Traveling Blog: Smart Tourism Case Study + Questions on Booking's New Deal + Why Mobile Matters

July 11, 2018

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Editor's Note

So often when Skift writes about overtourism, stories focus on cities that are already under siege from visitors, and how they are managing the crisis. In many cases, we write about efforts to try to recapture a certain charm that overcrowding has trampled away. It's about trying to put the genie back in the bottle.

That's why today's Data and Discovery dispatch from Skift Senior Research Analyst Rebecca Stone is so interesting. As part of her yearlong sojourn to cities across the globe, she writes about how Valencia in Spain is trying to strike an equilibrium between keeping its authenticity while still being a draw for visitors. All of this before overtourism. Stone uses a series of bike rides through the city to show us smart tourism management from the ground up. It's a refreshing view from across those bike handles.

— Tom Lowry, Managing Editor

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From finding things to do, to making spontaneous bookings, mobile has a role to play at each part of the in-destination journey. Travel brands that can add value to this mobile journey have a lot to gain.

What a Month of Bicycle Rides Through Valencia Reveals about Authenticity in Tourism

For all its imperfections, Valencia still has its spirit and a sense of authenticity that other destinations have lost in some ways in the age of overtourism. As the city fights to maintain equilibrium, it has a unique opportunity to set an example via the proper management of tourism. Don't put doors in the field. Set up bike lanes instead.

Analysts Are Puzzled Why Booking Holdings Acquired HotelsCombined

The deal surprised analysts, some of whom didn't see an obvious logic for it. Yet one thing is sure: Online hotel sales are a bit like an old-fashioned butter market. A big chunk of butter changes hands multiple times and everyone gets their hands greasy.

6 Takeaways From The Oral History of Travel's Greatest Acquisition Booking.com

The stars were seemingly aligned when Booking.com made its move. The big U.S. players were too comfortable with their huge margins from the merchant model; Booking.com focused on independent hotels; and search engine marketing was on the rise. Still, it was the entrepreneurs and dealmakers who made it all happen.

Skift Table: Why Restaurants Won't Seat You Without a Complete Party

Restaurants: We promise we will order lots of food and drinks if you just let us sit down at our table even if the rest of our party isn't here. Also, we will come back and eat again.

Millennials and Chinese Consumers Are Rewriting the Luxury Rulebook

The luxury goods market is going to be worth more than $450 billion by 2015 and many of its trends are relevant to travel as well. Younger consumers see brands in a different way than previous generations — and for them consistency is key.

Airbnb China Names New President

Can Airbnb avoid Uber's fate of being acquired by a rival in China? It seems to be doing everything it can to do so, but is it enough?

Booking.com is Booking Holdings' favored child, but with the addition of HotelsCombined, it is apparent that the parent company still sees plenty of opportunity for its Kayak unit in metasearch worldwide. This deal will help Kayak expand in Asia Pacific, and will give HotelsCombined additional resources as well.

Launching The Oral History of Travel's Greatest Acquisition Booking.com

This is the oral history of Priceline's two deals, the acquisitions of Active Hotels and Bookings B.V. that created Booking.com, and continue to shape the course of online travel and the competitive landscape today. The twin transactions were among the greatest Internet deals of all time, and their lessons are relevant to startups and dealmakers in any industry.

Video: Why AccorHotels CEO Wants Even More Brands

"Anybody telling me you should be limiting the number of brands, I think it's bullshit," said AccorHotels CEO Sebastien Bazin at Skift Forum Europe. We wouldn't be surprised to see him expand the hotel giant's portfolio of brands to at least 40, up from today's 32.

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