreat among some Western carriers. -Gordon Smith

The UK’s best summer camps for kids

Outdoor activity stays offer plenty fun stuff, from kayaking and climbing to ice-cream making and real-life Cluedo. And sometimes mum and dad can go too

Camp Kernow was founded in 2008 as a not-for-profit organisation aiming to reconnect children with nature. This summer, kids can spend six days off-grid on the 80-hectare estate near Truro, Cornwall. They will ascend to the canopy of a beech tree on a technical tree-climbing workshop; forge a toasting fork for marshmallows with the help of a blacksmith; go foraging in the hedgerows with a wild food expert; and navigate for themselves on a river kayaking expedition … Campers eat home-cooked food that they have helped to harvest from the kitchen garden and helped prepare in the field kitchen, and sleep in a yurt, bell tent, dome or upturned boat hull.
£694 for six days starting 21 and 28 July, and 4 and 18 August, suitable for ages eight to 15, campkernow.org.uk Continue reading...

MakeMyTrip and Air India Express Launch Xpress Holidays – India Report

MakeMyTrip's newest collaboration is with Air India Express to offer holiday packages on the airline's website and app. The move comes a month after IndiGo introduced a hotel booking option on its platform. -Bulbul Dhawan

Spirit Airlines Lowers Outlook, Cites Weaker Revenue From Fees

The ultra-low-cost carrier lowered its revenue outlook for the second quarter, blaming softer ancillary sales.
-Meghna Maharishi

United Flight Attendants Plan to Vote on Strike Authorization as Tensions Rise

United flight attendants are the latest to consider a vote to authorize a strike as frustrations over stagnant pay and working conditions continue to mount.
-Meghna Maharishi

Apollo Acquires The Travel Corporation in Bet on Group Tours

Apollo Global Management is set to acquire The Travel Corporation's (TTC) portfolio with an expected closure in Q4 2024, pending regulatory approvals.

-Jesse Chase-Lubitz

Last-Minute Bookings, Viator’s New Ads and China’s Air Recovery

Today's podcast looks at last-minute bookings, Viator's new campaigns, and the slow return of international flights to China. -Rashaad Jorden

Air India-Vistara Merger Progress: What We Know So Far – India Report

Air India's merger with Vistara is expected to be completed next year. With this, the merged entity would become India's largest international carrier and second-largest domestic airline. -Bulbul Dhawan

Last-Minute Short-Term Rentals Could Help in Soft Markets

Discount travel sites tend to do well during times when vacation rentals and hotels aren't selling well on more traditional travel sites. Expedia/Vrbo's deal with Whimstay may reflect those market dynamics. -Dennis Schaal

The Recovery in Air Travel from China Is Happening… But It’s Super Slow

The travel industry has been counting on the return of visitors from China. But getting back to 2019 levels is taking much longer than expected. -Rashaad Jorden

South Korea Adds NewJeans as Tourism Ambassadors to Ride K-Pop ‘Hallyu’ Wave

For those asking, ‘What's Hallyu?’ you’re clearly not young enough! The Korean wave is huge, and the tourism ministry is make sure that it taps into this craze to attract foreign visitors. -Peden Doma Bhutia

The renaissance of Venice’s favourite retreat

When Venetian nobles wanted to escape the heat and crowds of the city they headed to the Brenta Riviera. Today’s visitors are following their lead

First impressions heading out of Venice on the Ponte della Libertà, the bridge over La Serenissima’s lagoon to the Domini di Terraferma, are not very promising, as I pass by the giant refineries of the mainland’s petrochemical industry, then the immense skeleton of a mega cruise liner under construction in sprawling maritime dockyards. But after 20 minutes, verdant countryside suddenly replaces built-up suburbia as my bus arrives alongside the snaking banks of the Naviglio del Brenta, the final part of the mighty Brenta river that engineers made “navigable” like a canal, back in the 16th century.

