Travelsoft Buys 90-Year-Old Travel Publication L’Echo

Cindy McCabe. (Source: Cindy McCabe)

Even in 2024, the question “can Americans travel to Cuba?” is still frequently asked among US travelers. Few destinations create such simultaneous longing and confusion as this crocodile-shaped island only 95 miles south of Key West. It has held a mythic status since the early 20th century for its vibrant mix of Latin and Caribbean cultures, its hundreds of miles of pristine beaches, its African-influenced music, and its vintage charm; today, Chevrolets and Buicks from the ’50s rattle down Spanish colonial streets in Old Havana that have hardly changed since Ernest Hemingway was knocking back mojitos there.

Anniversary trips are about the marriage, not the kids. But we chose to take our little one with us across the Pacific to Hawaii to celebrate 10 years of matrimony. We spent our honeymoon in Oahu, and taking our son back to the island gave us a unique opportunity to see how much we'd changed in the past decade. Since the vacation was about our marital milestone, we catered the trip to us, not our 7-year-old. 

A century ago, the timber-and-iron tower had supported a tram carrying precious salt across the Inyo Mountains that had been mined from a remote valley in the California desert. More recently, it stood as an artifact in the Saline Valley, and it marked the edge of a hiking trail through the sun-baked wilderness.

Good morning from Skift. It’s Thursday, May 16. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.

Chase cardholders can book Southwest Airlines flights through the Chase Travel portal, and that’s a rarity for leisure travelers.

With things looking up for tourism in The Bahamas, representatives of the country’s Ministry of Tourism, Investments & Aviation (BMOTIA) are set to build on their success at the 42nd edition of Caribbean Travel Marketplace. Hosted by the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) and scheduled for 20 - 23 May 2024 at the Montego Bay Convention Centre in Jamaica, the Caribbean’s largest tourism marketing event will offer opportunity for The Bahamas to shine as buyers and sellers of tourism products and services from countries across the region convening for business. In 2023, The Bahamas saw record-breaking tourism growth accounting for 9.6 million visitors, up 38% from 2022. While foreign air arrivals rose 17% to record 1.7 million in 2023, cruise arrivals surged 43.5% to record 7.9 million. The country’s 16 islands all enjoyed significant increases, with visits to New Providence, for instance, up 36% in 2023, to Grand Bahama up 44%, and the Out Islands up 40%.

Good morning from Skift. It’s Thursday, May 16. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.

WHY IT RATES: The partnership is an industry-first for a host agency and travel supplier to award ASTA scholarships. — Lacey Pfalz, Associate Writer, TravelPulse

A mother is suing American Airlines and calling for answers after her 14-year-old son died on board a flight.

On 6 February 2023, Türkiye suffered one of the most devastating events in its post-war history: a pair of 7.8- and 7.5-magnitude earthquakes that ravaged the country’s southeastern region, killing more than 50,000 people in 11 provinces. With over 160,000 buildings severely damaged or destroyed, 100,000 people injured and 3 million displaced, the disaster’s effects were felt across the nation and reverberate to this day.

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