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Jul 23Thu
  1. PhocusWire All News

    13% figure shows why OTAs need hotels: air share declines

    Phocuswright's U.S. Online Travel Agency Market Essentials 2026 shows OTA gross bookings rose 4% in 2025 to $100.3 billion, representing one fifth of U.S. travel bookings, projected to reach 21% by 2028. However, only 13% of airlines' online passenger revenue flows through OTAs, and air's share of OTA bookings declined to 20%. Hotels account for 63% of OTA bookings, making them the key growth driver. The report warns that if hotel growth slows, other segments may not compensate.

Jul 22Wed
  1. PhocusWire All News

    Loveholidays expands in packaged travel, AI chatbot saves costs

    Loveholidays has expanded to eight markets, holding about 15% of the UK packaged travel market (up from 5% in 2019). Package penetration grew from 61% to 69%, and dynamic packaging rose from 2% in 2009 to about 25% now. AI chatbot Sandy handles 60% of chats and 20% of calls, saving about £4 million annually. The company uses a three-pronged AI strategy: revenue growth, customer experience, and operational efficiency.

Jul 17Fri
Jul 14Tue
  1. PhocusWire All News

    APAC Hotel Distribution Sees Slower Growth as Regional OTAs Rise

    A D-Edge report shows APAC hotel distribution shifting from post-pandemic growth to a more competitive market. OTAs still account for 83% of bookings, but Agoda overtakes Booking.com as the leading platform, with share rising from 16.4% in 2022 to 20.9% in 2025, and growing 13.6% in Q1 2026. Wholesaler share nearly tripled from 1.8% to 5.1%, while direct channel share slipped to 11.2%. Cancellation rates improved to 13.4%, but gaps remain. AI's impact is currently in search, not bookings.

Jul 10Fri
  1. PhocusWire All News

    CEO Spotlight: Andrés Spitzer of Civitatis

    Civitatis' new CEO Andrés Spitzer spoke at Phocuswright Europe about AI and trust as the industry's biggest challenges. He emphasized the importance of discoverability in the age of AI agents and building trust through genuine user feedback. Civitatis is expanding in Latin America and partnering with Despegar to integrate inventory.

Jul 9Thu
  1. PhocusWire All News

    Will AI Commoditize the Hospitality Sector?

    Industry executives discuss AI's impact on hospitality. Consensus is that AI itself is not a differentiator; data, tech stack, and customer ownership matter. Commoditization risk exists, but data quality and human execution remain key. OTAs may own customers via AI agents, so hotels must invest in data and tech to stay competitive.

Jul 7Tue
  1. PhocusWire All News

    European travelers are changing the rules

    Phocuswright's Europe Consumer Travel Report 2026 reveals divergent behaviors among UK, French, and German travelers: UK travelers take more trips, Germans take fewer but spend more per trip, and France shows outsized demand for rentals, rail, car rental, and experience-led travel. Overall research decreases, with OTAs overtaking general search as the top research resource. AI usage is around 30-40%, but attitudes are polarized. Geopolitical concerns affect long-haul travel comfort, with about 40% feeling less comfortable visiting the US.

Jul 1Wed
  1. PhocusWire All News

    AI debate continues: Will travel's biggest brands thrive or falter?

    At Phocuswright Europe 2026, Travelier CMO Mario Gavira and Magpie founder Christian Watts debated AI's impact on major travel brands. Gavira argued AI will reinforce rather than replace leading OTAs and hotel groups due to their tech stack, loyal customer base, and inventory advantages. Watts argued AI agents will erode these advantages by offering more personalized choices. Both agreed second-tier OTAs will face greater disruption.

Jun 30Tue
  1. PhocusWire All News

    U.S. Hotel and Lodging 2026: Slow growth, a stable split and AI waiting at the door

    Phocuswright report shows U.S. hotel room revenue rose 1% to $207.9 billion in 2025, ADR up just 1%, occupancy fell to 62.3%, first decline since 2020. 2026 projected revenue growth of 3% to $214.7 billion. International arrivals lag and geopolitical tensions are drags, but luxury and corporate travel rebound provide support. OTA and direct channels split stable at 52%/48%, with OTAs expected to grow faster in 2026-2027. AI is a marketing tool today, potentially a distribution channel tomorrow.

