Marriott Tries Homesharing + Skift Forum Europe Highlights

The lines between traditional and alternative accommodations are still blurring, as Marriott, AccorHotels, and Airbnb showed us this week.

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April 28, 2018 View in browser

Note From the Editor The lines between traditional and alternative accommodations are still blurring, as Marriott, AccorHotels, and Airbnb showed us this week. Marriott International is finally wading into the world of homesharing with a six-month pilot program, using one of its own brands to market carefully selected homes. At Skift Forum Europe in Berlin Thursday, AccorHotels CEO Sébastien Bazin said his company should have expanded into the sharing economy 15 years ago. He also offered an explanation for Accor's recent spending spree, along with the expectation that some 20 percent of investments will be unsuccessful. For its part, Airbnb — also represented at Skift Forum Europe — appears to be scaling back one earlier ambition. Jeroen Merchiers, managing director of Europe, Middle East, and Africa, said flights are not a big priority right now. Also not on the to-do list: looking to get big hotel chains to list rooms on the site. It's probably wise, then, that Marriott and Accor are doing their own things. — Hannah Sampson, News Editor Understanding Travel's Personalization Revolution Sponsored by Adobe Smart personalization is hard to do well in the travel industry. That's why today's best-in-class brands start with the fundamentals: gathering the right customer data, building the right technology stack to handle it, and finding the right talent. Read More Top Stories Marriott Experiments With Homesharing Leave it to Marriott to figure out a way to make homesharing work for the hotel industry. But as we've noted before, this space has its challenges, and figuring out the logistics and differences between managing homes and hotels will be crucial. Airline Upgrades Lead to a Purloined Pillow Problem Why can't business class passengers have nice things? Here's one problem: When airlines upgrade their amenities, passengers often steal them. Why Everybody Now Wants a Piece of the Tours and Activities Sector Large travel corporations can't seem to get enough of the tours and activities space. It's one to watch as the year unfolds. Deals can be a great way to get a foot in the door, but don't forget to make sure there is a strategic fit — and, of course, that the price is right. Marriott and Starwood Pull Off a Merged Loyalty Program That Makes Everyone Happy Marvel: "Infinity War is the most ambitious crossover event in history" Marriott Rewards and Starwood Preferred Guest: "Hold my beer" Skift Forum Europe Airbnb Won't Launch Flights Anytime Soon Can Airbnb become a superbrand of travel, as it has stated as a goal? Probably not without launching flights. On the other hand, Booking.com has done fairly well for itself without offering flights until now. AccorHotels CEO Gets Candid About Moving Hospitality Beyond Hotels AccorHotels wants to evolve from a hospitality company to a services and experience platform for travelers and locals alike. CEO Bazin is willing to take risks to achieve this goal, even if some of the company's investments don't ever pay off. Google Plans to String Its Travel Assets Together We come in peace, a top Google executive essentially said while addressing the travel industry on Thursday at Skift Forum Europe in Berlin. One possible industry response might be: "Trust, but verify." Booking.com CMO: FareHarbor Was a Smarter Buy Than GetYourGuide Whether the price tag on GetYourGuide was too much for Booking to admit, the tours and activities platform is likely still viewed as a viable buy for someone but that notion won't do much to calm GetYourGuide's nerves in the meantime. Flying Southwest Flight Social Feeds Remind Airlines Tragedies Are Public in Real Time Now The Southwest accident shows how bold passengers have become in using social media. For now, the FAA isn't taking steps to curb their activities. Alaska Airlines Will Enter Basic Economy Market Later This Year Alaska Airlines is turning to basic economy fares to help drive additional revenue. But, hey, at least flyers will be assigned a seat when they book one of these fares, easing some of the stress that usually comes with taking the risk of flying for cheap. JetBlue Tweaks Its West Coast Route Map as It Focuses on Profit Margins For a small, all-coach, low-cost startup based in New York, a Long Beach, California, focus city made sense. But times change, and Long Beach hasn't worked out as well as expected. It's no surprise JetBlue is ready to shrink there. Digital Trivago Suffers Another Loss and Lowers Its Forecast for Next Quarter Everyone blames Booking.com for Trivago's woes. But we're reserving judgment on the hotel search company's worse-than-expected second-quarter forecasts until we can hear from its other largest advertiser, Expedia Group, which holds its own first-quarter earnings call soon. Listicle Platform Culture Trip Raises $80 Million to Build Online Travel Agency Who knew that adding affiliate booking links to the hotels mentioned in articles and videos could earn record levels of investment? Expedia Group Accelerates Its Spending Faster Than It Grows Revenue If you (re)build it, they will come. That's the motto of Expedia Group CEO Mark Okerstrom for 2018. Hospitality The Inside Story Behind Marriott's Moxy-Led Invasion of Manhattan If you really want a better understanding of today's hospitality industry, you've got to hear it from the owners first because, without them, all those brands would be nothing more than ideas. An Inside Look at the Forbes Travel Guide With so many hotel ratings systems out there, who can you trust? Should ratings systems be open to all, a la the People's Choice Awards, or do more accurate results come from a system of professionals judging professionals, a la the Oscars or the Tonys? We take a look at one of the world's top rating guides for luxury properties. Hyatt CEO Wants to Woo the Global Middle Class Hyatt knows that its business is heavily skewed towards affluent and experienced travelers and it's done well to establish itself as a dominant player in many gateway destinations. But the combination of hotel consolidation and a rising middle class has made it think differently about how and where it wants to position itself. Tourism The Balkans, Yes, The Balkans, Lead Europe's New Tourism Push Long overshadowed by "Old Europe" for tourism, the Balkans are emerging as the center of "New Europe." But you better book now since the travelers' secret is out. Six Flags Is Planning More China Parks as International Growth Accelerates Six Flags is finding opportunity across China, with 10 parks now in the works — but will the company and its partners run into pushback from government officials who have recently voiced concerns about rapid theme park growth? How to Make Abu Dhabi a Real Destination and Not Just a Stopover Abu Dhabi has a long way to go to become a destination and not just a stopover. Here are some ideas. Corporate Travel and Meetings The Skift 2018 Corporate Travel Innovators List Corporate travel is extremely resistant to innovation because a select handful of gatekeepers make it difficult for new entrants to gain access to the content and data that is needed. These players are driving the industry forward by fixing how travelers book and experience business travel. Professional Retreats Show Black Travel Movement Gets Down to Business Somewhere between leisure travel and a career boot camp lies a professional retreat. 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