Known as the Riviera del Brenta, this bucolic rural paradise was where Venice’s wealthy nobility sought to escape the heat and noisy crowds of the city by building palatial waterside boltholes. Fabulous villas emerged with gardens designed by Antonio Palladio and his proteges, decorated with stunning frescoes by the likes of Giovanni Tiepolo. Continue reading...

Copenhagen offers tourist rewards as other EU nations clamp down

The Danish capital hopes to lure climate-friendly and well-behaved travellers with perks such as free drinks and skiing

In Barcelona visitors have been sprayed with water pistols in an expression of local people’s anger about over-tourism. By contrast in Copenhagen, tourists are to be given financial and other incentives to come – as long as they act responsibly.

The Danish capital appears to be bucking the trend of other travel hotspots struggling under the burden of too many tourists, by attempting to lure only the well-behaved, socially and environmentally conscious traveller. Continue reading...

Singapore Airlines’ Travel Experiences Arm Tackles Payments With New Partnership

By 2024, Asia’s travel and tourism revenue is projected to hit a whopping $326 billion. To cash in on this boom, travel providers need to tackle Asia’s patchwork of payment options. -Peden Doma Bhutia

Hotel Tech and Business Travel: Startups Raise $71 Million

Five travel startups announced fundraises over the past week totaling more than $70 million. -Justin Dawes

The Broads on a budget: paddleboarding in Britain’s largest protected wetland

A long weekend paddleboarding the waterways of the Broads national park is bliss – and costs a fraction of the price of renting a boat

There are 124 miles of lock-free, navigable waterways, ripe for boat exploration, in Norfolk and Suffolk’s Broads national park – Britain’s largest protected wetland. Sadly, a much larger four-figure number, in pounds sterling, was what kept popping up on my computer screen when I was searching for a suitable boat on which to spend a long weekend enjoying them.

Thankfully, I had a plan B – or rather, a plan SUP. Continue reading...

StayVista’s Co-Founder Thinks Indians Are Finally Ready to Embrace Alternative Stays

Indian travelers now seek flexible accommodation options, and the alternative stay industry is racing to keep up with the demand. StayVista claims to bridge the trust gap that has historically plagued the sector. -Peden Doma Bhutia

Emirates Skywards Chief Shares Six Airline Loyalty Lessons

In a break from the strategy of many U.S. airlines, Emirates’ Skywards program is being used to boost loyalty for the airline without a heavy financial focus. -Gordon Smith

How I found bliss cycling along the coast of Estonia

A cycle trip along the country’s coast and through its woods offers the kind of magical wildlife encounters that are no longer possible in the UK

I was barely out of Pärnu on the first morning when it happened. I’d stopped to listen to the reed warblers in a broad belt of roadside wetland. Down at my feet were four types of orchid, and cuckoos were calling. It was the beginning of my trip: I didn’t know that I would be seeing and hearing those things continuously for the next week. But this was no nature reserve, simply an ordinary Estonian country lane, close to the coast and the Lithuanian border.

I got back on the bike and pushed hard to get the pedals moving. I was carrying two heavily laden panniers. That was when the deer, crouched in a ditch a few feet away, decided that concealment was over. It sprang out, eyes wide open, its coat a deep chestnut brown, and leaped. It went over the front wheel, then over the opposite ditch, then over the fence beyond and into a clump of foxgloves, a miraculous Bob Beamon triple jump. The deer’s sudden movement triggered two enormous grey birds, cranes, to start charging across a distant meadow, rising up in the air with great echoing whoops of alarm. Their panic spread to seven herons that launched out of a distant tree. I knew then that my Estonian summer bike ride was going to be special. Continue reading...

