View From Afar | Travel Industry News

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View From Afar | Travel Industry News episodes

September 17Crystal Vinisse Thomas Wants to Uncover the People Behind Hospitality's Biggest Brands
Crystal Vinisse Thomas has spent her career building some of hospitality's most recognizable brands—W Hotels at Starwood, Hyatt's lifestyle and luxury portfolio—and she's spent the last year deliberately stepping back from all of it. And now she joins View From Afar as our guest host: Every month, she'll sit down with hospitality leaders to uncover "the people behind the process."
In this first episode, Afar senior deputy editor Jennifer Flowers turns the questions on her. The two longtime friends trace Crystal's path from Starwood to Apple's Beats by Dre and back to Hyatt, unpack why she walked away for a year-long sabbatical at the height of her career, and share a preview of the questions she'll be asking once the mic turns to her guests instead.

This week's guest and host
Crystal Vinisse Thomas is a brand-builder and one of the more original travel changemakers to join a microphone this year, with a résumé spanning hospitality, consumer tech, and sport: luxury and lifestyle brands at Starwood (including W Hotels) and Hyatt, where she built what's now Caption by Hyatt, plus a run at Apple working on Beats by Dre. Her travel industry insights come from nearly five years leading Hyatt's lifestyle and luxury portfolio before she took a full year away from the business entirely, returning as View From Afar's newest host. Find her at crystalvinisse.com and on LinkedIn.

Jennifer Flowers is Afar's senior deputy editor, overseeing the magazine's hotel coverage, and a regular contributor to View From Afar.
In this episode
Crystal's path from Starwood and W Hotels to Apple's Beats by Dre and back to Hyatt, where she spent nearly five years building the brand now known as Caption by Hyatt

Why she stepped away from hospitality entirely for a year-long sabbatical, including signing off LinkedIn and asking her network not to reach out with job opportunities

Her definition of luxury, shaped by a consumer study she led at Hyatt: not a hotel, a product, or a price point, but time

Where she thinks AI genuinely helps travelers (discovery) and where it still falls short (taste and judgment, like recommending a coffee shop that closed months ago)

The origin of "Friday Fellowship," the standing gathering she started during the pandemic, and how it shaped her approach to interviewing travel's leaders on View From Afar
Chapters
00:00:00 Introduction
00:03:00 A Career Built on Brands
00:06:00 Why She Stepped Away
00:17:00 Redefining Luxury as Time
00:20:00 Where AI Falls Short
00:25:00 Friday Fellowship

Links & resources
Crystal Vinisse Thomas's website

Crystal on LinkedIn

Watch this episode on YouTube [TK: link]

More from View From Afar

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35 min
June 10The Phoenix Tourism People Don't Know | Live From IPW 2026
Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Visit Phoenix⁠ president and CEO Ron Price⁠ sits down with Afar deputy editor Michelle Baran for one of our most surprising travel industry interviews yet: a look at Phoenix tourism, and why so many first-time visitors leave saying, "I had no idea."
Ron has worked in tourism for 30 years, with a career that spans Marriott, Visit San Antonio, and the Arlington Texas Convention and Visitors Bureau. He joined Visit Phoenix in 2021, and under his leadership the city has hosted the Super Bowl, the Women's Final Four, and, next year, the NBA All-Star Game. In 2024 he launched the Phoenix Sports and Events Commission, giving the country's fifth-largest city a coordinated way to compete for major events.
In this episode, Ron and Michelle discuss:
Why the Sonoran is the wettest desert in the world, and how the lushness keeps surprising visitors who arrived expecting Wile E. Coyote

The Phoenix Sports and Events Commission, the return of the Viva PHX culture festival⁠, and the strategy of growing youth and amateur sports alongside championship events

The TSMC effect⁠, the largest international investment in American history, and what $165 billion in semiconductor manufacturing means for international flights, including two new direct routes from Taiwan

