Week in Review

Flights between Southeast Asia and Europe were disrupted this week due to the closure of Pakistan’s air space, Business Traveller reports. According to Khaleej Times, Pakistan has reopened its airspace with some restrictions. Customer details were stolen from an Amadeus distributor in India, Phocuswire notes. A company employee of Resbird Technologies illegally took identifying information from a number of passenger name records. The FAA has banned…

Week in Review

Carlson Wagonlit Travel officially changed its name to CWT, revealing a new logo and brand identity in the process, HotelMarketing’com notes. In the same vein, AccorHotels rebranded as Accor. According to Skift, Accor will be spending $255 million on a new loyalty program called ALL, which stands for “Accor Live Limitless”. On the acquisition front, HotelMarketing’com reports Best Western has acquired WorldHotels, adding…

GBTA Research and Professional Development Update
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GBTA Research and Professional Development Update

Are Business Travel Programs Barring Basic Economy? According to new research, business travel programs are not on board with basic economy fares. These fares were introduced by many airlines last year and are typically cheaper than standard airfare, but come with restrictions. The report, put out by GBTA in partnership with Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC),…

Week in Review
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Week in Review

Thai-based hospitality group Minor Hotels has purchased an additional stock in NH Hotels, increasing its holding to 94%, Business Traveller reports. The purchase will enable Minor Hotels to expand in Europe, while also allowing NH Hotels to put down roots in Asia. Icelandair has signed an agreement to buy budget airline WOW Air for nearly…

Week in Review
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Week in Review

Corporate travel bookings start-up TravelPerk has raised $44 million in funding for its consumer-like business travel site, Reuters reports. Japan plans on launching an electronic visa system for tourists in order to reach its goal of 60 million annual foreign visitors by 2030, Business Traveller notes. The country has also relaxed its visa requirements to…

Week in Review
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Week in Review

After causing destruction in Cuba, Hurricane Michael was upgraded to a Category 4 storm before hitting the Southeast U.S., Buying Business Travel reports. According to CNBC, over 300 flights were cancelled at Charlotte Douglas International Airport on Thursday. Meetings & Conventions recently revealed their fourth annual list of the top 25 women in the meetings…

GBTA Announces WINiT Strategic Advisory Board

*The following post was originally sent as a member email to GBTA and WINiT members.* At Convention this August, I had the pleasure of announcing GBTA’s acquisition of WINiT, a career development network aimed at increasing visibility and advancement for women in the travel, meetings, events and exhibition industries. This move further strengthened our ongoing…

Mobile Payments among Travel Buyers and Suppliers Still in Early Adoption Phase

Mobile Payments among Travel Buyers and Suppliers Still in Early Adoption Phase

Most travel buyers and suppliers are familiar with both mobile wallet and contactless payment solutions, however, 49 percent of travel buyers are still unclear on the benefits, according to research released today by GBTA, in partnership with U.S. Bank. The results signal more work needs to be done to grow adoption of these payment methods…

GBTA Research and Professional Development Update

GBTA and American Airlines Raise $20,000 for ECPAT-USA during GBTA Convention 2018 GBTA held its first-ever Awareness 5K Run & Walk, in partnership with American Airlines, to raise awareness and funding to stop human trafficking on Sunday morning of Convention with more than 200 registered participants. GBTA continued to raise money throughout Convention, presenting a…