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  • Hyatt Global President of Operations Floyd to Retire

    Hyatt Global President of Operations Floyd to Retire

    Hyatt Hotels Corp. executive vice president and global president of operations Chuck Floyd will step down from his position effective Jan. 1, 2024, and begin a transition to retirement, the hotel company announced Tuesday.

    Floyd will assume the role of senior advisor to Hyatt president and CEO Mark Hoplamazian for a “period of six months,” according to Hyatt. Floyd will effectively retire from the company June 30, 2024, according to Hyatt.

    Floyd has been with Hyatt for more than four decades, according to Hoplamazian, who called Floyd’s tenure with the company “nothing short of legendary,” in a statement. Floyd was named global president of operations in 2014.

    Following Floyd’s transition to senior advisor in 2024, regional group presidents will report directly to Hoplamazian, the company said.

    aplatas@thebtngroup.com (Angelique Platas)

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  • L.A. OKs Removal of Hotel Housing Initiative From Ballot

    L.A. OKs Removal of Hotel Housing Initiative From Ballot

    The Los Angeles city council has voted to remove a union-submitted initiative from the March 2024 ballot that would require L.A.-based hotels to house unhoused individuals next to paying guests, according to local reports.

    According to reports, the L.A. City Council on Tuesday voted unanimously to remove the ballot initiative in favor of a “compromise ordinance” that would allow for a voluntary homeless-in-hotels program in the city.

    Prior to the compromise and vote to withdraw, Unite Here Local 11—a union representing hospitality workers—submitted a ballot initiative that would require existing and new L.A.-based hotels to report vacant rooms to the city daily and accept unhouse individuals through a voucher system to be housed in unsold rooms alongside hotel guests. 

    In response to the proposal, the American Hotel & Lodging Association funded a campaign to defeat the initiative dubbed Angelenos Protecting Hospitality in October. APH campaign president and AHLA president and CEO Chip Rogers called the initiative an “absolute failure” that would put “hotel guests and hotel employees in physical danger.”

    The Compromise

    The L.A. city council and Unite Here agreed to a deal to remove the original ballot in favor of the compromise ordinance last month, according to the Los Angeles Times. Following this agreement, Unite Here officially requested the initiative’s removal from the March 2024 ballot last week, local publications reported.

    As part of the deal to withdraw the homeless-in-hotels ballot measure, the L.A. City Council has approved a compromise ordinance, according to AHLA. The new ordinance allows hotels to opt into this “Voluntary Housing Program,” and renew participation, according to the ordinance. 

    According to the ordinance, hotels will be able to register with the city and provide “contracting and negotiated per-room-rates” to participate in the Voluntary Housing Program. Program participation will be at the “sole discretion of the hotel,” ordinance authors wrote. The Los Angeles Housing Department, “on an ongoing basis,” according to the compromise, will identify hotels within the program and direct unhoused individuals and families to participating hotels.

    Additionally, the Los Angeles Housing Department will work with “non-profit organizations with a demonstrated record of working with unhoused populations to assist in administering the program,” according to the ordinance. For hotels that opt into the program, it will be “unlawful” to refuse service to individuals “seeking accommodations using the program,” according to the ordinance, which was signed Nov. 30 and will take effect July 1, 2024.

    “With this ordinance, we have done more to protect housing than any single contract demand would have done,” Unite Here Local 11 co-president Kurt Petersen said in a statement, adding that the “fight for a living wage continues.”

    Industry Response

    “We are grateful to Mayor Bass and Council President Paul Krekorian for finding the path to a common-sense solution, protecting our hotel employees—especially housekeepers—our guests and Los Angeles’ reputation,” California Hotel & Lodging Association president and CEO Lynn Mohrfeld said in a statement.

    Rogers echoed these sentiments, adding in a statement that “Unite Here created an atmosphere of dangerous uncertainty for hotel employees, hoteliers and the City of Los Angeles by clinging to a proposal virtually everyone thinks is outrageous – forcing hotels to house homeless people next to paying guests,” with the original proposal. 