Jun 25Thu
  1. PhocusWire All News

    Trip.com Group targets 200 million inbound travelers in five years

    Trip.com Group reported Q1 2026 net revenue of $2.4 billion, up 17% year-over-year, with international platform gross bookings up roughly 65%. The company welcomed 20 million inbound travelers last year and aims to serve 200 million in the next five years. Executives outlined an AI strategy to embed supply into global AI platforms via APIs, MCPs, and agent frameworks to capture emerging demand channels.

Jun 23Tue
  1. PhocusWire All News

    Europe Consumer Travel Report: OTAs lead, AI rises

    Phocuswright's Europe Consumer Travel Report 2026 reveals that travelers in the UK, France, and Germany are doing less research than a year ago, and OTAs have overtaken general search as the primary online resource for planning trip components. AI remains a secondary tool but is growing quickly, particularly influencing destination choice. Country nuances: UK most active, France favors alternative accommodation and rail, Germany sees biggest increases in air travel and spend.

Jun 18Thu
  1. Booking.com Newsroom

    Booking.com report: contributed €691 billion to European economy in 2025

    Research by Booking.com and Oxford Economics shows that travel booked through Booking.com supported €691 billion in economic activity across Europe in 2025, comparable to Belgium's GDP. Visitor spending of €291 billion supported 4.7 million jobs and €175 billion in wages. Launched at VivaTech 2026, the study highlights the importance of digital platforms for SMEs.

Jun 3Wed
  1. PhocusWire All News

    OTA marketing spend rises despite AI efficiency talk

    In Q1 2026, major OTAs increased marketing spend. Booking Holdings invested $2.1 billion, up 16% YoY, representing 38% of revenue. Expedia Group's sales and marketing spend reached $1.9 billion, up 6% YoY, 54% of revenue. Airbnb invested $751 million, up 33% YoY, 28% of revenue. Despite AI-driven efficiency efforts, companies continue to boost spending to compete for customers and highlight direct channel growth.

May 27Wed
May 26Tue
May 22Fri
  1. PhocusWire All News

    Travel tech news briefs: Visa, Trip.com Group, Navan and more

    This week's travel tech news briefs cover multiple partnerships and product launches: Visa and Trip.com Group signed an MOU to deepen collaboration on travel payments in Asia Pacific; Emerging Travel Group expanded its integration with SynXis to include independent hotels; NOL Universe appointed a head of global business; Atlas signed a direct distribution partnership with Wizz Air; Allegiant selected Navan as its internal travel management platform; Outpayce launched split and multi-card payment capabilities; HBX Group and Lastminute.com expanded their dynamic packaging partnership; Europa-Park partnered with Bookingkit for ticket distribution; Wego introduced stablecoin payments; Fliggy l…

  2. Tongcheng News Center

    Tongcheng Travel Q1 2026 Revenue RMB5B, APUs Hit Record 254M

    Tongcheng Travel reported Q1 2026 results: revenue up 14.4% YoY to RMB5,005.8 million, adjusted net profit up 19.4% to RMB941.1 million. Annual paying users reached a record 253.9 million. Core OTA revenue grew 17.3%, with transportation ticketing up 6.2%, accommodation up 14.7%, and other businesses (including hotel management) up 59.6%. Over 87% of registered users are from non-first-tier cities. The company continues to deepen AI applications and expand its hotel management business.

May 21Thu
  1. PhocusWire All News

    Airbnb Piloting Creator Experiences as Local Demand Driver

    Airbnb is experimenting with experiences from content creators and plans to add them to the platform in the coming months. CEO Brian Chesky said creator experiences will become part of the future of Airbnb Experiences, especially as travel becomes more personalized and community-driven. Creators bring significant local demand, as fans book in their own cities. This comes as the creator economy faces pressure, and creators need new monetization avenues.

  2. Expedia Group Newsroom

    Expedia's Unpack '26 Summer: Domestic Demand Rises, Hotel Prices Drop in Popular International Dest…

    Expedia Group released its Unpack '26 Summer report, showing domestic travel demand dominates summer holiday planning, with global social conversation up 77% YoY and 45% of Britons more interested in UK breaks. The report highlights trends like hotel hopping, sports event divergence, and set-jetting, along with top destinations and international cities with lower hotel rates.