How Waymo made Phoenix the only American city where an autonomous vehicle picks you up at the airport, a case study in the destination management and travel innovation now reshaping Phoenix tourism

The Canadian snowbird market's stabilization, and what doubling down on a hesitant market looks like in practice

The honest conversation about summer heat, the city's heat-mitigation investments, and the no-daylight-savings advantage that makes early-morning hikes possible

Plus: a ⁠Pan Am-themed speakeasy⁠ where the LED windows simulate a flight to San Francisco, the 22 ⁠Indigenous nations⁠ within the valley, and a passionate endorsement of Phoenix's ⁠Michelin-bound culinary scene⁠.
This is one in a series of travel industry interviews and tourism experts interviews recorded live at IPW 2026, part of View From Afar's ongoing look at travel trends 2026, destination highlights, and the changemakers shaping the future of Phoenix tourism and beyond.

Chapters
00:00:00 Welcome to View From Afar
00:01:30 Playing Tourist at the Biltmore
00:03:00 What Surprises Visitors
00:04:30 Building a Sports and Events Engine
00:07:30 The TSMC Effect
00:10:00 Why Canadians Still Matter
00:13:00 New Markets, New Stories
00:15:30 Reframing the Heat
00:18:30 Speakeasies and Indigenous Nations
Stay Connected
Subscribe to View From Afar to catch all our IPW 2026 episodes this week.

Follow @AfarMedia on ⁠Instagram⁠ and ⁠TikTok⁠ for behind-the-scenes IPW content.

⁠Sign up⁠ for our travel industry newsletter, Afar Advisor.

Rate and review the show to help other travel professionals discover these insights.

Explore our other podcasts, ⁠Travel Tales⁠ and ⁠Unpacked⁠.
This IPW 2026 special series was recorded live. View From Afar is a production of Afar Media and a part of Airwave Media's podcast network (email ⁠[email protected]⁠ if you would like to advertise on our podcast). The podcast is produced by Aislyn Greene and Nikki Galteland, with assistance from Michelle Baran and Billie Cohen. Music composition from Epidemic Sound.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
24 min
June 09Austin Travel and the Future of Destination Management | Live From IPW 2026
Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Visit Austin⁠ president and ⁠CEO Tom Noonan⁠ sits down with Afar editorial director Billie Cohen for one of our most forward-looking travel industry interviews yet: a conversation about Austin travel at the exact moment the city is tearing itself down and rebuilding on purpose.
Tom has led Visit Austin since 2016, capping nearly four decades in destination marketing. Under his watch the city has posted year-over-year visitor gains, record convention bookings, and the launch of the Visit Austin Foundation.
But he is also steering the most disruptive project of any major U.S. destination right now: the $1.6 billion "unconventional ATX" rebuild of the Austin Convention Center, which came down in April 2025 and will not reopen until 2029. That is 40 months of competing for major events without a convention center, a real-world test of destination management under pressure.
In this episode, Tom and Billie discuss:
Why Austin is "redoing everything" by 2031, from 36 new airport gates to new arenas, a light rail line from the airport to downtown hotels, and a convention center twice the old size

The $1.6 billion bet on a zero-carbon civic space with $18 million of public art, dropped into a park setting beside the new ⁠Waterloo Greenway⁠,

How a destination holds its momentum, and its convention business, without its biggest meeting venue for more than three years

The new Austin Tourism Public Improvement District and what it funds

Why the live music capital of the world is expanding into tech, corporate, family, and culinary travel, with a Michelin-fueled taco scene that refuses to name a favorite (the Michelin guide recently came to Texas)

