Traveling Blog: Radical Reinvention for Tours + TripAdvisor Goes Pro + Hilton Taps All-Inclusives

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September 18, 2018

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Editor's Note

It's hard to imagine anything in travel these days where the vast majority of the business is still done offline, in-person, and on a whim. But as you will read today in our deep dive on the potential for tours and experiences, this is the case with these enormous, last-mile revenue generators in the travel ecosystem.

Dan Peltier and Andrew Sheivachman from our Skift edit team spent months researching what they describe as "the next great untapped market in online travel." What you will come away with after reading this piece is a new understanding of how technology is about to pull together the disparate pieces of this sector of travel, which by some accounts rakes in $150 billion a year. Much of that is being driven by consumer demand for more interesting experiences. How that demand reconciles itself with the entrenched, protective way of doing business by tour operators and travel agents will result in a few hiccups along the way to radical reinvention.

— Tom Lowry, Managing Editor

Travel Providers Need to Embrace Digital Payments or Risk Becoming Irrelevant

President and CEO Arne Sorenson leads Marriott International's 6,500+ properties across 30 leading hotel brands spanning 127 countries and territories. Hear from Sorenson at Skift Global Forum next week!

Tours and Experiences: The Next Great Untapped Market in Online Travel

Vacationers want to experience something new and are tired of the same old tours and activities. While global tour operators are baking more customization into their products, digital distribution is changing the way local operators do business.

TripAdvisor CEO on Moving From User Content Toward Professional Reviews

TripAdvisor will start showcasing content from long-dismissed professional reviewers so it can be more of a resource to visitors who aren't ready to book. Is nothing sacrosanct anymore?

Hilton Commits to Growing Its Portfolio of All-Inclusive Resorts

And it won't be the only one. Expect Marriott and other global hotel brands to join Hyatt and Hilton in growing their respective all-inclusive resort portfolios, too.

TripAdvisor Digs Deeper Into Social Travel With a Personalized Recommendation Feed

TripAdvisor already was a social travel site before the beta launch of its new travel feed, and it has resources in this area that many failed startups didn't have — namely, a massive user base, a global brand, and profits. Still, this site redesign may not move the proverbial needle as much as the company hopes.

AccorHotels Expects Voice Search to Be Revolutionary for Travel

Voice search isn't ubiquitous for travel yet, but as consumers grow more comfortable with the technology, travel brands should be making major inroads too.

Priority Pass Parent Expands Further Into Dining

Collinson Group, the parent company of Priority Pass, made a wise move investing in airport-food-ordering app Grab. There's plenty to improve about the experience of dining in the terminal.

Skift Table

Our first annual Skift Restaurants Forum is less than a week away. Until Thursday, you can save 20% on tickets with the discount LASTCHANCE20. We hope you'll join us.

Skift Restaurants Forum Preview: Angela Dimayuga Wants to Change How We Interact With Hotels

There's always been a unique relationship between hotels and restaurants — and the chefs who run them. With her role at the Standard, Dimayuga wants to take the relationship and elevate it even further, making it clear that hotels really can be the true community centers they were always meant to be.

Skift Restaurants Forum Preview: Russ & Daughters Isn't Going Anywhere

In an industry where surviving for five years is cause for celebration, 104-year-old institution Russ & Daughters is legendary for its staying power. It takes a powerful mix of delicious food, loyal customers, and the right leadership to get to this point.

Skift Restaurants Forum Preview: What Collaboration Means Now

Plenty of restaurants, technology companies, designers, and other industry professionals are working to solve the smaller problems industry wide. By enacting new forward-thinking policies, procedures, and ideas, the future is visible, and it's positive.

Wow Air is being squeezed from all sides. It will need to reinvent its business if it wants to survive. The good news is that the company's founder and CEO, Skúli Mogensen, is willing to take some risks.

Growing Pains for Influencer Marketing Raise Questions for Travel Brands

Influencers are still getting a chunk of some travel brands' marketing budgets, but the amount of pull they have over travelers' trip decisions is questionable. As the form matures, influencers and brands are still figuring out the rules of the road.

Skift Global Forum Preview: Airbnb's Greg Greeley on Building a Travel Superbrand

Can lightning strike twice for Airbnb when it comes to disrupting the travel industry and accommodations as we know it? Whether it does (or not), the company's head of homes, Greg Greeley, will play a huge role in determining the company's future and its ability to become that superbrand of travel.

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