Episode Notes

Marriott International announced on Tuesday that it’s expanding its City Express by Marriott brand into the U.S. and Canada, reports Senior Hospitality Editor Sean O’Neill.  

O’Neill reports the expansion represents Marriott’s foray into the “affordable midscale” category in the two countries. Marriott bought the City Express brand in Mexico in May 2023, and has run properties under the City Express by Marriott brand in the Caribbean and Latin America. The company hasn’t yet revealed how many deals it’s signed for the brand in the U.S. and Canada. 

However, one Marriott executive said the company is optimistic about hotel openings in both countries in the near future. 

Next, the Routes World 2024 conference featured several heavy hitters of the Middle East’s aviation industry sharing their plans for 2025. Airlines Editor Gordon Smith provides highlights. 

Tony Douglas, the CEO of new Saudi carrier Riyadh Air, said the airline is “well advanced” in obtaining its Air Operator Certificate, a key regulatory milestone required to start commercial operations. He added Riyadh Air would be up and running next year.  

Air Arabia CEO Adel Abdullah Ali said the carrier is looking to grow outside its traditional markets in the Middle East, citing Egypt as an example. And Steven Greenway, CEO of Saudi low-cost carrier flyadeal, revealed plans to more than double its fleet size over the next four years. 

Finally, Wynn Reports has upped its budget, financial projections and ambitions for its casino project in the United Arab Emirates. Middle East Reporter Josh Corder lists several takeaways from a presentation Wynn gave to investors and analysts on Tuesday. 

Corder notes the project is targeting very wealthy consumers. Wynn expects 37% of its gross gaming revenues to come from what it considers ultra-high-net-worth international customers. India and Europe will be among Wynn’s core markets, with CEO Craig Billings noting India is home to a lot of wealth.

Wynn also said it expects the gaming market in the UAE to be worth between $3 billion and $5 billion. 

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Airlines and airports are getting ready for Hurricane Milton, a “potentially catastrophic” storm expected to hit southwest Florida on Wednesday, writes Airlines Reporter Meghna Maharishi.

Tampa International Airport and Orlando International have announced they plan to suspend operations in anticipation of Hurricane Milton. Several airlines — including American, Delta and United — have issued travel waivers in Florida. Citi analyst Stephen Trent said cancellations from the storm could cause Southwest and Spirit to suffer a major hit to their earnings because of their exposure to Tampa. 

Next, new Mandarin Oriental CEO Laurent Kleitman is looking to double the number of properties in the company’s portfolio, writes Senior Hospitality Editor Sean O’Neill, who spoke with Kleitman in his first major interview as CEO. 

Mandarin Oriental currently manages 41 hotels, but Kleitman says he sees a sweet spot of between 80 and 100 properties for the luxury hotel brand. Kleitman added Mandarin Oriental will focus on key markets where the company doesn’t have a presence. He cited Budapest and Rome as locations Mandarin Oriental will expand to. 

In addition, Kleitman said growing in the Americas is one of the company’s goals. Mandarin Oriental manages only three hotels in the U.S. 

Finally, the Skift Travel Health Index for August 2024 reveals that the travel industry is thriving despite concerns about a recession.

The global travel industry registered 9% growth from last year, which was led by the Asia-Pacific region and North America. Research Analyst Saniya Zanpure notes the travel boom in the Asia-Pacific region is largely due to the area’s delayed reopening after the pandemic. Meanwhile, passenger volumes in the U.S. are at an all-time high. 

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Episode Notes

Accor CEO Sebastien Bazin said the Paris-based hotel group has 47 brands in its portfolio. And the company has plans to add more, writes Middle East Reporter Josh Corder.

Bazin said at the Future Hospitality Summit in Dubai that Accor doesn’t have too many brands. He noted in the era of technology, customers have enough resources to discover them all. Bazin also said it’s important that no two brands are the same and that all of them are relevant.

As for global growth, Bazin thinks China and India will be the largest markets in the medium- and long-term. 

Next, G Adventures launched a new brand this week targeting solo travelers interested in connecting with others on group tours, writes Global Tourism Reporter Dawit Habtemariam. 

