Online travel newsletter tips

During the pandemic, Airbnb saw a burst of long-term stays of 28 days or longer, and also reservations in non-urban areas. While many other areas of the business have normalized in the interim, those two areas are still solid.

A report in the Financial Times Wednesday that Uber was exploring a purchase of Expedia has everyone in the travel industry talking. If Uber were to acquire Expedia Group, it would be the biggest shakeup the travel industry has seen in years. 

Uber is launching a new black-car service for business travelers, the company told Skift Tuesday. The service, called Uber Business Black, will come with several features designed for busy business travelers. 

Hotels still dominate over short-term rentals when U.S. travelers are deciding where to stay. But several trends show the challenges hotels face — and the growth opportunities for short-term rentals.

Ami Goldman, a property owner and tech entrepreneur in Brazil, leased his $300,000 apartment to Tabas, a mid- to long-term rental operator in 2021.

Short-term rental company Sonder disclosed that it lost nearly $80 million more in 2022 than it previously reported.

Under an existing partnership established in 2015, Despegar was restricted to using Expedia Group hotel supply for the vast majority of inventory outside of home base Latin America, a stipulation that hindered Despegar’s expansion ambitions.

There have been dozens of travel tech acquisitions so far this year: That includes at least 11 deals over the past three months, which followed at least 15 earlier this year.

This isn’t the old Tripadvisor, the one where the company was dependent on metasearch and chasing advertising clicks. At the new Tripadvisor, users can use generative AI for trip-planning and to book experiences, dining reservations and hotels.

Brian Chesky, co-founder and CEO of Airbnb, said Wednesday that he hopes to eventually expand beyond just short-term rentals and even travel.

Booking Holdings’ short-term rental business has been growing faster than Airbnb’s, and the company’s CEO plans to keep that momentum going. 

Tripadvisor informed its vacation rental guests and hosts around the world that reservations with check-in dates on or after November 1 will be cancelled, and guests will receive full refunds.

Former Expedia Group CEO Peter Kern gave up his vice chairman role and exited the board, the company announced. It said Kern “agreed” to do so “given the speed and success of the Company’s recent management transition.”

After pausing the acceptance of host signups for new experiences for around a year-and-a half, Airbnb has deleted subpar experience listings, and re-opened the application process.

Airbnb gets “so much appreciation” for its “growth and growth outlook” while Booking Holdings is actually “growing much faster” in its alternative accommodations business.

The first half of August saw three of the biggest travel startup fundraises of the year: Flyr ($295 million), Archer Aviation ($230 million), and Oyo ($173 million).

The travel booking landscape is rapidly transforming, with direct bookings on the rise and reshaping the competition. What’s driving this shift? Skift Research explores these pivotal changes in our new report: “Direct Bookings vs. OTAs: Analyzing the Shift in U.S. Travel Booking Trends.”

Yatra Online on Monday announced that it has agreed to acquire Globe All India Services (Globe Travels), a corporate travel services provider, for INR 1.28 billion ($15.25 million) in cash.

Some say a new form of “keeping up with the Joneses” is changing the short-term rental game. 

Ryanair chastised online travel agencies for years for scraping its fares and unilaterally charging higher prices, as well as booking fees and overcharging for ancillary services like checked bags.

Steve Singh and a group of industry veterans are rolling out a new AI trip planner and booking agent for business travel.