09 Apr
Travel

Hong Kong’s Top Tourism Executive Plans Marketing Blitz to Revive Travel by July

Estial / https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hong_Kong_Skyscrapers.jpg

Hong Kong’s top tourism executive plans to promote the city in new markets like India in his quest to revive inbound travel by July. Estial / https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hong_Kong_Skyscrapers.jpg

Skift Take: Given Hong Kong’s decimated tourist appeal due to coronavirus and months of anti-government protests, the Hong Kong Tourism Board has several obstacles to clear ahead of a recovery.

— Cameron Sperance

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09 Apr
Travel

Leisure Travel Comes Back First as Drive-To Rather than Fly-To: Pebblebrook Hotel Trust CEO

Ben W. / Flickr

Pebblebrook Hotel Trust operates 56 upscale hotels across the U.S., including the Liberty Hotel in Boston (pictured). Most of the company’s hotels have closed due to coronavirus. Ben W. / Flickr

Skift Take: It’s hard to expect a V-shaped rebound for the hotel industry, but improvements to coronavirus testing could accelerate the L-shaped recovery, anticipates Jon Bortz, the CEO of a large hotel ownership group.

— Cameron Sperance

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09 Apr
Travel

String of Crises Puts Asian Hotelier Ovolo’s Brand of Creativity to Test

Ovolo Hotels

Ovolo Hotels’ new social hour trolley service delivers drinks to guests seeking isolation time in their rooms. Ovolo Hotels

Skift Take: There’s no avoiding the blow the coronavirus pandemic is causing the hospitality sector. Creative marketing could be one way to soften the pain for hoteliers while they strategize their business continuity plans amid the crisis.

— Xinyi Liang-Pholsena

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09 Apr
Travel

Chinese Travelers Vacation Close to Home After Coronavirus Brought Under Control

Ng Han Guan / Associated Press

Travelers with their luggage walk past the Hankou railway station in Wuhan, China. Wuhan lifted its 11-week lockdown on April 8, allowing residents to travel in and out of the city. Ng Han Guan / Associated Press

Skift Take: In the longer run, will the prospect of being quarantined upon their return from overseas holidays deter Chinese travelers from venturing abroad?

— Xinyi Liang-Pholsena

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09 Apr
Travel

Airbnb’s Valuation Almost Halved to $18 Billion

Airbnb

Joe Gebbia, Airbnb co-Founder, gives a speech after signing​ a nine-year, five-Games partnership with the International Olympic Committee, at Japan House, London. The games were subsequently postponed. Airbnb

Skift Take: Love it or hate it, you can hardly blame Airbnb for a deflated valuation, although not all of the plunge is coronavirus-related. The pain that is infecting travel and other companies at this moment is boundless.

— Dennis Schaal

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08 Apr
Travel

Oyo Furloughs Thousands of Employees Globally Except for India

Oyo

Pictured is the Oyo 101 Click Hotel in Dubai. Oyo announced thousands of furloughs and temporary leaves. Oyo

Skift Take: Oyo put in place a substantial number of furloughs — likely in the thousands — and there are probably many more to come after the India lockdown ends. The Oyo that emerges will look different than the rocket ship of a year ago. Withdrawing from certain markets will certainly have to be under consideration.

— Dennis Schaal

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08 Apr
Travel

Coronavirus Threat Hangs Over Tourism-Reliant Pacific Islands as Powerful Cyclone Batters Region

juancat / Adobe

Vanuatu has been hit by one of the strongest recorded storms to ever make landfall on the tiny Pacific nation. juancat / Adobe

Skift Take: The coronavirus storm, if it makes landfall on these vulnerable Pacific island nations, could trigger a second wave of hardship for these tourism-oriented economies.

— Xinyi Liang-Pholsena

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08 Apr
Travel

Economy Extended Stay Is the Strongest of the Weak U.S. Hotel Sector in March

Saalebaer / Wikimedia

The client base at U.S. economy extended stay hotels help maintain performance levels while coronavirus wreaks havoc on business in other sectors. Saalebaer / Wikimedia

Skift Take: U.S. economy extended stay hotels continue to see relatively strong performance levels during the coronavirus downturn, while offering rooms for emergency services could maintain numbers from dipping as the crisis continues.

— Cameron Sperance

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