Tom's honest case for why the next chapter of Austin travel makes the city "the next hot destination again in 2031"
This is one in a series of travel industry interviews and tourism experts interviews recorded live at IPW 2026, part of View From Afar's ongoing look at travel trends 2026, the hospitality industry leaders and travel changemakers shaping American cities, and the Austin travel story still being written. For destination marketers and travel industry news watchers, it is a front-row look at destination management on the largest possible scale.
Resources
Afar guide to Austin
Chapters
0:00 Welcome to Austin, live from IPW
2:00 Brisket, breakfast tacos, and a Michelin moment
3:00 Redoing everything by 2031
5:00 The $1.6 billion convention center gamble
8:00 Competing for conventions without a building
11:00 New flights, new visitors, and a booming food economy
15:00 Music, the World Cup, and America 250
17:00 Keeping Austin weird, from AI to Rainey Street

Stay Connected
Subscribe to View From Afar to catch all our IPW 2026 episodes this week.

Follow @AfarMedia on ⁠Instagram⁠ and ⁠TikTok⁠ for behind-the-scenes IPW content.

⁠Sign up⁠ for our travel industry newsletter, Afar Advisor.

Rate and review the show to help other travel professionals discover these insights.

Explore our other podcasts, ⁠Travel Tales⁠ and ⁠Unpacked⁠.
This IPW 2026 special series was recorded live. View From Afar is a production of Afar Media and a part of Airwave Media's podcast network (email ⁠[email protected]⁠ if you would like to advertise on our podcast). The podcast is produced by Aislyn Greene and Nikki Galteland, with assistance from Michelle Baran and Billie Cohen. Music composition from Epidemic Sound.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
27 min
June 05Why You Should Visit Colorado the Right Way | Live From IPW 2026
Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Colorado Tourism Office⁠ director ⁠Timothy Wolfe⁠ sits down with Afar deputy editor Michelle Baran for one of our most instructive travel industry interviews yet: a look at why the smart way to visit Colorado is also the more sustainable one, from a state that has spent years managing tourism rather than just marketing it.
Tim came to the role in 2021 after a long career in Colorado hospitality, including running Denver's historic Brown Palace, and he was inducted into the Colorado Hotel and Lodging Association Hall of Fame in 2015. He now leads a state coming off a record 95.4 million visitors in 2024, and heading into a milestone 2026 that marks both America's 250th anniversary and Colorado's 150th year of statehood.
In this episode, Tim and Michelle discuss:
Why Colorado has stayed resilient while other destinations feel the international slowdown, from Colorado Friendship Day with Canada and Mexico to deep cross-border ties

How the Denver airport, with more than 35 international and 200 domestic nonstop routes, makes this a true fly-in destination

The build-out of greener rail, from the airport-to-Union Station line to the ski train to Winter Park and new Front Range service, so visitors can explore without a car

Destination stewardship as strategy, and how the Do Colorado Right approach steers travelers from overstressed hot spots toward smaller communities that want the visits

A new ⁠dedicated women's soccer stadium in Denver⁠—the first of its kind.

What a milestone year means for a state trying to grow tourism responsibly rather than just grow it
This is one in a series of travel industry interviews and tourism experts interviews recorded live at IPW 2026, part of View From Afar's ongoing look at travel trends 2026, sustainable tourism, and the destination management lessons other states are borrowing from Colorado.
The takeaway is simple: visit Colorado, but visit Colorado right, and you get a front-row look at a place widely seen as a stewardship leader, told by one of the hospitality industry leaders shaping what comes next.
Resources
The Afar guide to Colorado
Chapters
0:00 Welcome to Colorado, live from IPW
2:00 Champagne cascades and cattle at the Brown Palace
3:00 A record 95.4 million visitors, and staying resilient
5:00 A fly-in state betting on greener rail
7:30 Do Colorado Right: stewardship without the finger-wagging
10:00 Protecting the parks and preventing overtourism
13:30 A milestone 2026, and what's next

Stay Connected
Subscribe to View From Afar to catch all our IPW 2026 episodes this week.

Follow @AfarMedia on ⁠Instagram⁠ and ⁠TikTok⁠ for behind-the-scenes IPW content.

⁠Sign up⁠ for our travel industry newsletter, Afar Advisor.

