Paris bans e-scooters. Instagrammable beaches. Smartvel buys ArrivalGuides.
Scootin’ off to London
Paris is banning rental electric scooters from its streets after voters resoundingly backed a blanket ban on the scooters in a referendum.
Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo said scooters on Parisian streets were a “nuisance”.
Soon that “nuisance” will be on the move. [...]
Singapore to unleash arts everywhere by taking it to the people
Catch-all platform, Singaporean music movement, buskers, lively precincts – NAC unveils five-year roadmap to create city with soul
The link between arts and tourism is well-proven. Cities like New York and London, beyond Broadway and West End respectively, have an always-on arts scene, where a [...]
Bill Bensley on working with nature, gorillas, garbage and boxes
“Once you respect Mother Nature, everything falls in place”
For Bill Bensley, renowned hotel architect, designer and landscape artist, starting any new project in a virgin site is all about risk mitigation and learning to work with Mother Nature.
“We can only make it worse,” said the Ame [...]
Banyan Tree’s KP Ho on the rainbow revolution and the “long burn” of sustainability
“Sustainability is not just about carbon emissions but the difference you make in people’s lives”
South-east Asia’s hospitality industry is in the midst of a “rainbow revolution” driven by new demographics of customers, said Ho Kwon Ping, executive chairman of Banyan Tree Holdings, wh [...]
From mooncakes to hungry ghosts: The things AI and tech have not replaced
I received my first gift of mooncake last week, from the Pan Pacific Hotels Group. The white leather case it came in was truly gorgeous, probably cost more than the mooncakes in it. I will have to think of another use for the case after I devour the four round-shaped delicacies of lotus paste, ginge [...]
Luxury Escapes’ Adam Schwab on growing fast, being one of a kind, and new superstore in Melbourne
Adam Schwab runs barefoot half marathons and plays golf in the dark to give himself more time to devote to Luxury Escapes where, as CEO, he has overseen the company’s rise to one of the fastest growing travel companies worldwide.
Luxury Escapes has seven million global members and off [...]
India’s ground transportation: Analyzing market dynamics of rail and intercity bus travel
The Indian transport and mobility landscape is undergoing a transformation, powered by significant investments in both physical and digital infrastructure. Against the backdrop of a burgeoning transportation industry, the India Ground Transportation Market Sizing & OTA Benchmarking Study, FY20-F [...]
Moon landing, 1,000 aircraft orders – India’s on a roll but it’s still a long game
TBO’s Gaurav Bhatnagar has “big plans” for APAC
Gaurav Bhatnagar, who is on a mission to build the world’s largest travel distribution platform, was elated when TBO.com clocked $10 million in GTV/sales in a single day in April 2023. “Coming out of COVID, it was hard to imagine that this [...]
The evolution of zoo design and how animals always come first for Bernard Harrison
From “Free The Bears” to designing zoos in Cairo, China and India, Singapore’s Zoo Man talks to Yeoh Siew Hoon about the principles of zoo design, the challenges of keeping the animal-human balance and the future for zoos. And guess which is his personal favourite?
You may take the man out of [...]
Korean Air weighs passengers. Skyscanner speaks Hindi. Grab enjoys revenue boost.
Skyscanner introduces Hindi option to cater to growing Indian demand
Skyscanner is launching a new Hindi language option across its products and services as part of its commitment to the Indian market. With Hindi being the third most widely spoken language worldwide and the increasing number of Hin [...]