    The city’s Tuesday vote was an “irresponsible demand was just a bargaining chip, rather than a serious attempt to address the homelessness crisis gripping L.A.,” Rogers said in the statement.

    aplatas@thebtngroup.com (Angelique Platas)

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  • Omni Adds Groups360 Guest Room Block Booking

    Omni Adds Groups360 Guest Room Block Booking

    Omni Hotels & Resorts will allow online booking of guest room blocks of 10 to 25 rooms through an expanded partnership with hospitality and meetings sourcing solution Groups360, adding GroupSync’s instant meeting booking platform for group room sourcing and booking, the company announced Tuesday.

    Users of Groups360’s GroupSync tool can book small room blocks at participating Omni properties in the United States and Canada without having to contact the property directly, according to Omni and Groups360. 

    The move for now enables booking only of guest rooms and not meeting space, but “instant booking for Omni’s meeting space is currently in the works and scheduled to launch on GroupSync in 2024,” a Groups360 representative told BTN.

    Before the expanded partnership, Omni offered GroupSync’s direct booking solution Engage at four of its managed properties in Dallas.

    The news follows similar Groups360 integrations with hotel groups, including Choice Hotels International,Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Marriott International, Hilton Worldwide, IHG Hotels & Resorts and Accor.Following this latest collaboration, GroupSync allows for booking meeting spaces and group room blocks at more than 200,000 properties globally. 

    aplatas@thebtngroup.com (Angelique Platas)

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  • Hotels to Revamp Loyalty Programs in 2024

    Hotels to Revamp Loyalty Programs in 2024

    Some hotel companies plan changes to their loyalty programs in 2024, including Hyatt Hotels Corp. and Omni Hotels & Resorts, each company recently announced.

    Beginning Jan. 1, 2024, Hyatt will “expand” its World of Hyatt loyalty program with “reimagined” benefits, such as bonus points, free nights, experience credits and guest-of-honor gifts, some available at lower thresholds—as well as benefits for meetings and events professionals and corporates—the company announced Thursday. 

    “Milestone Rewards will begin after 20 qualifying nights or 35,000 Base Points per year and continue for each 10 qualifying nights, up to 150 nights,” the company announced. 

    Hyatt will allow member to choose from three eligible awards, including earning points for future stays, next-stay suite upgrades and well-being experiences at “almost every milestone,” the company said.

    Additionally, members will be able to earn Guest of Honor benefits—for themselves or others—at the 40-tier qualifying nights, as opposed to only at the Globalist membership tier. 

    Currently, Globalist members can book Guest of Honor awards with no limits if they use points from their account. In 2024, this will change. Going forward, members will receive Guest of Honor awards from a list of available milestone reward options. This structure allows members to earn one Guest of Honor award at the 40-night mark, and two at the 60-night mark with seven more opportunities through the 70-night mark and beyond, totaling up to 10 Guest of Honor awards.

    Hyatt loyalty members can earn 2,000 bonus points during their next stay at select hotels, such as Hyatt Place and Hyatt House, and earn experience credits for Hyatt’s Find program. Find credits will vary based on which milestone members achieve, according to Hyatt.

    Hyatt’s update to its loyalty program also includes changes to meetings and events benefits. 

    Loyalty members booking meetings and events can earn rewards and gain status for a mix of events, up to $150,000, according to Hyatt. In 2024, members can earn two qualifying night credits per $5,000 in event spend, totaling up to 60 qualifying night credits per calendar year and does not require an associated room block for group events. Previously, benefits were accrued by booking Qualifying Meetings, which Hyatt said still will be tracked through Dec. 31, 2024.

    Omni Sets Changes

    Omni Hotels & Resorts also has announced and upcoming update to its Select Guest Loyalty Program in 2024. Beginning Jan. 1, Omni guests can accumulate status and rewards through on-property experiences charged to their room, the company announced last month. 

