Seeking human advice on travel in the age of AI
Globetrotter who visited every country by age 25 joins Skyscanner as a travel ambassador and has some tips for us
“The best travel advice I’ve received from someone else would be to always carry a copy of your passport/visa with you during your travel, and to carry some passport sized photos wi [...]
Amadeus strengthens biometrics portfolio with acquisition of Vision-Box
Travel distribution system Amadeus recently announced its acquisition of Vision-Box, a leading provider of biometric solutions catering to airports, airlines, and border control sectors. This strategic move marks a significant step towards enhancing the seamless traveller journey, with a focus on in [...]
Global air travel up 37% in 2023, yet challenges remain
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) recently released data indicating a continued rebound in global air travel throughout 2023, inching closer to pre-pandemic levels. Let's delve into the numbers and trends shaping this recovery.
In 2023, total air traffic, measured in revenue pass [...]
Singapore ends 2023 on a high but concerns loom over costs and demand
STB forecasts 15-16m arrivals in 2024, short of 2019’s 19m
There’s much reason to celebrate within Singapore’s tourism industry as Lunar New Year approaches on Febuary 10. The destination saw a 115% increase in the number of visitors last year, from 6.3m in 2022 to 13.6m in 2023, which fell [...]
Letter from Bangkok: Weaving Sookjai (happiness) into an organic tourism experience
TOCA to link carbon credits calculations to hotels' “green practices”
The day I landed in Bangkok, social media had literally gone wild with the video of the woman driving in an open-top Bentley with a chained lion in the backseat.
For those of us familiar with Thailand, this is one of those [...]
Schiphol app curbs flight stress. Hilton ready to chat. Visa waiver ignites travel surge. More.
Your watch is your flight buddy
Amsterdam Schiphol Airport has created an app for Apple Watch that uses AI and motion sensors to give travellers up-to-date information about their flights. The app tells users when their flight is leaving or arriving, which gate to go to, and provides status updates [...]
MakeMyTrip hails best ever quarter driven by high travel demand
India online travel agency MakeMyTrip Group (MMT) has reported its highest ever quarterly gross bookings, revenue and profit for its fiscal 2024 third quarter.
The Gurugram, India-based business reported a 20% increase in gross bookings to $2 billion while revenue increased 26% to $214 million. [...]
WiT Podcast: Customer love to planet love; practise what you preach
This is Episode 2 of the Customer Love series. Listen to Episode 1 here.
In the middle of this episode, “From Customer Love to Planet Love”, Eric Ricaurte, CEO of Greenview burst (nearly) into song, reciting the lyrics of Barry White’s Practise What You Preach – “You say there's a lesso [...]
Phocuswright, WiT to launch Middle East travel tech conference in Dubai, May 3
Northstar Travel Group’s two leading travel tech platforms, Phocuswright and WiT, are joining forces to launch a Middle East conference in Dubai on May 3.
Scheduled to be held pre-Arabian Travel Market week, the one-day conference, at Grand Movenpick Media City, will blend the best of Phocuswri [...]
Travel + Leisure Co acquires Accor Vacation Club
Travel + Leisure Co. (NYSE:TNL), the world’s leading membership and leisure travel company, announced an agreement to acquire the vacation ownership business of global hospitality giant Accor (AC:FP) for US$48.4 million. The acquisition is expected to close in the first quarter of 2024 and to be i [...]