Rate and review the show to help other travel professionals discover these insights.

Explore our other podcasts, ⁠Travel Tales⁠ and ⁠Unpacked⁠.
This IPW 2026 special series was recorded live. View From Afar is a production of Afar Media and a part of Airwave Media's podcast network (email ⁠[email protected]⁠ if you would like to advertise on our podcast). The podcast is produced by Aislyn Greene and Nikki Galteland, with assistance from Michelle Baran and Billie Cohen. Music composition from Epidemic Sound.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
20 min
June 04Louisiana Travel Beyond New Orleans, From Bayou to Byway | Live From IPW 2026
Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Louisiana Office of Tourism assistant secretary Doug Bourgeois⁠ sits down with Afar editorial director Billie Cohen for one of our most flavorful travel industry interviews yet: a case for Louisiana travel well beyond New Orleans, from bayou to byway.
A Thibodaux native who has spent 26 years in state tourism, Doug leads a Louisiana that finally returned to pre-pandemic levels in 2025, welcoming 45 million visitors and roughly 19 billion dollars in spending. New Orleans alone drew 19 million, even as Canada, the state's top international market, pulled back sharply.
In this episode, Doug and Billie discuss:
Why Cajun and Creole cooking is about flavor rather than heat, and why nobody makes gumbo better than your mama

How Louisiana travel spans distinct regions, from Mississippi Delta greens up north to the Cajun and Creole melting pot down south

The Gas Station Eats trail and the arrival of Michelin in the American South, including two two-star restaurants in New Orleans

The Year of Music that set the stage, celebrating Louisiana as a birthplace of jazz, zydeco, and Cajun blues, and the 2026 Year of Outdoors that follows it, from swamp tours and outdoor kitchens to the Mississippi flyway and two national parks

How the state is working to win back a softer Canadian market and lean into joy as a strategy

The ⁠Mississippi River Parkway Commission⁠ and the case for the river as a single 10-state destination

Beyond New Orleans, the scenic byways, river architecture, and small-town Americana that reward a longer trip
This is one in a series of travel industry interviews and tourism experts interviews recorded live at IPW 2026, part of View From Afar's ongoing look at travel trends 2026, destination management, and the travel storytelling that turns a state into a journey. For every reason to plan Louisiana travel past Bourbon Street and deep into the heart of Cajun country, it is a front-row conversation with one of the hospitality industry leaders shaping the future of travel.

Resources
The Afar guide to Louisiana

Chapters
00:00:00 Welcome to View From Afar
00:02:00 The Tabasco Test
00:03:00 Growing Up on the Bayou
00:05:00 A Culinary State
00:07:00 Year of the Outdoors
00:09:00 The Roux Spoon Olive Branch
00:11:00 Where Louisiana Is Going Next
00:12:00 The Mississippi as Destination
00:13:30 Beyond New Orleans
00:15:00 Where Joy Begins
00:18:30 Becoming Part of the Story

Stay Connected
Subscribe to View From Afar to catch all our IPW 2026 episodes this week.

Follow @AfarMedia on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠ for behind-the-scenes IPW content.

⁠⁠Sign up⁠⁠ for our travel industry newsletter, Afar Advisor.

Rate and review the show to help other travel professionals discover these insights.

Explore our other podcasts, ⁠⁠Travel Tales⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠Unpacked⁠⁠.
This IPW 2026 special series was recorded live. View From Afar is a production of Afar Media and a part of Airwave Media's podcast network (email ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠ if you would like to advertise on our podcast). The podcast is produced by Aislyn Greene and Nikki Galteland, with assistance from Michelle Baran and Billie Cohen. Music composition from Epidemic Sound.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
24 min
June 04The Bad Bunny Puerto Rico Effect | Live From IPW 2026
Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Discover Puerto Rico⁠ CEO ⁠Jorge Perez⁠ sits down with Afar editorial director Billie Cohen for one of our most fascinating travel industry interviews yet: a look at the Bad Bunny Puerto Rico effect, and how one artist's residency rewrote the island's tourism story.
Jorge's history is intertwined with the star. He ran the convention center for Bad Bunny's first major concert in 2018, then the Coliseo de Puerto Rico where the 2025 residency took place. That run brought roughly 420,000 visitors and more than 200 million dollars in economic impact, and his job now is turning a moment into a movement.
In this conversation, Jorge and Billie discuss:
What the Bad Bunny Puerto Rico residency actually meant, 31 nights, visitors from 108 countries, and a wave of organic content money cannot buy