    The 2024 update will allow Omni loyalty program members to earn status and benefits with on-property purchases, including food, beverage and retail, as well as spa appointments and golf outings. Omni’s updated loyalty program will also include a “revamped” structure and tier names, progressing from Member to Insider, Champion and Icon Status, the company said. Following this update, loyalty members can earn status and rewards—which will be called Omni Credits—through on-property spend, in addition to room-night spend, only when purchases are charged to the room, according to Omni. 

    With this update, guests can earn “achieve higher levels of status after even a single stay,” the company said. “We wanted to make this level achievable to encourage guests to return and enjoy a higher level of benefits on their next stay,” Omni VP of loyalty and customer engagement Josh Belkin said in a statement.

    The updated loyalty program still includes existing member benefits such as free nights redeemable at any Omni property, suite upgrade availability and various in-stay amenities. Rewards earned during 2023 will be honored “at an equivalent level” throughout 2024 as the spending power of existing Omni rewards are locked in, according to the hotel company.

    aplatas@thebtngroup.com (Angelique Platas)

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  • IATA: October Air Traffic Again Grows

    IATA: October Air Traffic Again Grows

    Total October air traffic as measured in revenue passenger kilometers increased 31.2 percent year over year, according to the International Air Transport Association. That total was 98.2 percent of 2019 levels, up from 97.3 percent in September. Total capacity was up 29.4 percent versus October 2022.

    Domestic October traffic was up 33.7 percent compared with a year prior and was 4.8 percent above 2019 levels, a slight tick below last month’s 5 percent. Domestic capacity was up 31.8 percent from October 2022. International traffic increased 29.7 percent year over year, and was 94.4 percent of 2019 levels, up from the 93.1 percent reported in September.

    “October’s strong result brings the industry ever closer to completing the post-pandemic traffic recovery,” IATA director general Willie Walsh said in a statement. “Domestic markets remain above pre-Covid levels. International demand is recovering, but more slowly. In particular, Asia-Pacific carriers’ international demand is 19.5 percent behind 2019. This could reflect the late lifting of Covid restrictions in parts of the region as well as commercial developments and political tensions.”

    [Report continues below chart.]

    Despite Asia-Pacific’s lag in traffic recovery versus other regions, it led total October air traffic growth rates with an increase of 90.9 percent year over year. it also led capacity growth with a 77.9 percent increase over the same period. North America had the lowest traffic growth rate at 10.5 percent year over year, coupled with a passenger load factor decline of 2.4 percentage points to 83.6 percent.

    For domestic markets, China’s October traffic grew 252.8 percent year over year, with capacity up 188.2 percent. Australia had the lowest growth rate for traffic at 7.5 percent compared with October 2022, while for capacity, Japan reported a decline of 2.3 percent while all other regions posted gains.

    Internationally, Asia-Pacific again posted the highest growth rates year over year for both traffic and capacity, at 80.3 percent and 72.5 percent. Europe had the lowest traffic growth rate at 16.1 percent versus October 2022, as well as the lowest capacity increase at 14.5 percent.

    “People assign a high value to the freedom to travel,” Walsh said. “The strong demand we’ve seen all year confirms that. And aviation is committed to ensuring that people can continue to enjoy this freedom. To do that in the long-term, we must also meet our commitment to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Last month, the Third Conference on Aviation Alternative Fuels agreed [to] a global framework to promote sustainable aviation fuel production with the aim that aviation fuel in 2030 is 5 percent less carbon intensive than fossil fuel used today. Now, governments need to support that target by immediately putting in place policies to stimulate SAF production. It bears repeating: Last year, every drop of SAF that was produced was purchased. The same thing will occur this year. But, with a few notable exceptions, governments are not living up to their obligations to ensure SAF is plentiful and affordable to support the industry’s energy transition.”

