Competitors Fear Norwegian Air + Barcelona Frustrates Airbnb + Wyndham's Spinoff Frenzy

The Travel Industry's Daily Agenda-Setting Newsletter

August 3, 2017 View in browser

Editor's Note Sometimes understanding the travel industry can be dizzying because there are so many moves and juxtapositions. Take a look at Norwegian Air. The long-haul, low-cost airline is becoming a passenger fave but investors are having second thoughts. In the airline business, isn't it usually the other way around? It isn't exactly dizzying, but Wyndham is spinning off its hotels into one public company and its timeshares plus vacation rentals into another. The puzzle parts separately would seemingly be worth more than the current whole company. Then try to navigate your way through the back and forth among regulators and short-term rental interests in Barcelona, as we did as part of our new Skift Lens documentary series. Faced with overtourism pressures, authorities are regulating commercial operators but can't decide whether occasional rentals should be legal or illegal. It's all enough to make you want to turn to Skift to help you get your bearings. — Dennis Schaal, Executive Editor Building Traveler Satisfaction: Voices from the Front Lines of Corporate Travel [SPONSORED] Sponsored by Egencia Most travel managers agree that traveler satisfaction is more of a focus now than it was even just a few years ago, as it's becoming increasingly clear that it drives compliance, productivity, and overall employee engagement. Top Stories Travelers Love Spunky Norwegian Air. But What About Investors? Norwegian wins lots of awards, and they're well-deserved. But investors aren't sure the carrier will produce major profits any time soon. The problem? It may be growing too quickly. Barcelona Overtourism: Airbnb and Short-Term Rentals Tourist apartments are an integral part of Barcelona's tourism industry today so it is time both parties step beyond the limitations of permits and legal claims to seek a holistic approach that protects residents' quality of life while also housing visitors. Wyndham Is Spinning Off Its Timeshare Business Like Marriott, Starwood and Hilton Before It We had a hunch this would happen, but who knew it would happen so quickly? And how will Wyndham pursue that "blue thread" of loyalty strategy between its hotel and timeshare businesses? Webjet Is Buying JacTravel as Wholesaler Consolidation Intensifies In a short period, the number of companies at the top of the business-to-business travel market has shrunk dramatically. The deal continues Webjet's transition from a regionally focused consumer travel company to a global travel business; other acquisitions will follow. Five Takeaways From Choice Hotels' Second Quarter Earnings Call Choice Hotels' message to investors? "Don't worry. We got this." Chatbots Are the Future of Meeting and Event Communication and Networking The increased acceptance and use of chatbots and AI is changing the way event and meeting professionals connect with attendees and making events more efficient for the planners and the attendees. HNA's Rezidor Bid Is Being Held Up By Chinese Regulators It looks like tighter restrictions on outbound investment are starting to hinder dealmaking at HNA. Although the Rezidor deal may still go through, you've got to wonder what it means for the rest of 2017 and beyond. Ryanair Warns of Brexit's Worst-Case Scenario for the Airline Industry You've got to hand it to Chief Executive Michael O'Leary: He isn't dialing down his Brexit naysaying despite plenty of people in the aviation industry saying it will all be OK. Even if flights aren't grounded, the UK travel industry is still in for a prolonged period of uncertainty. How Artificial Intelligence Is Already Impacting How We Meet — Meetings Innovation Report Should we be scared of artificial intelligence, or should we learn to embrace it? Chefs+Tech: The Not-So-Quiet Power of a Strong Restaurant Website It's easy to overlook the importance of a well-designed and useful website in an age of social media hype, but a restaurant's website is the one true place the business has total control of the message. From the Archives Skift is known for its deep dives into everything from overtourism to the future of travel booking, but we've also made a mark for our exclusive breaking news. This week, as we mark Skift's fifth birthday, here are a couple of scoops from the past that you could have only read here. It's because our reporters know people who know people. Exclusive: BBC Selling Lonely Planet to Kentucky Cigarette Billionaire Brad Kelley This sale is a head-scratcher, but BBC was keen on finding a buyer and it looks like Kelley is the most price-elastic buyer it could find. Remains to be seen how the travel market and LP's thinking-but-loyal user base respond to the sale. Exclusive: Hyatt Signs Deal With Booking.com as Hedge Against Expedia Impasse As their contract expiration deadline looms, Hyatt and Expedia are maneuvering for position with Hyatt property owners. The new Hyatt-Booking.com agreement gives Hyatt some leverage but it likely wouldn't fully make up all the ground if the chain goes completely dark on Expedia. Popular Now Documentary: Barcelona and the Trials of 21st Century Overtourism We're excited to go deep into one of the more pressing issues in travel today in our first ever original documentary. Airbnb's Road to an IPO: Everything You Could Possibly Need to Know We all know Airbnb will go public someday — it's just a question of when. When will it finally be ready — and what does the company need to do before it does? Sabre Axes 900 Workers to Revamp Some of Its Business Lines By cutting the management ranks, Sabre's new CEO Sean Menke addresses a gripe of "management bloat" among workers writing on review sites like Glassdoor. He also wisely cuts costs to fund new investment. For Gmail users: If you are using the tabbed inbox, Skift emails may be pushed to the 'Promotions' tab. To get updates from Skift direct to your primary inbox, drag and drop this email to that tab. You received this email because you are subscribed to Skift Daily Newsletter from Skift.

Follow us Our address: 145 W 30th Street 5th Floor New York,  NY  10001  USA  Copyright © 2017 Skift, All rights reserved. If you'd like to unsubscribe from this email, click here | If you'd like to receive fewer emails, click here