The strategy behind it, from targeting the low season to a call to come to the island rather than tour the mainland

Why searches for Puerto Rico jumped 245 percent after the Super Bowl halftime, and how authentic culture, including three of the world's five bioluminescent bays, keeps people coming

How stays nearly doubled, shifting the demographic toward Europe and South America

Turning the spike into record numbers, 8.5 million visitors in 2025 and the best quarter in the island's history in early 2026, powered in part by the World Baseball Classic and the Puerto Rico Open

The biggest lesson Jorge took from it all, and what Puerto Rico builds next
This is one in a series of travel industry interviews and tourism experts interviews recorded live at IPW 2026, part of View From Afar's ongoing look at travel trends 2026, destination management, and travel consumer insights. For the full story of the Bad Bunny Puerto Rico moment and why the island's momentum did not fade when the music stopped, it is a front-row conversation with one of the hospitality industry leaders shaping the future of travel.

Chapters
0:00 Welcome to Puerto Rico, live from IPW
2:00 Inside the Bad Bunny residency: 31 nights, 108 countries
4:00 The strategy: low season, longer stays, and a search spike
8:00 Turning a spike into record-breaking numbers
9:00 The best quarter in Puerto Rico's history
11:00 Bioluminescent bays and a built-to-serve island
16:00 The biggest lesson, and what comes next
Resources
The Afar guide to Puerto Rico

Our Unpacked episode about exploring music on the island

Stay Connected
Subscribe to View From Afar to catch all our IPW 2026 episodes this week.

Follow @AfarMedia on ⁠Instagram⁠ and ⁠TikTok⁠ for behind-the-scenes IPW content.

⁠Sign up⁠ for our travel industry newsletter, Afar Advisor.

Rate and review the show to help other travel professionals discover these insights.

Explore our other podcasts, ⁠Travel Tales⁠ and ⁠Unpacked⁠.
This IPW 2026 special series was recorded live. View From Afar is a production of Afar Media and a part of Airwave Media's podcast network (email ⁠[email protected]⁠ if you would like to advertise on our podcast). The podcast is produced by Aislyn Greene and Nikki Galteland, with assistance from Michelle Baran and Billie Cohen. Music composition from Epidemic Sound.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
24 min
June 03How Detroit Tourism Finally Caught Up to the Hype | Live From IPW 2026
Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Visit Detroit⁠⁠ president and CEO ⁠⁠Claude Molinari⁠⁠ sits down with Afar editorial director Billie Cohen for one of our most energizing travel industry interviews yet: a look at how Detroit tourism finally caught up to the reality of a city that has quietly transformed.
Claude has led Visit Detroit since 2021, after a decade running Huntington Place, the city's convention center. He is the person who brought the NFL Draft to town in 2024, and he makes the case that Detroit is not staging a comeback so much as becoming something entirely new.
In this episode, Claude and Billie discuss:
Why Detroit tourism is riding a genuine shift rather than another comeback story, from five new skyscrapers to three straight years of population growth

The number-one Riverwalk in the country, a $30 million renovation, and the stretch from Belle Isle to the Ambassador Bridge

How Michigan Central Station went from abandoned to the epicenter of autonomous vehicles, and why Detroit is the only UNESCO City of Design in the United States

The architecture worth the trip, from the Guardian Building to a fedora from Henry the Hatter