    RELATED: IATA: September Domestic Air Traffic Tops 2019 Levels

    dairoldi@thebtngroup.com (Donna M. Airoldi)

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  • Travelport Offering Lufthansa NDC Content

    Travelport Offering Lufthansa NDC Content

    Travelport is now offering Lufthansa Group’s New Distribution Content offers and servicing capabilities in the Travelport Plus platform, the technology company announced Tuesday. The Group’s carriers include Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Swiss and Air Dolomiti.

    Lufthansa Group’s NDC content is first available in Austria, Ireland, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Access will expand to additional European countries “in the coming weeks,” and then to customers in the Americas, Middle East, Africa and Asia-Pacific regions in early 2024, according to Travelport.

    dairoldi@thebtngroup.com (Donna M. Airoldi)

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  • Air Canada Expands Air-to-Rail Connections

    Air Canada Expands Air-to-Rail Connections

    Air Canada has added new air-to-rail booking options with four European rail providers, the carrier announced Tuesday. Through the carrier’s existing partnership with Lufthansa Express Rail product and new collaborations with AccesRail and WorldTicket, customers can book an air-and-rail itinerary for destinations in France, Germany, Switzerland and Austria.

    Via Germany’s Deutsche Bahn, Air Canada’s rail connections have increased to more than 5,600 stations from airports in Frankfurt and Munich from the 24 stations previously available only from Frankfurt, according to the carrier. TGV-SNCF Voyageurs will provide rail services from Charles de Gaulle Airport to 22 destinations in France. Customers flying to Zurich or Geneva will have 11 station-connection options via Switzerland’s Swiss Federal Railways, and Austria’s ÖBB rail system will offer connections to nine stations.

    In addition, Air Canada in 2024 plans to launch a codeshare with Deutsche Bahn—which in August 2022 became the first non-airline partner of Star Alliance—via the Lufthansa Express Rail product.

    dairoldi@thebtngroup.com (Donna M. Airoldi)

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  • Best Western to Offer Green Key Sustainability Certification

    Best Western to Offer Green Key Sustainability Certification

    Best Western properties in the United States and Canada will offer Green Key Global’s sustainability certification organization through a new partnership, the companies announced Friday.

    Best Western parent BWH Hotels will serve as a “preferred supplier” of Green Key Global’s hotel certification for sustainability practices, according to Green Key Global. The collaboration will “help strengthen [Best Western’s] efforts and provide credible recognition for their sustainability practices,” Green Key Global director Rebecca Bartlett Jones said in a statement.

    Best Western joins recent Green Key Global hotel partners, including InterContinental Hotels & Resorts and Accor Hotels in North America.

    The partnership follows Green Key Global’s recent entrance to the United States thanks to a planned joint venture with the American Hotel & Lodging Association, announced in September. Green Key Global was launched by the Hotel Association of Canada in 1994.

    aplatas@thebtngroup.com (Angelique Platas)

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  • Etihad, TAP Air Portugal Launch Codeshare

    Etihad, TAP Air Portugal Launch Codeshare

    Etihad Airways and TAP Air Portugal on Dec. 5 launched a codeshare partnership, “unlocking enhanced connectivity … on a range of destinations within each other’s networks,” the airlines announced Tuesday. The codeshare enables customers to make a single booking with one check-in process and baggage transferred to their final destinations. It also enables customers of each carrier to connect to each other’s network through Frankfurt and London Heathrow, according to the carriers.

    dairoldi@thebtngroup.com (Donna M. Airoldi)

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  • Extend Adds Virtual Card Functionality to Concur Invoice

    Extend Adds Virtual Card Functionality to Concur Invoice

    Virtual card and spend management platform Extend has made its virtual card functionality available in the Concur Invoice platform, with which customers can register for virtual card services using their current corporate or procurement card.

    By integrating Extend’s functionality, Concur Invoice can generate a virtual card linked to the registered corporate or procurement card, including a unique card number, spending limit and validity date. That can enable better controls around payments and quicker payment of vendors, according to Extend.

