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Johannes Reck, CEO of travel start-up GetYourGuide. Jens Kalaene | picture alliance | Getty Images LONDON— GetYourGuide, the Berlin-headquartered activity booking start-up has laid off close to 100 staff as the coronavirus pandemic continues to take its toll on the travel industry. The company was backed by SoftBank in a $484 million funding round last

A Qatar Airways Boeing 777 In New York. Leslie Josephs | CNBC DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The outlook for the airline industry continues to be bleak, and one CEO has issued a particularly devastating warning on its future as fears mount over a potential second wave of coronavirus infections this fall and winter.   “The

Fitness membership? Check. Streaming account? Of course. Meal kit service? Sure. How about your hotel subscription? Whether for pleasure, work, or long-term lodging, hospitality operators are hoping on-demand stays could be your next must-have membership as the embattled travel industry tries to expand its reach. InterContinental Hotels Group, Marriott and Accor are among the major

A Boeing 737 MAX jet comes in for a landing following a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) test flight at Boeing Field in Seattle, Washington on June 29, 2020. Jason Redmond | Reuters Europe’s aviation regulator has declared Boeing‘s 737 Max aircraft safe to fly after it was grounded in March 2019 following two accidents that

An aerial picture showing the Red Sea cost in Saudi Arabia. Franck Fife | AFP | Getty Images SINGAPORE — There’s no better time than now for Saudi Arabia to build its new tourist attractions, the kingdom’s tourism minister told CNBC this week. “It is absolutely the right time … because as we all know, the

Can preflight testing get people flying again? The International Air Transport Association (IATA) thinks so. Last month, the trade association, which represents some 290 airlines around the world, called for the “development and deployment of rapid, accurate, affordable, easy-to-operate, scalable and systematic” Covid-19 testing for all passengers as a way to restore passenger confidence, bypass

Southeast Asia, home to some of the most tourism-reliant countries in the world, is reeling from the coronavirus-induced global lockdowns — and many of the region’s travel industries are struggling to survive. Even though other regions like Europe have seen travel-related activities lifted, Southeast Asia’s borders have remained largely closed. The World Tourism Organization, a

SINGAPORE — Singapore has no domestic air travel market and “can’t wait around for a vaccine” before allowing more visitors to enter through international flights, the country’s transport minister said on Monday. The coronavirus pandemic has hit the global aviation industry hard, as many countries shut their borders and restricted travel to slow the virus

Busch Gardens With caps on attendance and new coronavirus safety guidelines, including mandatory mask wearing and social distancing, theme parks have had to reimagine their Halloween festivities this year. The fall holiday has morphed into the single most important event for theme parks, Dennis Speigel, president of International Theme Parks Services, said.  “A down Halloween

SINGAPORE — First there were flights to nowhere, now there are cruises to nowhere.  This week, Singapore announced a pilot program where cruises will make round trips to the city-state with no port of call in between. Capacity would be limited to 50% and passengers must be Singapore residents. The move is a fresh attempt to

More than 637 million people traveled within China over the past week in celebration of the country’s annual “Golden Week,” the country’s government said on Friday. The government estimates domestic travelers generated around 466 billion yuan ($68.6 billion) in tourism revenue during the holiday period. Two holidays converged this year: National Day, which celebrates the founding

It’s been a wild week for airlines. United Airlines and Delta were among the airline stocks that rallied Wednesday after President Trump urged $25 billion in relief for the industry. Trump’s statement late Tuesday was a surprise turn for the president after he tweeted earlier in the day that all stimulus talks should be pushed

What do you get when you mix a wellness holiday with a “workcation”? Answer: The “wellness sabbatical,” an emerging trend that allocates time for sunrise yoga classes, meditation sessions and spa treatments — alongside work emails and Zoom calls. A small but growing number of resorts are tapping into a market of wellness-minded workers who

A pilot walks by United Airlines planes as they sit parked at gates at San Francisco International Airport on April 12, 2020 in San Francisco, California. Justin Sullivan | Getty Images United Airlines‘ pilots approved a plan to avoid furloughs that were set to begin as early as next month, the company said Monday, marking

Travel stocks head into the new week on two different tracks. Cruise line stocks ended last week under pressure after a White House meeting with cruise CEOs was postponed following President Donald Trump‘s positive Covid test. Airline stocks ended higher after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi signaled additional government assistance for the beaten-down industry. Craig Johnson,

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Chief Steve Dickson, sitting inside the flight deck of a Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, conducts a pre-flight check ahead of an evaluation flight from Boeing Field in Seattle, Washington, September 30, 2020. Mike Siegel | Pool | via Reuters The head of the Federal Aviation Administration was upbeat about Boeing‘s 737

Usually when passengers find themselves sitting on a grounded commercial airplane, reactions range from impatience to downright anger.  But these are not usual times. That’s one of several activities that Singapore Airlines is launching instead of what media reports have dubbed “flights to nowhere.” The airline announced this week it was abandoning plans for destination-less flights —

Getty Images Oil prices are expected to rise just slightly in the final quarter of the year, held back from further gains by a deep chill in global travel and a still healing economy. Analysts forecast the prices of Brent and West Texas Intermediate should rise to the low to mid-$40s per barrel, but they

The process to bring back furloughed pilots can take as long as 15 months due to the industry’s extensive and intricate training system, according to an airline labor union official and pilot. “It’s a very large ship and when you stop it, it takes a lot of energy to get it back up and running,” Dennis

With elementary and high school around the world attending school virtually this fall, hotels are selling an unlikely travel opportunity — the “schoolcation.” Families are being enticed from their homes by hotels promising a change of scenery alongside tutoring, round-the-clock tech help and after-school activities that are more fun than what’s available back home.   Relieving