How Detroit is handling a roughly 30 percent drop in Canadian visitation while still growing overall

The Juventus jersey partnership that put Visit Detroit in front of 500 million soccer fans and drove website traffic up 400 percent from Europe

Of course we start with the only debate that matters, which pizza is truly the best
This is one in a series of travel industry interviews and tourism experts interviews recorded live at IPW 2026, part of View From Afar's ongoing look at travel trends 2026, travel marketing strategies, and the destination management behind a city on the rise. For a fresh read on Detroit tourism ahead of the Final Four and IPW 2028, it is a front-row conversation with one of the hospitality industry leaders shaping the future of travel.
Chapters
0:00 Welcome to Detroit, live from IPW
2:00 The great pizza debate
4:00 Not a comeback, a complete change
6:00 The Riverwalk, Michigan Central, and a UNESCO city of design
8:00 A Canadian dip, a bigger budget, and the first-ever convention bureau
10:00 The Juventus jersey that reached 500 million fans
12:00 Eastern Market, new hotels, and an afternoon at the library
Resources:
⁠Visit Detroit⁠

⁠Detroit Riverwalk⁠

⁠Michigan Central Station⁠

⁠Henry Ford Museum⁠ at Greenfield Village

⁠Eastern Market⁠

⁠Detroit Institute of Arts⁠

⁠Buddy's Pizza⁠

⁠Afar guide to Detroit⁠

Stay Connected
Subscribe to View From Afar to catch all our IPW 2026 episodes this week.

Follow @AfarMedia on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠ for behind-the-scenes IPW content.

⁠⁠Sign up⁠⁠ for our travel industry newsletter, Afar Advisor.

Rate and review the show to help other travel professionals discover these insights.

Explore our other podcasts, ⁠⁠Travel Tales⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠Unpacked⁠⁠.
This IPW 2026 special series was recorded live. View From Afar is a production of Afar Media and a part of Airwave Media's podcast network (email ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠ if you would like to advertise on our podcast). The podcast is produced by Aislyn Greene and Nikki Galteland, with assistance from Michelle Baran and Billie Cohen. Music composition from Epidemic Sound.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
24 min
May 30Visit South Carolina and Find the Undiscovered | Live From IPW 2026
Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Discover South Carolina director Duane Parrish sits down with Afar deputy editor Michelle Baran for one of our most revealing travel industry interviews yet: a case for why you should visit South Carolina well beyond its famous beaches.
Duane has led Discover South Carolina for 15 years, and tourism is now one of the state's largest industries. In 2024 it contributed more than 30 billion dollars to the economy and generated 3.2 billion in state and local tax revenue, money that helps hold down residents' property and income taxes.
In this episode, Duane and Michelle discuss:
Why 2025 was a record year statewide even as the Grand Strand and Myrtle Beach felt a sharp drop in Canadian snowbird visits

How South Carolina leaned into the drive market, with 80 percent of visitors arriving by car, targeting cities like Atlanta and Charlotte to offset softer international numbers

Why post-pandemic outdoor recreation, from golf to hiking to camping, has become one of the state's strongest domestic draws

The Find the Undiscovered You campaign, and the pitch for off-the-grid escapes like the climb to the top of Table Rock Mountain

How Charleston, Hilton Head, Greenville, and the up-and-coming upstate each play a different role in the state's mix

The opening of the ⁠International African American Museum⁠ in Charleston, the ⁠Gullah Geechee Corridor,⁠ and the ⁠Civil Rights Trail⁠—and why international visitors are especially drawn to this kind of richer storytelling

How accommodations, sales, and gas taxes turn every visit into funding for local tourism initiatives and community projects
This is one in a series of travel industry interviews and tourism experts interviews recorded live at IPW 2026, part of View From Afar's ongoing look at travel trends 2026, destination management, and the travel industry insights that help a state grow tourism responsibly. For every reason to visit South Carolina beyond the coast, and a look at why so many already visit South Carolina each year, it is a front-row conversation with one of the hospitality industry leaders shaping the future of travel.