    BMO is the first issuing partner bank giving the option of Extend functionality in Concur Invoice to its card clients. Extend said more banks will be enabled over the coming months.

    mbaker@thebtngroup.com (Michael B. Baker)

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  • Center Raises $30M in Latest Funding Round

    Center Raises $30M in Latest Funding Round

    Payment and expense provider Center has raised $30 million in its latest funding round, which the company said would be used for innovation and broadening distribution.

    The funding round, led by Top Tier Capital as well as reinvestment from Durable Capital Partners, brings Center’s total funding to more than $140 million. It follows Center’s October launch of an integrated travel and expense offering, built on Spotnana infrastructure.

    One of Center’s planned innovations is to create “open platform” with client libraries and APIs with which card and expense management features can be embedded into existing workflows, according to Center. 

    “Opening up our platform and creating an ecosystem that can be deeply integrated, customized and embedded natively inside of existing web and mobile applications provides value for the corporate customer, developer partners and financial institutions alike,” Center CEO Naveen Singh said in a statement. “We see a fully integrated approach as the next frontier of innovation for expense management.”

    Center said as of the end of November 2023 it has seen customer growth of 64 percent year over year.

    mbaker@thebtngroup.com (Michael B. Baker)

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  • Sabre to Offer Lufthansa Group NDC Content

    Sabre to Offer Lufthansa Group NDC Content

    Sabre Corp. plans to roll out globally in 2024 New Distribution Capability offers for its Lufthansa Group carriers to Sabre-connected agents, the technology company announced Monday. 

    Lufthansa Group carriers include Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Swiss and Air Dolomiti.

    The NDC content currently is available to agents in Italy upon activation of Lufthansa Group’s NDC Partner Program through Sabre Offer and Order APIs, Sabre’s Red 360 agency booking solution and its GetThere online booking tool. The global rollout is expected to happen during the first half of 2024, according to Sabre.

    dairoldi@thebtngroup.com (Donna M. Airoldi)

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  • Travelport Investors Agree to $570M in New Equity Financing

    Travelport Investors Agree to $570M in New Equity Financing

    A group of Travelport’s equity holders and lenders are investing $570 million into the company, which Travelport said will give it “a robust capital structure” and be a source of investment into its technology platforms.

    Following that transaction, which Travelport said should close by the end of the year, Travelport will have a new ownership structure, as some current investors convert debt to equity, that will include Elliott Investment Management, Davidson Kempner Capital Management, Canyon Partners and Siris Capital. Travelport’s management team will remain unchanged.

    “With this new investment, Travelport will have a strong balance sheet with the least amount of debt amongst its peers, which we believe will put the company in an even better position for long-term, profitable growth,” Travelport CEO Greg Webb said in a statement. “Most importantly, this transaction will further strengthen our operating business and accelerate our investments in Travelport Plus and other initiatives that make us the most innovative and agile partner to all our customers.”

    Among the investments planned with the new capital are support for “a wide range” of airline New Distribution Capability content and Travelport’s machine-learning-powered search engine, the Content Curation Layer.

    Both Siris Capital Group and Elliott Management, which took the company private in 2019, earlier this year announced a $200 million investment into Travelport. 

    mbaker@thebtngroup.com (Michael B. Baker)

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  • BCD Expands Into Portugal with Ávoris Agreement

    BCD Expands Into Portugal with Ávoris Agreement

    BCD Travel has expanded its partnership with Spanish company Ávoris Corporación Empresarial to include coverage in Portugal, the companies announced.

    Per the agreement, Ávoris agency Barcelo Viagens will be BCD’s exclusive representative in Portugal and operate as BCD Travel Portugal, according to BCD. Michéle Lawley, BCD’s president for Europe, said “the Iberian Peninsula is a strategic market” for the travel management company and that the “partnership in Portugal is a logical next step, providing additional value to our multinational clients.”