  3. Expedia Group Newsroom

    Expedia Group's Unpack '26 Summer Report: Domestic Demand Rises as Travelers Take Measured Approach

    Expedia Group released the first-ever summer edition of its Unpack '26 report, revealing that domestic travel demand dominates summer vacation planning. Social conversation about domestic vacations increased 77% year-over-year globally, with 63% of U.S. travelers planning a domestic trip. The report highlights trends such as hotel hopping, sports-driven travel, and set-jetting, along with top destinations.

May 20Wed
May 18Mon
  1. PhocusWire All News

    Expedia Group Moves Advertising Unit Under CMO

    Expedia Group announced it is moving its media business (Expedia Group Advertising) under Chief Marketing Officer Jochen Koedijk, making it part of the global marketing organization. This move aims to bring marketing and advertising closer together to productionize solutions faster. The advertising business is growing 20% year over year, and the company sees it as a growth engine. The integration will foster a more unified and measurable system connecting performance marketing, brand-building, and media.

Apr 30Thu
  1. PhocusWire All News

    DirectBooker announces hotel partners, ChatGPT app

    DirectBooker, an aggregator connecting hotels to AI assistants, has announced supply agreements with five hotel chains including BWH Hotels and Radisson Hotel Group, and launched an app in ChatGPT and a connector in Claude. Founded by former Tripadvisor and Google Travel executives, the company uses model context protocol (MCP) to deliver real-time availability and rates to AI platforms. DirectBooker aims to help hotels capture direct bookings in AI-driven search, reducing reliance on OTAs.

Apr 29Wed
  1. PhocusWire All News

    Booking Holdings' play to keep travelers in ecosystem with AI

    Booking Holdings is positioning its AI efforts as a moat against general AI models, with early testing showing lifts in conversion and reduced customer service interactions. CEO Glenn Fogel shared progress on AI initiatives across Priceline's Penny, Booking.com's search and self-service, and Agoda's efficiency. The company reported strong Q1 results, though Middle East conflict impacted growth.

Apr 28Tue
  1. PhocusWire All News

    AirAsia MOVE CEO on Gen Z travelers, trust and super apps

    AirAsia MOVE CEO Nadia Omer spoke at Travel Tech Thursdays Kuala Lumpur, stating that travel desire in Southeast Asia is strong but the product hasn't caught up. She noted Gen Z is more experience-oriented, and the industry needs creative product thinking to convert aspiration into booking. She believes AI agents can't access social content like TikTok, and organic content is key to building trust.

Mar 25Wed
  1. PhocusWire All News

    Independent hotel reliance on OTAs increased in 2025

    Cloudbeds' State of Independent Hotels study shows OTA share for independent hotels rose to 63.4% in 2025, up from 61.3% in 2024. North America saw the largest increase, up 3.3 percentage points to 52.7%. While RevPAR grew 19% since 2019, acquisition costs rose 25%, outpacing revenue growth. The study also found OTA cancellation rates near 22%, compared to 10.6% for direct bookings.

Mar 24Tue
  1. PhocusWire All News

    AI booking push continues despite OpenAI strategic shift

    Despite OpenAI's shift away from Instant Checkout, AI-driven travel booking continues to advance. AI platforms are taking different approaches: OpenAI focuses on discovery, Google leverages its ecosystem, and Perplexity experiments with owning the transaction layer. Chinese OTA Fliggy enables direct bookings through Alibaba's Qwen app, processing over 200 million AI-native shopping orders during Spring Festival. Experts believe fully autonomous AI bookings remain a long-term goal, with trust and interoperability as key challenges.

  3. PhocusWire All News

    Tripadvisor adds four new directors after agreement with activist investor

    Tripadvisor has reached an agreement with shareholder Starboard Value to add four new directors. This follows a letter from Starboard calling for a sale of the company and new director appointments. Starboard owns more than 9% of the company. Dhiren Fonseca and Andrew Cates have been appointed immediately, and Starboard will recommend two more at the annual meeting. The move aims to support value creation.

