Days before the start of GBTA Convention 2016 AccorHotels completed their acquisition of FRHI Hotels & Resorts, making newly apointed AccorHotels COO Kevin Frid a great person to talk to about one of the industry’s hottest topics – mergers and acquisitions. During a time of unprecedented consolidation in the travel industry, GBTA Executive Director and…
Airlines aren’t the only ones facing complications recently, with HEI Hotels & Resorts announcing a malware attack lasting more than a year on 20 of its properties. According to Skift, customer payment card data from tens of thousands of transactions may have been exposed, though it is difficult to estimate the total number of customers…
Despite being overtaken by China as the world’s leading business travel market, the United States is still a vital nation when it comes to both the growth of the global economy as well as for the growth of global business travel. According to the recently released GBTA Global BTI Outlook – Annual Global Report and…
During GBTA Convention this year, business travel industry experts shared tips, tricks, insights and innovations with our online audience from the GBTA Studio. One such conversation was with Sabre’s Clinton Anderson, senior vice president of strategy and traveler experience, on the rise of mobile technology for the business traveler. The GBTA Foundation recently teamed up…
Germany is the largest economy in Europe, currently the third largest business travel market in the world, is led by one of the most powerful women in the world and has a strong and influential voice on both European and global affairs. Given Germany’s power, wealth and influence, it will continue to be the EU’s…
Just two weeks after a technical glitch caused thousands of delays and cancellations for Southwest Airlines, Delta faced a system outage that impacted flights earlier this week. The airline had nearly 2,000 cancelled flights and more than 2,400 delayed flights on just Monday and Tuesday, according to CBS News. USA TODAY reports an additional 250 flights were…
Daily headlines and broadcast news stories make it clear that we live in a risky world. For travel professionals, travel risk management plans are paramount in today’s world. Travel security risks or medical emergencies can happen anywhere and anytime, so it is imperative to have a solid risk management plan in place. During Convention, GBTA…
All eyes will be on Rio in the coming weeks as the 2016 Summer Olympic Games get underway with the Opening Ceremonies taking place tonight. While there have been numerous reports of facilities that are either incomplete or in disrepair, the games will go on, and Brazil is hoping that the Games will help give…
In late 2015 and again earlier this year, the GBTA Foundation, in partnership with WWStay, conducted two research studies on extended stay accommodations to learn more about this market especially when it comes to business travel. The first study revealed nearly half (48 percent) of all U.S. business travelers have used an extended stay accommodation…
Last month, the GBTA Foundation and Carlson Wagonlit Travel (CWT) released the 2017 Global Travel Price Outlook. The third annual report provides global, regional and country-by-country projections for air travel, hotel, ground transportation and meetings and events prices in 2017. At GBTA Convention 2016, I had the opportunity to sit down with Yon Abad, Senior Director…
During Convention last month, GBTA EMEA Regional Vice President Catherine McGavock joined us at the GBTA Studio to talk about GBTA’s role, especially in times of uncertainty. She highlighted the extensive partner network GBTA has with key national associations throughout the region, providing a unique level of access to the local business travel markets and…
Following the cancellation of 2,300 flights and thousands of delays nearly two weeks ago, two of Southwest’s biggest unions are calling on CEO Gary Kelly to step down. USA Today reports the unions are unsatisfied with the airline’s large focus on Wall Street performance and outdated reservations technology. The aviation industry has seen major complications…
For the past several years, there has been a significant number of consolidations throughout every segment of the travel industry. With mergers and acquisitions of some of the best-known brands in the air travel, lodging and ground transport sectors continuing at a rapid pace, GBTA Convention 2016 featured a Center Stage panel discussion on the…
Every year leading travel companies from around the globe gather at GBTA Convention, and many use the event as a platform to announce their latest news, products and services. GBTA’s Media Day brings the latest breaking news into one place. Nearly 20 companies participated in the second annual Media Day to deliver their breaking news,…
The business travel industry is seeing the effects of Brexit, with hotel demand in the United Kingdom expected to soar and jump a whopping 30 percent in the second half of 2016, according to Buying Business Travel. International travelers look to this as an opportunity to visit pricier destinations at a more affordable rate, and…
If you’ve ever flown on a plane, you’ve heard and seen the name TSA PreCheck more times than you can count, but you may still be wondering what the program is, or what the benefits in enrolling are. TSA PreCheck is an expedited screening program developed to improve the travel experience and reduce airport security…
While it is hard to predict the future with certainty, GBTA certainly does a good job of forecasting trends that affect the future of business travel. The recently released GBTA Foundation Global BTI Outlook – Annual Global Report and Forecast sponsored by Visa aims to do just that. Looking ahead five years, the report concludes…
Perhaps no segment of the travel industry has been as dramatically altered as ground transportation. The disruptive force of the sharing economy has turned ground transportation on its head, catching many taxi, limosuine and rental car companies struggling to keep up with the new services offered to commuters and business travelers alike. Traditional ground transportation…
A lot can happen in just a couple of days, and GBTA Convention 2016 is the perfect example of that. Nearly 7,000 individuals from over 50 countries attend to reap the benefits of months of hard work. With so many business travel education sessions, industry speakers and networking opportunities, it’s no wonder GBTA Convention 2016…
*The following speech was delivered today at GBTA Convention 2016.* Security The world is a dangerous place. Using our best efforts as a society, we try to protect all of our global citizens from acts of terrorism. But in a world of 7.3 billion people, we will never fully succeed despite all of our best…
Listen to United CEO Oscar Munoz talk, and you will hear a lot about heart – how he wants United to lead with heart, how he thinks more heart needs to be incorporated into the business world today and the inevitable discussions of his heart transplant shortly after he took over the reins of one…
Despite a long, dedicated and decorated career in the Coast Guard, where he rose to the rank of Vice Commandant, Peter Neffenger is now in charge of an entirely different organization with a global reach and responsible for the daily safety of millions of people: the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). Often maligned as an agency…
Do you remember your first bike? What about the sheer joy of receiving it or the pure terror of riding it for the first time? With one-in-five children in the Denver area living in poverty, a brand new bike is just a dream. That’s why GBTA volunteers came together to make dreams come true and…
Each year, companies spend millions of dollars on travel expenditures across a number of payment methods. While corporate cards, Central Travel Accounts (CTAs) and an employee’s personal card are currently the most popular payment methods, alternatives, like virtual payments, for corporate travel are making their way onto the scene as options with less upfront control…
People who work in the global travel industry know that theirs is a robust and growing market. Certainly, travel buyers, suppliers, managers and individual travelers alike know that global business travel spurs growth, fosters vital relationships and establishes the framework for innovation. Still, $1.2 trillion is a big number – roughly equivalent to Spain’s GDP…
In the Jimi Hendrix song referenced in the title of this post, it takes about half a day traveling by dragonfly to get to Spain. Luckily for business travelers, there are many more comfortable options for traveling to and from Spain than insects. Indeed, it is expected that total business travel spending in Spain will…
*Kristina Weischadle, GBTA Sustainability Committee member, and the GBTA Sustainability Committee contributed the following guest blog post.* GBTA’s convention is a big event with nearly 7,000 attendees from the business travel industry meeting in one amazing location each year. A lot goes into making this event happen and a lot goes out…meaning waste, water, electricity,…
GBTA Convention 2016 is just around the corner. Hope to see you there!
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