Vrbo in Major Reversal on Guest Refund Policies

If Vrbo's new host cancellation policy looks familiar, it's not dissimilar from the one Airbnb imposed a few months ago. -Dennis Schaal

Q&A: Spain Launches Global Dialogue on Sustainable Tourism With New Series

Spain's tourism strategy is shifting from volume to value as the country prioritizes ecological and social integrity over visitor numbers to maintain its competitive edge. Turespaña is facilitating this shift by launching a new series to spark a global conversation on sustainable tourism practices. -Turespaña

European Hotel Deals Surge as Investors Shun Office Real Estate

The continent offers a bright future for investors. And with waning demand for offices, alternative accommodation brands claim they stand out as a safe political bet. -Sean O'Neill

Boeing 737 Max Delays Cost Norwegian Air $3.2m in Second Quarter

An upbeat assessment for summer 2024 came with a warning for 2025, as Boeing 737 Max delivery problems continue to impact plans for further growth. -Gordon Smith

‘We hiked green volcanoes near Barcelona’: readers’ favourite day trips from cities

Our tipsters revel in rural escapes and dips in the sea on their city breaks from Gdańsk to Lisbon

After a couple of days exploring beautiful Salzburg, I bought a hop-on, hop-off bus ticket to the Austrian lake district – the Salzkammergut. The hotel receptionist recommended we headed to Fuschl am See. The hourly bus took about 40 minutes to get to this absolute gem. The lake water – perfect for summer swimming – is so clean it is officially drinkable. There are also charming guesthouses and small hotels. It is an absolutely beautiful spot and the whole area should be explored.
Steven Continue reading...

Banyan Group Set to Have Record Year of Luxury Hotel Openings

Banyan Group, the Singapore-based luxury hotel operator, is on a growth spree. It is also going asset-light faster than you can say "fee-based income." -Sean O'Neill

Nepal’s Travel Industry Hopes For Gains As China Pledges to Send More Tourists

Nepal finds itself strategically sandwiched between India and China, balancing economic ties with China’s tourism initiatives while navigating India's regional influence and aviation restrictions. -Peden Doma Bhutia

Why River Cruising Remains an Untapped Adventure for Domestic Tourists in India

India has over 100 declared inland waterways, yet river cruising is still a pretty unexplored travel experience here. In fact, Indians head over to Europe to enjoy river cruises, not willing to try out the ones that are right here at home. -Bulbul Dhawan

Paris Olympics’ Non-Bump, a 17-Hour Flight and Marriott’s Biz Travel Portal

Today's podcast looks at the Olympics' small foreign impact, new routes from Perth to Paris, and Marriott's new online travel booking tool. -Rashaad Jorden

Indonesia Planning Visa-Free Entry For Indians – India Report

India is already one of Indonesia's top 10 source markets. If Indonesia goes through with this plan to go visa-free, it will go a long way toward lifting that ranking even higher. -Bulbul Dhawan

Airbnb Works to Keep Indoor Security Camera Complaints Hidden — CNN Investigation

Airbnb loves publicity, but not when it involves stories about hidden security cameras inside its properties. -Dennis Schaal

Three castles, three days, three writers in Wales’ border country

Over an early summer weekend, three writer friends trek through the hills of Monmouthshire, mapping the medieval lordship of Three Castles

The castles of Grosmont, Skenfrith and White Castle lie west of the border. Just. For a millennium they’ve hunkered in that hinterland where England shoulders up against Wales. As we set off uphill from Grosmont there’s nothing more aggressive going on than a little haymaking, the hum of a distant tractor is masked by a brisk wind through oak leaves; but in the past there have been tensions. Building a castle – building three – is not, after all, an act of friendship. Strictly speaking, though, it wasn’t the English who flexed their muscles here but the French; Normans, who, in the wake of conquest, sat down on the doorsteps of Welsh chieftains and made themselves at home. Continue reading...

Goa Invites Public Suggestions for New Tourism Bill – India Report

Goa is working to position itself as more than just a tourism destination known for its beaches and nightlife. As it seeks to welcome more visitors, the state is taking measures to ensure that the negative impacts of tourism are mitigated - both on the environment and its people. -Bulbul Dhawan

Will Hotel Guests Really Book Viator Experiences With Amazon Alexa?

Industry response to a recent Skift story centered on this question: Would people actually use voice search to book travel experiences? The answers were revealing about the sector's broader opportunities and challenges. -Jesse Chase-Lubitz