First quarter 2008 statistics from STR show weakening demand growth in the global hospitality industry: "Europe is exhibiting some of the same issues as the US.
First quarter 2008 statistics from STR show weakening demand growth in the global hospitality industry: "Europe is exhibiting some of the same issues as the US. The malaise in the US economy seems to be affecting a large number of countries, and all of the talk about the decoupling of the American economy from the global economy is turning out to simply be chatter. They are still quite intertwined."
— Mark Lomanno
President, Smith Travel Research
Chairman, STR Global
Advice to meeting managers for a slowing economy, from his company newsletter: "If you booked a meeting assuming growth year over year and that is not the case, [you] could well be overbooked in many existing contracts. If this is clearly the case, sooner than later it would be prudent to have an open conversation with the hotels that could be affected. Our experience in the last recession was highly favorable if we gave hotels enough time to resell the reduced space. ... we're seeing more and more groups booking just two years out [instead of three]. If your meeting attendee count is questionable there may be prudence in waiting to see how 2008 finishes before adding another year."
— Brian Stevens
President
ConferenceDirect
In a letter to both US presidential candidates, warning that a proposed alliance between British Airways and American Airlines would hurt competition: "BA and AA will argue that their alliance is now acceptable because the competitive environment has changed with the open-skies accord on UK-US routes. This is a complete red herring. Open skies, which is only a temporary accord as it may be unwound in 2010, has not significantly increased competition on London-US routes."
— Richard Branson
President
Virgin Atlantic Airways
Where hotel investment dollars are going in the current economy: "Larger transactions, those of more than $10 million, have declined significantly, with only 73 deals above that amount reported in the first half, compared to 258 in the same period last year. Mid-market hotel transactions have declined, but there still is a lot of active trading taking place, especially in the $10 million and under range. ... We are seeing a lot of brokers who traditionally don't deal in or have experience in transactions of under $10 million now seeking listings in this category. That, probably more than anything, describes the current 'big-box' hotels market."
— H. Brandt Niehaus
President, Hotel Brokers Internatonal
President, Huff, Niehaus & Associates
Seeking stronger enforcement of the Federal Transit Administration's Charter Bus Rules, which would end team owners' use of federal capital and operating subsidies (i.e, tax dollars) to pay for game day shuttle services: "People should be made aware that the low prices charged by transit agencies were made possible through federal capital and operating subsides, in other words, taxpayer dollars. Allowing independent bus operators to serve this market opens the door to competitive pricing."
— Peter Pantuso
President & CEO
American Bus Association
Dispelling some widely-held beliefs about the current state of travel: "MYTH: Airport security wait times are outrageously long. ... TSA monitoring shows average airport security wait times at 11.7 minutes at peak times and much less than that during non-peak times. However travelers should be aware that the most likely times to encounter unusual delays are on Friday afternoons and Monday mornings when business travelers and leisure travelers overlap."
— Chris McGinnis
Editor
Expedia Travel Trendwatch
Outsourcing is being redefined: "Outsourcing no longer means jobs shuffled off to faraway lands. Outsourcing means opportunity — an opportunity to access proven experts in their fields at cost-effective rates on our own soil."
— Jamie Pennington
President
Flexible Executives
After decreases in airfares in the first quarter, India's aviation industry has demonstrated its volatility with second quarter hikes up to 7 percent: "Discount economy seems to be benefiting from stiff competition at the low end of the market (discount economy fare saw a 2 percent decrease from the previous quarter) ... India's low cost carrier sector now holds a remarkable 49 percent of the domestic market, which is one of the highest in the world. The Indian experience could be instructive as economic pressures impact on the travel decisions of corporations and consumers."
— Kurt Knackstedt
Head of Advisory Services
American Express Business Travel, Asia Pacific