Plus: the four styles of South Carolina barbecue sauce (vinegar, mustard, light tomato, heavy tomato), the 225-restaurant barbecue trail that's color-coded by sauce, and Duane's own loyalty to heavy tomato.
Chapters
00:00:00 Welcome to View From Afar
00:01:30 A Record Year, With Exceptions
00:03:00 Doubling Down on Drive Markets
00:04:30 Find the Undiscovered You
00:06:30 Greenville's Reinvention
00:07:30 Beyond Charleston
00:08:30 How Destination Marketing Has Changed
00:10:30 The Promise and Limits of AI
00:12:30 Telling a Fuller Story
00:16:30 The Barbecue Trail
00:19:00 A South Carolina Itinerary
Resources:
Discover South Carolina

South Carolina Barbecue Trail

The Afar guide to South Carolina

Listen to our Unpacked podcast guide to Charleston, where we explore food, culture, the outdoors, and shopping

Stay Connected
Subscribe to View From Afar to catch all our IPW 2026 episodes this week.

Follow @AfarMedia on ⁠Instagram⁠ and ⁠TikTok⁠ for behind-the-scenes IPW content.

⁠Sign up⁠ for our travel industry newsletter, Afar Advisor.

Rate and review the show to help other travel professionals discover these insights.

Explore our other podcasts, ⁠Travel Tales⁠ and ⁠Unpacked⁠.
This IPW 2026 special series was recorded live. View From Afar is a production of Afar Media and a part of Airwave Media's podcast network (email ⁠[email protected]⁠ if you would like to advertise on our podcast). The podcast is produced by Aislyn Greene and Nikki Galteland, with assistance from Michelle Baran and Billie Cohen. Music composition from Epidemic Sound.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
22 min
May 28The Seattle Tourism Boom Behind a World Cup Summer | Live From IPW 2026
Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Visit Seattle president and CEO Tammy Canavan sits down with Afar deputy editor Michelle Baran for one of our most timely travel industry interviews yet: a look at the Seattle tourism surge heading into a World Cup summer, and why first-time visitors keep leaving surprised.
Tammy came to Visit Seattle after destination roles in Monterey, Tacoma, and Vancouver, and she has spent the last four years steering a city in the middle of a growth moment. In that time the convention center opened its new Summit building, Sea-Tac expanded its international network, and the downtown waterfront was completely rebuilt.

In this episode, Tammy and Michelle discuss:
Why Seattle tourism is booming, from a record cruise season of two million passengers as the American gateway to Alaska, to a walkable downtown built around transit and nature
What World Cup visitors will find this summer, including a walk-to-the-stadium downtown, a car-free Unity Loop through the neighborhoods, and fan zones spread across the city instead of one
The myth of the rainy city, and why the reality is closer to an Evian mist than a downpour
How regenerative and sustainable tourism became central to the Seattle brand rather than an add-on
Why the city's collaborative, long-term civic culture keeps a mid-size destination punching above its weight
Tammy's message from the U.S. Travel and Tourism Advisory Board on inbound travel, the chilling effect of a proposed visa integrity fee, and why restoring Brand USA funding matters for markets like India
This is one in a series of travel industry interviews and tourism experts interviews recorded live at IPW 2026, part of View From Afar's ongoing look at travel trends 2026, sustainable tourism, and the travel industry challenges facing inbound U.S. travel. For a clear read on Seattle tourism at a pivotal moment, it is a front-row conversation with one of the hospitality industry leaders shaping the future of travel.

Resources
Visit Seattle

A guide to Seattle's waterfront reinvention

Afar's guide to Seattle
Chapters
00:00:00 Welcome to View From Afar
00:01:30 Why Seattle, Why Now
00:04:00 The World Cup Surprise
00:06:30 What Travelers Need to Hear
00:08:00 A Waterfront, Reconnected
00:09:30 Beyond Pike Place
00:11:30 The Perception Problem
00:14:30 A Civic Renewal
00:17:30 Seattle's Quiet Joy
Stay Connected
Subscribe to View From Afar to catch all our IPW 2026 episodes this week.