The new brand — called “Solo-ish Adventures” — is geared toward travelers not wanting to wait on others to book a trip or feel like a “third wheel” on group tours. The trips, which will run on average 12 days, will feature activities such as cooking classes and food walking tours on the first night to encourage interaction. 

Trips to 12 destinations are currently available under the Solo-ish brand, which G Adventures plans to increase to 60 over the next two years. 

Finally, Moroccan officials have expressed concern about overtourism when the country co-hosts soccer’s World Cup in 2030, writes Middle East Reporter Josh Corder. 

Morocco expects 26 million tourists in 2030, almost double the number from 2023. Tourism Minister Fatim-Zahra Ammor said the country is looking at promoting — and investing in — experiences over accommodation, which she believes would give travelers reasons to visit destinations in Morocco outside its major cities. 

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Episode Notes

The global hotel industry has seen some markets thrive this year while some others have struggled, reports Senior Hospitality Editor Sean O’Neill. 

A recent report by CBRE Hotels Research revealed U.S. revenue per available room would grow roughly 1% for the full year. That’s close to a 2 percentage point drop from its forecast in February. O’Neill notes that U.S. urban and airport hotels are set to overperform while those in resort locations will likely underperform relative to their post-pandemic boom. 

However, hotels in the United Arab Emirates saw their revenue per available room jump 30% from 2019 levels during the first half of this year. And Saudi Arabian hotels registered a 44% increase during the same period. 

Next, Priceline is the first travel company to say it’s incorporating the latest voice tech from OpenAI into its AI chatbot, writes Travel Technology Reporter Justin Dawes. 

Users can interact with its AI chatbot Penny by speaking or typing to search for hotels — but not flights or rental cars yet. The first version of Penny Voice went live on Tuesday, and the company said it has plans to unveil updates in the near future. 

Finally, online travel agency Klook celebrates its 10th anniversary this month. Senior Hospitality Editor Sean O’Neill examines how the company is looking to evolve.

Klook — Asia-Pacific’s largest online seller of travel experiences — is expanding into domestic travel and social commerce, among other areas. President and co-founder Eric Gnock Fah said Klook has built up domestic travel offerings. Fah noted all of Klook’s sales pre-Covid were cross-border. 

Klook is also leveraging social media for marketing and sales, with Fah attributing much of its recent growth in China to social media-driven sales. Popular chat and payment apps are increasingly letting influencers sell services. 

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Moxy Hotels, Marriott’s first brand aimed at travelers in their 20s, is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year. Senior Hospitality Editor Sean O’Neill takes a look at how Moxy has looked to stay relevant in the marketplace throughout the years. 

O’Neill notes that Moxy doesn’t subscribe to the commonly held premise in the hotel industry that the room is everything. Moxy’s compact rooms have appealed to some Millennials used to cramped urban residences or minimalist lifestyles. In addition, hotel investors and owners have seen the cost advantages of fitting more rooms into smaller footprints. 

Moxy was the first Marriott brand without a formal front desk and guests check in at bars. O’Neill writes hotel operators like how Moxy creates bustling social spaces that attract both guests and locals, and that the lively lobbies and bars drive high-profit food and beverage revenue. 

Next, Amtrak launched its first major marketing campaign in three years on Tuesday. It’s part of the company’s effort to convince travelers that trains are a better alternative to planes and cars, writes Global Tourism Reporter Dawit Habtemariam. 

The campaign, called “Retrain Travel,” showcases advantages Amtrak now offers: No middle seats. Plenty of legroom. Freedom to walk around. 

An Amtrak executive said “Retrain Travel” — which will appear on social media, the radio and other platforms — is part of its efforts to distinguish itself from its competitors, mainly airlines and cars.  

Finally, Dubrovnik will launch a “special traffic regime zone” in its UNESCO-listed Old Town starting in 2025. The zone will use a custom mobile app to regulate tour buses and decrease the number of authorized taxis significantly. Tour buses will need to pre-book slots on the city’s app to pass through the zone. 

Dubrovnik has seen a tourism boom thanks to the popularity of Game of Thrones. Tours based on the hit show have generated more than $24 million in revenue for the city. 