Mar 23Mon
  1. PhocusWire All News

    MakeMyTrip Partners with Mastercard on AI Travel Concierge

    MakeMyTrip (MMT) has partnered with Mastercard to launch an AI-powered travel and lifestyle concierge called Lifestyle Navigator. The service combines MMT's travel marketplace and trip planning assistant Myra with Mastercard's AI capabilities to offer personalized experiences, including destination insights and payment product recommendations. MMT is the first OTA partner for Mastercard in this initiative, and it will be deployed first in India, available on MMT's platform later this year.

Mar 18Wed
  1. PhocusWire All News

    Trip.com Group focuses on attractions and experience economy

    Trip.com Group expects to deliver approximately $5 billion in gross merchandise volume from destination services, driven by strong APAC demand. The company introduced a multilingual ticketing machine solution supporting 15 languages, deployed in over 7 countries and regions, serving over 300 attractions. AI plays a key role in personalization and customer service, with tools like Trip.Planner using over 20 million points of interest to generate personalized itineraries.

Mar 13Fri
  1. PhocusWire All News

    Expedia partners with PredictHQ to help hotels with revenue strategy

    Expedia Group has partnered with PredictHQ to bring contextual data about global events to its hotel partners via Expedia Partner Center. The integration aims to provide hotels with demand insights to boost revenue strategies. The pilot began last year, with a full launch in late 2025. Chief commercial officer Greg Schulze highlighted that such events like the World Cup create demand spurts, and the tools help hotels optimize before, during, and after events for sustainable revenue.

Mar 3Tue
  1. PhocusWire All News

    Travel's third-largest sector faces its defining decade

    According to a joint report by Phocuswright and Arival, the in-destination experiences market reached $271 billion in 2025, surpassing pre-pandemic levels, and is projected to exceed $340 billion by 2029. Online channels grew from 17% of bookings in 2019 to 33% in 2025, with a projected 42% by 2029. OTAs are the fastest-growing channel, but the sector remains under-digitized.

  2. PhocusWire All News

    Indonesia's online travel market eyes $17B future

    Indonesia's online travel market is expected to nearly double from $9B in 2025 to $17B by 2030. Gross travel bookings reached $16.5B in 2025, with online bookings at $10.6B. Local OTAs like Traveloka and Tiket.com dominate and eye regional expansion. AI adoption is high, with 51% using AI to save time.

Feb 27Fri
  1. PhocusWire All News

    OTAs' marketing spend exceeded $20B in 2025

    In 2025, Airbnb, Booking Holdings, Expedia Group, and Trip.com Group invested a combined $20 billion in sales and marketing, up year-over-year. Booking and Expedia accounted for over three-quarters. Marketing spend as a percentage of revenue ranged from 21% to 50%, showing continued reliance on paid channels.

Jan 6Tue
  1. China Tourism News

    China Ice and Snow Tourism Report: 360 Million Leisure Trips Expected This Winter

    The China Tourism Academy (Data Center of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism) released the China Ice and Snow Tourism Development Report (2026) on January 5. It says that after roughly a decade of development, China's ice and snow tourism has shifted from a niche experience to a mass trend and from a single season to all four seasons. Combined estimates put leisure trips for the 2025-2026 winter at 360 million and leisure revenue at RMB 450 billion, with about 220 million trips primarily motivated by ice and snow tourism. Surveys show 74.8% of respondents want to experience ice and snow tourism and 50.5% want long-distance ice and snow trips, exceeding 50% for the first time. On investment…

Nov 25Tue
  1. Tongcheng News Center

    Tongcheng Travel Q3 Results: Core OTA Up 14.9%, Wanda Hotel Management Acquired

    Tongcheng Travel released a press release on its Q3 2025 results: revenue rose 10.4% year-on-year to RMB5.509 billion and adjusted net profit rose 16.5% to RMB1.060 billion. Core OTA revenue rose 14.9% to RMB4.609 billion, with accommodation reservations up 14.7%, transportation ticketing up 9.0% and other businesses up 34.9%. Average MPUs rose 2.8% to 47.7 million, APUs rose 8.8% to 252.9 million, and twelve-month accumulated travelers served surpassed 2 billion. The company completed the acquisition of Wanda Hotel Management (Hong Kong) on October 16, with nearly 3,000 hotels in operation under its hotel management platform and 1,500 in the pipeline.