Follow @AfarMedia on ⁠Instagram⁠ and ⁠TikTok⁠ for behind-the-scenes IPW content.

⁠Sign up⁠ for our travel industry newsletter, Afar Advisor.

Rate and review the show to help other travel professionals discover these insights.

Explore our other podcasts, ⁠Travel Tales⁠ and ⁠Unpacked⁠.
This IPW 2026 special series was recorded live. View From Afar is a production of Afar Media and a part of Airwave Media's podcast network (email ⁠[email protected]⁠ if you would like to advertise on our podcast). The podcast is produced by Aislyn Greene and Nikki Galteland, with assistance from Michelle Baran and Billie Cohen. Music composition from Epidemic Sound.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
22 min
May 27Can American Train Travel Actually Work? | Live From IPW 2026
Welcome to a special IPW 2026 series of View From Afar. In this episode, recorded live from the conference floor, Brightline Holdings CEO Nicolas Petrovic sits down with Afar editorial director Billie Cohen for one of our most future-facing travel industry interviews yet: a real look at whether American train travel can actually work.
Nicolas stepped into the role in February, bringing decades of international rail experience from Eurostar, Siemens, and projects in the UAE. He now leads Brightline, the privately operated passenger rail service connecting Miami to Orlando, with ambitions to bring modern high-speed rail to more of the country.
In this conversation, Nicolas and Billie discuss:
Why American train travel is a genuine bet, and what it takes to get people out of their cars and onto a train

The lessons from Eurostar, where Nicolas helped grow the business market from 10 to 80 percent share and sell tickets to travelers in the U.S., India, and China

How Brightline built a high-quality railway through one of the most urbanized corridors in the country

Why the on-board experience, the pricing, and the distribution matter as much as the tracks, right down to a signature citrus scent in every station

The new 39 dollar fare and a philosophy of filling trains with everyone, from students to billionaires

What all of this means for Florida destinations, from Orlando theme parks to the beaches, once the train becomes part of the trip itself

What 3 million passengers last year, and a 20 percent jump this year, say about where American train travel goes next
This is one in a series of travel industry interviews and tourism experts interviews recorded live at IPW 2026, part of View From Afar's ongoing look at travel trends 2026, travel innovation, and the destination management questions that come with a new way to move. For an honest read on the future of American train travel, it is a front-row conversation with one of the hospitality industry leaders shaping the future of travel.
Resources
Brightline

Brightline West

Afar review of the Brightline experience

Afar coverage of Brightline West
Chapters
00:00:00 Welcome to View From Afar
00:01:50 The Brightline Scent
00:03:00 Convincing People to Leave Their Cars
00:04:30 Lessons From Eurostar
00:07:30 The Right Train Experience
00:11:00 How Florida Travels by Rail
00:12:30 Talking About the Debt
00:14:00 The Vision for Brightline West

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This IPW 2026 special series was recorded live. View From Afar is a production of Afar Media and a part of Airwave Media's podcast network (email ⁠[email protected]⁠ if you would like to advertise on our podcast). The podcast is produced by Aislyn Greene and Nikki Galteland, with assistance from Michelle Baran and Billie Cohen. Music composition from Epidemic Sound.

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21 min

About View From Afar | Travel Industry News

From the publisher's feed

View From Afar is the travel industry podcast made by the travel industry, for the travel industry. Hosted by the editors of Afar, the show sits down with the CEOs, tourism experts, hoteliers, and destination leaders shaping how the world moves. These are travel industry interviews with the people actually making the decisions, from national tourism boards to the newest hotel brands, often recorded in the room where it happens, including live from major travel industry events like IPW.