Turning tourists into conservationists, RealNZ’s one ‘sound of silence’ at a time
“You can't help conservation and help the planet if you're not profitable. You've always got to have that balance.”
Two years into his role as chief executive of RealNZ, Dave Beeche is applying lessons from a career in major sports events to New Zealand's tourism industry. “Our purpose is to [...]
Expedia puts its money where the trail is
$4.3m Trails Fund a sign of sustainability meeting commerce
For Aditi Mohapatra, VP of Global Social Impact and Sustainability at Expedia Group, the launch of the Expedia Trails Fund is a signal that sustainability, often seen as a soft function within corporates, is finding its commercial footing. [...]
Saudi travel’s new shape: Domestic, westward and betting on Itself
The interview with Muzzammil Ahussain, CEO of Almosafer, at WiT Phocuswright Middle East started with a provocation. Saudi Arabia is reportedly projecting a $44 billion deficit for 2026. Construction contract awards fell 72% year-on-year. NEOM wasn’t even mentioned in the national budget. So: is t [...]
APAC hotel distribution sees slower growth, rising regional OTAs, and direct channels under pressure
D-EDGE's 2022–Q1 2026 analysis shows booking growth cooling to 2.7%, Agoda pulling ahead of Booking.com, and wholesalers more than tripling their market share in three years.
According to a new report from hospitality technology provider D-EDGE, Asia-Pacific's hotel distribution landscape is shif [...]
Airlines eye elite status. Wego’s digital Umrah platform. Dida’s bookable recommendations. Travel holds in 2026.
Wego and Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah launch digital Umrah platform
Wego, the largest online travel marketplace in MENA, has partnered with the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah to launch an integrated digital platform combining flight bookings, verified hotels, licensed ground services, and fac [...]
Japan’s secondary cities in the search bar: Why alternative corridors are winning next-gen discovery
The travel search interface has officially fragmented. Discovery is no longer about generating links; it is about answer generation. Driven by AI-curated "Zero-Click" context and vertical video validation across TikTok, Reels, and Shorts, travelers are trading traditional keywords for contextual, wi [...]
Money, moats and the AI mirage: What it takes to build and fund a startup now
There is a peculiar kind of vertigo that comes with being a travel technology founder right now. On one side, Silicon Valley is minting billionaires at a pace not seen since the dot-com era. On the other, investors are skittish, M&A is grinding, and raising a seed round can feel like pushing a b [...]
Travel professionals in APAC expect growth but risk slowing momentum
Expedia Group has released new research, Mapping the Future of APAC Travel, showing that 65% of travel professionals expect demand for their Asia-Pacific (APAC) travel business to increase over the next two to three years, rising to 78% among loyalty professionals.
Based on a survey of 1,250 trav [...]
Visa launches Destinations. Yatra reconsiders Nasdaq. Travelport x Travelsoft. Hotels’ AI race.
Yatra faces Nasdaq deadline as share price slump bites
Online travel agency Yatra has until December 22, 2026 to regain Nasdaq compliance after its shares failed to maintain a $1 minimum closing bid price between May 12 and June 24, with a reverse stock split among the options under consideration; [...]
Air passenger demand falls 2.2% due to war in the Middle East
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) released data for May 2026 global passenger demand.
Total demand, measured in revenue passenger kilometers (RPK), was down 2.2% compared to May 2025. Excluding the Middle East, demand grew by 0.7%. Total capacity, measured in available seat [...]