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Episode Notes

Carnival Corp. said demand for travel to Alaska is “off the charts,” writes Global Tourism Reporter Dawit Habtemariam.

Carnival CEO Josh Weinstein said Alaska has emerged as one of the cruise line’s top destinations in 2024, especially for first-time cruisegoers. Weinstein’s comments came as residents in the state capital Juneau are voting on a measure that would ban large cruise ships from docking in the city on Saturdays and the Fourth of July. 

Meanwhile, Carnival is seeing no signs of a consumer spending slowdown – it’s been able to charge higher prices and maintain strong bookings into 2025.  

Next, 13 travel startups have raised over $600 million in venture capital over the past two weeks, writes Travel Technology Reporter Justin Dawes.

Dawes notes two of this year’s 10 biggest startup fundraises have happened during the same period. Renewable jet fuel production startup Twelve raised $200 million. Twelve also secured $400 million in project equity, which will go toward building production facilities. This is one of the largest financing rounds for a sustainable aviation fuel startup to date.

In addition, business travel platform Engine raised $140 million. The company said the funding would go toward product development.  

Finally, Singapore’s hotel market is surging ahead of Hong Kong’s. Senior Hospitality Editor Sean O’Neill examines the rivalry between the two Asian travel hubs. 

O’Neill notes Singapore has sought to attract marquee live entertainment and high-profile sporting events, as well as luxury travelers. Singapore saw its hotel occupancy soar to a March record of 83% this year in large part due to a series of Taylor Swift concerts in the city-state. 

As for Hong Kong, O’Neill reports it’s grappling with a softer corporate market due to a shift of offices to other cities in recent years. In addition, Hong Kong’s luxury sector has been hit hard as a growing number of Chinese consumers have been pulling back on luxury retail shopping. 

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Episode Notes

Hotel companies are trying to figure out how artificial intelligence will impact their businesses. Leaders in the industry aren’t quite sure yet, reports Senior Hospitality Editor Sean O’Neill, who attended the Destination AI summit in Washington, D.C. 

Jess Petitt, an executive at Hilton, said the number of hotel bookings made using generative AI is minuscule but added the technology would make a huge impact on the industry. However, some experts are skeptical about generative AI significantly changing the balance of power regarding how hotels attract customers. O’Neill writes if hotel companies don’t adequately invest in the technology, they’ll be out-competed technologically. 

Next, Mallorca continues to be a tourism hotspot despite recent large-scale protests against mass tourism to the island, writes Global Tourism Reporter Dawit Habtemariam. 

Mallorca recorded more than 8.5 million overnight hotel stays in August, the highest of any tourist region in Spain. The island also had the highest weekend hotel occupancy at 90%. Despite widespread coverage of the protests, a recently released survey by Mallorca’s tourism board found roughly 90% of American visitors were unaware of the anti-mass tourism demonstrations.

Finally, Southwest Airlines has raised its revenue outlook for the third quarter as it plans to make more changes to its business operations, writes Airlines Reporter Meghna Maharishi, who was in Dallas for Southwest’s “Investor Day” presentations. 

Southwest expects its revenue per available seat mile to increase between 2% and 3%, up from previous estimates. The company attributed the increase in part to a surge in travel demand. Meanwhile, to help boost profits, Southwest has unveiled plans to introduce premium seating and red-eye flights. 

Southwest projects the seating changes will generate an additional $1.5 billion in revenue. 

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Skift is taking another big step to shape the future of travel. We’ve launched Skift Elevate, an initiative that aims to empower underrepresented voices in the industry. 

Skift President Carolyn Kremins calls Elevate a movement to drive meaningful, collective action across the travel industry. Its inaugural event took place at the recent Skift Global Forum, where several prominent women in travel addressed topics such as gender equity, leadership development and inclusive workplaces. 

Skift’s plans for Elevate include a series of additional events, content initiatives and industry partnerships. 

Next, the Ray-Ban Meta AI-powered glasses will have a new feature that could help travelers overcome language barriers — live voice translation, writes Travel Technology Reporter Justin Dawes. 

