Overtourism Not A Thing? + Hawaiian Airlines' No-Bot Messaging + Choice CEO Gets Early Start

The Travel Industry's Daily Agenda-Setting Newsletter

August 11, 2017 View in browser

Note From the Editor Just about every travel company has a dog in this fight — or will in the near future. We're talking about overtourism and the local backlash that almost inevitably develops when residents of an overly popular destination see the fabric of their communities threatened. We don't have all the answers but the CEO of TUI Group, as reported by our Europe editor Patrick Whyte, really seems to be downplaying the complexities of the issue. It is a question that will come to the fore over and over again in coming years and we'd like to hear more thoughtful answers. Meanwhile, to get a little less serious on a Friday, we're including our two most-popular stories ever: "The 22 Most-Cliched Tourist Photos Ever and Why They Matter" and "The 30 Best-Looking Airline Logos in the World." Take a look in the "From the Archives" section and enjoy. — Dennis Schaal, Executive Editor Free Webinar: Examining The Evolving Diversity of Modern Luxury Travel [SPONSORED] Sponsored by L.E.K. Consulting High-end travel and hospitality brands must adapt to evolving luxury consumer psychographics to provide personalized experiences aligned with the whims of today's upscale travelers. Register Top Stories TUI Group CEO Downplays Overtourism Threat While TUI's CEO is right to point out the macro benefits of tourism in Spain, the company ignores the myriad of local issues in places such as Barcelona and Majorca that are turning locals against mass tourism. It is a self-interested issue to address for virtually the entire travel industry. Hawaiian Airlines is Handling Customer Service Inquiries Via Text Message In the not too distant future, we expect bots will be sophisticated enough to handle almost all customer service inquires sent via text message. But we're not there yet, so it's refreshing Hawaiian Airlines is going with an all-human approach. Benchmark Files Lawsuit to Oust Former Uber CEO From Company Board If Benchmark wins this lawsuit, gets Kalanick off the board, and thwarts any potential comeback as CEO, Uber can finally make a fresh start. That being said, Uber would not have gotten as far as it has come without the now-discredited former CEO. Vacation Rental Network RedAwning Attracts $40 Million Round: Travel Startup Funding This Week Among the latest travel companies to receive funding, RedAwning and WanderJaunt are applying aspects of hotel franchising to home renting. Other companies will likely pile onto these experiments. New Choice Hotels CEO Is Starting Earlier Than He Thought Well, that happened quickly. But given the fact that Pacious has been with Choice for more than a decade and was already planning on becoming CEO by year's end, the timing of this doesn't seem like it'll be a big deal for the company. Distribution Upheaval Comes Slowly — Skift Corporate Travel Innovation Report The global travel marketplace is ripe for evolution; we're still only at the early stages. From the Archives The 22 Most Cliched Tourist Photos Ever and Why They Matter Don't pooh pooh them off, whole economies have been built on them; cliches drive the travel economy ever since we started making travel brochures. They are what drive people to book these trips, and do what everyone else has done before them. The 30 Best-Looking Airline Logos in the World We would totally put any of these logos on a t-shirt! But seriously, airline branding is a serious multi-billion dollar matter, and smart airlines are using their distinctive logos to stand apart. Or should. Popular Now How the Travel Industry Has Changed in 5 Years We can't imagine a better five years to begin with. And we look forward to the many more ahead. Priceline Group Facing Tough Calls on China Expansion Priceline Group's CEO Glenn Fogel has repeated his view that Asia is the company's most important market. We don't think he'll try to acquire Ctrip. But additional moves are possible. Can TripAdvisor Blame Its Hotel-Bidding Slump on Expedia or Priceline? TripAdvisor is still a must-have marketing channel for online travel agency and hotel advertisers. But if the Priceline Group and Expedia tilt their spend more toward other marketing vehicles, there aren't a lot of other players with the marketing resources they have to make TripAdvisor whole. 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.

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