Airbnb has gone through several false starts with its experiences business, first launched more than a decade ago. It has relaxed its long-held resistance to high-demand mainstream tours of landmarks like the Eiffel Tower. But now the question is whether it can succeed by marketing to locals — something few other experiences companies have found success with. Airbnb relaunched experiences in 2025 and after a sluggish start, CEO Brian Chesky has said the company wanted to focus on getting one city right — Paris. The focus is paying off, Chesky said last week at the Skift Global Forum, with growth "6x year over year." "One of the reasons they're growing is we've now started to crack locals," Chesky said. "Locals in Paris are booking experiences in Paris, something we never thought would happen.” hubs.li/Q04yp30D0

Hotel owners have had a hard decade, and Hilton President and CEO Christopher Nassetta says the company is trying to help. “It’s really abnormal in my experience of 40-plus years of doing this, where you would have essentially, other than a sugar high, a really difficult 10 years,” he said at the Skift Global Forum on Wednesday. “I don’t think it’s normal.” hubs.li/Q04ynKmh0

Thailand is targeting 1.5 million U.S. visitors in 2026 as it looks to higher-spending, long-haul travelers to drive tourism revenue. Last year, U.S. arrivals reached 1.08 million. The country recorded 716,983 U.S. arrivals from January 1 through September 15, according to the the Tourism Authority of Thailand. It would need more than 780,000 additional American visitors in the remaining three and a half months. TAT said this week that its offices in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles will coordinate efforts around what it calls a “Value over Volume” strategy. hubs.li/Q04ynKgk0

Travel Alberta is chasing two things from the Gulf at once: high-spending leisure travelers and the capital and expertise to build niche resorts and attractions it currently lacks. Etihad launches direct Abu Dhabi-Calgary service next month, four times weekly. Jon Mamela, chief commercial officer of Travel Alberta, said the airline is “placing a significant bet on Alberta,” meaning “inherent interest and demand in the market” already exists. Because of the flight distance of roughly 13 hours from Abu Dhabi, Mamela suggests a minimum stay of seven days — ideally 10 to 14 — which is expected to push spend well above average. hubs.li/Q04ynKg70

Every transatlantic trip starts with a decision most travelers never see: which routes get flown. Reid Moody, Chief Strategy and Planning Officer at Aer Lingus, makes those calls. At Skift Transatlantic Summit, he'll share what it takes to keep connectivity flowing in a fractured world. October 15, Dublin, Held in partnership with the @ETC_Corporate and hosted by @TourismIreland Apply to attend: hubs.li/Q04y5SPS0

Expedia is cutting 58 roles in Seattle, according to a Washington WARN notice filed this week, with the layoffs set to take place between November 21 and December 1. The notice details where some reductions are landing: It lists several senior roles, including an SVP position that Skift previously reported in August. Of 31 total technical positions, 18 are in data science and machine learning. In a statement, Expedia characterized the cuts as streamlining efforts, mainly related to finance. hubs.li/Q04ynDtN0

Former Amex CEO Ken Chenault: "We've overindexed on intelligence." Success and intelligence both matter, but Ken Chenault thinks society has overvalued them. The General Catalyst Managing Director and former American Express CEO told Skift Global Forum that what gets left out is values and character. Read the full coverage here: hubs.li/Q04ymwdh0

New York set the tone. Now, Women Leading Travel is heading to London, Montréal and Las Vegas. This week, WLT Leadership Exchange NYC sold out, bringing 150 senior women together to tackle questions around approval and ambition, the future of travel, taking smarter risks and what leadership looks like at the next level - with the audience bringing their own challenges into the conversation through peer-led roundtables. And the 2026 Leadership Exchange series isn’t over yet. Next up: London | October 7 Montréal | October 26 Las Vegas | December 8 New York filled every seat. Secure yours for an upcoming city → hubs.li/Q04yjf9Y0

Accor CEO Sébastien Bazin wants Ennismore to help his group push into the U.S. market. But the companies haven’t decided how to pay for it yet. Speaking onstage at Skift Global Forum in New York on Wednesday, Bazin said the luxury-lifestyle joint venture needs capital to grow in the U.S. and beyond. “It’s a very complex decision to make,” he said. “Yes, we can be listed, but it has a lot of drawbacks to being listed.” hubs.li/Q04yn32t0

India is looking for more airlines. The question now is whether one of them could be owned by a company running an airport. Civil Aviation Minister K. Rammohan Naidu said this week that the government is weighing the “pros and cons” of allowing airport operators to own airlines, but has yet to make a decision. The issue has emerged after Adani Airport Holdings sought a waiver from the Airports Authority of India (AAI) from restrictions that prevent the operator of Mumbai Airport from holding more than a 10% stake in a scheduled airline. hubs.li/Q04ynfNx0