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg demonstrated the new feature, among other updates, at the Meta Connect developer conference. Zuckerberg said a user wearing the glasses should be able to hear a real-time English translation of Spanish, French, or Italian through a speaker in the glasses. A translation from English to the other language comes through the app.   

Meta didn’t reveal when the update would come out but said it has plans to add more languages in the future. 

Finally, Senior Hospitality Editor Sean O’Neill compares the state of hotel giants Choice and Wyndham following Choice’s failed attempt to merge with Wyndham earlier this year. 

O’Neill uses figures gathered by three research analysts to list Choice and Wyndham’s strengths and weaknesses. Wyndham is taking advantage of the expected $1.5 trillion infrastructure investment in the U.S., which could increase demand for its three extended-stay brands. However, Wyndham has reset its full-year guidance lower, indicating some strain on its revenue per available room. 

As for Choice, it’s in a position to generate higher fees per room on average due to most of its rooms being in the midscale or upper midscale sector. But the company’s revenue per room growth in the U.S. has been underwhelming. 

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Episode Notes

Residents of Juneau, Alaska, are set to vote next Tuesday on a measure that would ban large cruise ships from docking in the city on Saturdays and July 4, writes Global Tourism Reporter Dawit Habtemariam. 

The ban would apply to any large cruise ship with more than 250 passengers. The measure requires a simple majority to pass. Karla Hart, who helped gather enough signatures to put the proposal on the ballot, said overtourism has pushed some fellow residents out of the city. 

The initiative comes as Juneau’s popularity as a cruise destination has surged. Habtemariam notes that on some days, 20,000 cruise passengers visit the city. Cruise visitors were responsible for $30 million in direct spending on Saturdays last year.  

Next, Elliott Investment Management said on Tuesday it would call for a special meeting at Southwest Airlines as it continues to push for more changes at the carrier, writes Airlines Reporter Meghna Maharishi. 

Elliott’s push for a special meeting comes two days before Southwest’s investor day, where Elliott is expected to reveal more changes to the airline’s business model. The hedge fund could use the special meeting to elect new members to Southwest’s board. Elliott has already proposed 10 possible candidates.

Elliott, one of Southwest’s largest investors, took a roughly $2 billion stake in the carrier this June.

Finally, Etihad Airways has plans to launch around 10 new routes, reports Airlines Editor Gordon Smith.

Chief Commercial Officer Arik De told Skift the new routes will be announced in late November. Regarding what locations they’ll serve, De said nine routes would fly to brand new destinations for the airline. De also hinted that the 10 new routes are unlikely to be Etihad’s last, adding the airline is currently accepting pitches from airports interested in joining the Etihad network.

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Concerns have grown in recent weeks about how a potential recession could impact travel. But while the travel industry isn’t recession-proof, it could be recession-resistant, reports Senior Research Analyst Pranavi Agarwal.

There are signs of weakness. The Skift Travel 200 Stock Index is up only 3% since the start of the year, and travel executives have noted of a slowdown in demand on recent earnings calls. 

But Agarwal writes travel today could be a little more insulated than it has been in the past. Spending on travel is still discretionary, but it is more important to consumers than ever before. She cites travel’s emergence as a more fundamental need coming out of the pandemic as one reason the industry is recession-resistant.    

Next, the U.S. hotel industry is bracing for widespread work stoppages as 40,000 hotel workers have contracts that have expired or will expire by year’s end, writes Senior Hospitality Editor Sean O’Neill. 

More than 1,500 San Francisco hotel workers went on strike on Sunday, demanding improved pay and working conditions from Hilton, Marriott and Hyatt. Gwen Mills, president of labor union Unite Here, said the lapse in contracts has set the stage for more strikes across the hotel sector if issues remain unresolved. 

Finally, the Federal Aviation Administration has hit its air-traffic controller hiring goal for the fiscal 2024. But the agency is still dealing with a shortage that may last for years, writes Airlines Reporter Meghna Maharishi. 

The FAA had set a goal of hiring 1,800 air-traffic controllers, and the agency has beat that target. However, the FAA is still short roughly 3,000 air traffic controllers despite a hiring surge last year. In addition, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said he doesn’t expect the shortage to be resolved anytime soon. 

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