Good morning from Skift. Today is Friday, January 3rd, the first information session of 2025. Here’s what you need to know about the travel industry today.
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episode notes
While 2023 was the year of revenge travel, the following year was the year of normalization for the travel industry. So what does 2025 have in store for the travel industry? Research Director Seth Bolko answers these questions and more in Skift Research’s latest report, Global Travel Outlook 2025.
The report features a survey of travelers from five countries, and Borko notes that the results bode well for the industry. Respondents plan to spend 9% more on travel in 2024, with Indian travelers expecting to spend 14% more, the largest increase in the survey. However, Borko wrote that the industry will face several challenges in the new year, including rising labor costs and slower economic growth in Europe and China.
Next, Accor is beefing up its luxury portfolio as part of a plan to close the gap with rivals Marriott and Hilton, reports hospitality senior editor Sean O’Neill.
O’Neill noted that at least 10% of Accor’s more than 800,000 rooms are in the luxury segment, an increase of 4 percentage points since the end of 2015. And Accor CEO Sébastien Bazin plans to launch a hotel brand, Orient Express, this year. , trains, yachts. Orient Express will be Accor’s second brand after Raffles in the ultra-luxury segment, which includes rooms that typically sell for more than $1,000 a night.
Finally, Executive Editor Dennis Schaal provides more details on vacation rental management company Casago’s agreement to acquire Vacasa for approximately $128 million.
Casago plans to sell some of the combined company’s local operations and enter into a franchise agreement with the new owners, Shaar reports. The new company would then be able to sell the local assets for profit and earn franchise fees after the sale.
Schaal added that the announced transaction price could be adjusted downward depending on homeowner defection rates and Vakasa’s liquidity.