Chinese travelers have more holiday time this Golden Week. Hotels, however, may not get more of their holiday budget. Just 5% of Chinese travelers planning an outbound trip during this year’s Golden Week expect to stay in a luxury hotel, according to Dragon Trail Research’s latest Chinese Traveler Sentiment Report released this week. Mid-range hotels and economy hotels are the preferred choices. Trip Group data also shows the average outbound trip around the holiday is now more than nine days, while hotel bookings for stays of seven nights or more have jumped 123% year over year. More than half of outbound flight bookings are for departures before October 1 when the National Day holiday begins. hubs.li/Q04ynfKT0

Steve Case, the AOL co-founder who has recently been investing in travel, and Greg O’Hara, founder of travel investment firm Certares, told Skift Global Forum that the AI boom is increasing their appetite for hard travel assets: land, luxury homes, wellness resorts, and high-speed trains. The more digital people’s lives become, the more they want real places and real people, said Case, chairman and CEO of Revolution. That’s why he’s investing in things you can’t stream, like resort destinations and luxury rental homes in highly coveted tourist destinations.  O’Hara, senior managing director at Certares, is focused on several growing travel segments that are still short on inventory, where you can command high margins. hubs.li/Q04yn4fD0

Uber CEO: "I'm no longer a prisoner to Google." Uber doesn't pay for its traffic, so it doesn't need to make money on hotels. At Skift Global Forum, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi explained why Uber can run hotels at breakeven to deepen its customer relationships, and why it plans to keep building out its travel content. hubs.li/Q04ym5Cs0

Luxury travel is on the rise but Intrepid Travel co-founder Darrell Wade says the focus on cruise ships and hotels misses the point of travel — which is to experience people and culture.  “If you look back through history, people have traveled to almost be into the unknown and slightly into the uncomfortable, so that they can experience something. If you’re on a ship with 7,000 passengers, there might be 20 restaurants, but so what? You’ve got probably 3,000 restaurants out here,” he said at the Skift Global Forum. Wade isn’t talking about roughing it — he “likes a decent bedroom,” he said — but guests “want to still feel the experience, feel the destination, and get that emotion that, really, travel is supposed to connect you with.” hubs.li/Q04yk_ht0

What happens when AI starts booking the trip, not just helping you plan it? At Skift Data + AI Summit Europe, KAYAK CEO Peer Bueller will take the stage to explore what happens as AI moves deeper into travel discovery and booking - and what that shift means for the industry. With 14 years at KAYAK and experience across hubs.li/Q04yjxhC0 and OpenTable, Bueller brings a front-row perspective on how travel technology is evolving. 📍 London | October 6 🎟️ Join the conversation: hubs.li/Q04yjxnK0

Banyan Group is talking less about sustainability and more about its contribution to the environment, Deputy CEO Ho Ren Yung said at the Skift Global Forum.  “People’s eyes gloss over a little bit when you say sustainability and climate,” she said. The concern is that sustainability has become overused, especially during events like Climate Week NYC, which also took place this week. Instead, Banyan Group is reframing its work as it attempts to re-engage the industry and its guests.  hubs.li/Q04yjxJk0

Turkish Airlines has finalized a deal with Boeing for up to 150 737 MAX aircraft, the flag carrier’s largest-ever Boeing narrowbody order as its new leadership takes a more measured approach to its next phase. The agreement covers 100 firm 737-8 aircraft and options for 50 more. Turkish also has substitution rights for the larger 737-10, giving it room to adjust aircraft size as demand and airport capacity evolve. The airline didn’t mention the delivery timeline. It is the first major fleet decision under Chairman Murat Seker and CEO Ahmet Olmustur, who took over after Ahmet Bolat’s departure earlier this year. hubs.li/Q04yh-yC0

Travel Alberta is chasing two things from the Gulf at once: high-spending leisure travelers and the capital and expertise to build niche resorts and attractions it currently lacks. Etihad launches direct Abu Dhabi-Calgary service next month, four times weekly. Jon Mamela, chief commercial officer of Travel Alberta, said the airline is “placing a significant bet on Alberta,” meaning “inherent interest and demand in the market” already exists. Because of the flight distance of roughly 13 hours from Abu Dhabi, Mamela suggests a minimum stay of seven days — ideally 10 to 14 — which is expected to push spend well above average. hubs.li/Q04yh-sV0

As hotel owners push back on major groups over costs and fees, Hyatt Chairman, President, and CEO Mark Hoplamazian said Thursday his company’s response comes down to mindset. “The mindset of being an owner leads you to put yourself in the shoes of an owner, and really understand you have to eat your own cooking every day,” he said at the Skift Global Forum in New York City. Here's what that meant during Covid and since then: hubs.li/Q04yhVCG0

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