Dennis Schaal travel tips

Vrbo last month reversed a longstanding policy on guest refunds and host cancellations, tipping the benefits toward guests and away from hosts when there are major travel disruptions.

American Airlines CEO Robert Isom outlined numerous steps the airline is taking to “course correct” after abandoning a direct distribution strategy it embarked on in 2023.

Good morning from Skift. It’s Thursday, July 25, and here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today. 

When it came down to it, Google didn’t want to anger its core customers — advertisers — and this week announced it won’t phase out third-party cookies in its Chrome browser as planned.

Expedia Group and Ryanair settled a long-running dispute, which will culminate in several months with Expedia customers being able to book the airline’s standalone flights and vacation packages “with a path to Ryanair,” the companies said.

Expect more private equity deals in the tour operator and travel agency sectors.

Good morning from Skift. It’s Thursday, July 18, and here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today. 

Google, a key partner in the Prince Harry-founded Travalyst coalition, has been a leading authority on measuring airline emissions.

Good morning from Skift. It’s Tuesday, July 16, and here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today. 

Last-minute travel sites have traditionally gained ground during challenging economic times.

A months-long CNN investigation found that Airbnb has worked to keep thousands of complaints about properties with hidden indoor security cameras out of the public domain. Airbnb banned indoor cameras in March.

With its number of hosts and bookings in the Paris region booming ahead of the start of the Olympics this month, a new Airbnb commercial is advising travelers to avoid hotels if they want to discover the essence of the city.

If there were any sizzle about Tripadvisor in recent years, it came from its fast-growing tours and activities brand, Viator, which launched a national ad campaign in November.

Good morning from Skift. It’s Tuesday, July 9, and here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today. 

The Big Three travel booking sites — Booking.com, Airbnb, and Expedia/Vrbo — all appear to be complying with California’s new junk fee transparency law. But they way they are doing it varies considerably.

Good morning from Skift. It’s Friday, June 28, and here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today. 

When an online travel company has a fast-growing business unit, it usually doesn’t take much prodding to get officials to tout it. But that’s not the case with Booking Holdings and its nine-year old business unit, Booking.com for Business.

HomeToGo, the short-term rental price comparison business, plans to go a couple of steps further than Airbnb to comply with the California junk fee law that kicks in July 1.

Fetcherr, which offers an AI-driven market engine to help airlines create enticing fares for travelers, closed a $90 million Series B funding round.

Airbnb said in 2021 that it had been taking “more aggressive action” to ban violent members of dangerous organizations. Its policies followed violent incidents and riots from the Charlottesville Unite the Right rally in 2017 to the January 6 attack on the Capitol, during which participants had stayed in Airbnbs.

Airbnb’s head of policy Jay Carney said recently that New York City Local Law 18 is an example of how not to regulate short-term rentals. But Barcelona officials don’t agree – and think regulations can go further.