Week in Review

Congress approved a short-term spending bill earlier this week avoiding a shutdown and keeping the government running through December 9. GBTA was pleased to see language included that will allow TSA to continue to fund increased personnel, however, a long-term solution is necessary.

Travelers crave price transparency, according to Christopher Elliott in a USA Today piece where he wrote that there is still not enough transparency in airline pricing. Hugo Martin of the LA Times also wrote about airline pricing this week, focusing on fees. “The airline industry collects so much revenue from charges to check bags, reserve seats, buy food and connect to the Internet, among other things, that 10 of the world’s biggest carriers have surpassed the $1-billion revenue mark solely from fees,” he wrote.

Skift touched on trust issues and wrote about what sharing economy companies are doing to get over the perceived lack of trust criticism that has stuck with the sharing economy since its start. Speaking of trust issues, Bloomberg reported that corporate pilots were found to skip safety checks on 18 percent of flights.

In airline news, The Oregonian reports that Alaska Airlines started selling tickets this week for flights between Los Angeles and Cuba that will begin in January, 2017.

Skift’s Deanna Ting believes hotels can learn from AirBNB…and vice versa. In other hotel news, the San Francisco Chronicle reports that hotel food is getting healthier, so guests can expect smaller portions and healthier options during their stays.

The Harvard Business Review reports that business travelers are prime targets for hackers. Learn how you can defend your organization.

Your lists for this week include:

Characteristics of a Successful Business Traveler

4 Translation Apps to Ease International Business Communication