    The full Ávoris company has a team of more than 6,000 professionals across more than 30 brands.

    mbaker@thebtngroup.com (Michael B. Baker)

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  • Alaska Airlines Agrees to Acquire Hawaiian Airlines in $1.9B Deal

    Alaska Airlines Agrees to Acquire Hawaiian Airlines in $1.9B Deal

    Alaska Airlines has agreed to acquire Hawaiian Airlines in a deal valued at $1.9 billion, including $18 per share in cash, the carriers announced Sunday. Each airline will retain its customer-facing brand, while integrating into a single operating platform “behind the curtain,” Alaska CEO Ben Minicucci said during a Sunday investor call.

    The acquisition is “something we have looked at for a while,” Minicucci added. “Simply put, we are acquiring a hub in a premium global leisure market that has the potential to approach Seattle in size.”

    Honolulu would become a key hub for the combined entity—”second only to Seattle,” according to Alaska CFO Shane Tackett—with expanded service to the continental United States and new connections to Asia and throughout the Pacific.

    The proposed combination would expand the fifth-largest U.S. airline to a fleet of 365 narrowbody and widebody aircraft and create a combined network of 138 destinations. It also would offer more than 1,200 destinations through the Oneworld alliance, of which Hawaiian would become a member. 

    Hawaiian customers also would have access to flights made available through Alaska’s partnership with American Airlines, the “West Coast International Alliance,” which began in 2020 and has featured increased codesharing, reciprocal loyalty program benefits and Alaska’s entry into Oneworld.

    Alaska acquired Virgin America in 2016, and an analyst asked why acquire Hawaiian now, after Alaska spent the past several years resettling its product and fleet. Alaska this year became a single-aircraft fleet after divesting the planes acquired with the Virgin America deal, and will inherit 37 narrowbodies and 24 widebodies from Hawaiian, according to Tackett.

    “The opportunity came to us, and when we really looked at the Hawaiian market, it’s an $8 billion market, where this combination allows us to be the clear market leader … and it will be our second-largest hub,” Minicucci said. “It’s a step-change for us to accelerate not only our financial performance but the growth of our network.”

    The acquisition is subject to federal regulatory review. When asked about the pending $3.8 billion JetBlue-Spirit Airlines deal, currently in court in Boston after the U.S. Department of Justice sued to block the merger, Minicucci said “there is no relationship with what we are doing, and frankly, we’re not even watching it that closely.”

    The Alaska-Hawaiian transaction has been approved by both company boards, according to Alaska. Hawaiian shareholders are expected to vote on the merger during the first quarter of 2024, and pending government approval and other customary closing conditions, the anticipated close date is in the next 12 to 18 months, according to Alaska.

    dairoldi@thebtngroup.com (Donna M. Airoldi)

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  • Air Canada Adds Bag, Mobility Aid Tracking

    Air Canada Adds Bag, Mobility Aid Tracking

    Air Canada has enhanced its mobile app to enable customers traveling within Canada to track the progress of their bags and mobility aids in real time, the carrier announced Friday. Key check points include check-in, handling, on the aircraft, through connections and arrival. 

    The app now can tell customers at which carousels to collect their belongings, as well as if there is there a delay. Customers also can file a delayed baggage report from the app. Air Canada plans to expand the tracking feature to the carrier’s U.S. flights next year, and, over time, to “select international destinations.”

    dairoldi@thebtngroup.com (Donna M. Airoldi)

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  • DOT September Air Cancellations Again Decline

    DOT September Air Cancellations Again Decline

    Cancellations in September from U.S. reporting air carriers declined for a second month in a row, according to the latest U.S. Department of Transportation Air Travel Consumer Report. Airlines canceled 1.2 percent of their scheduled flights, down from the 1.5 percent rate from a year prior and from August 2023’s 1.5 percent.

    Operated flights in September were up 4.5 percent year over year to more than 597,000 but were down 5.3 percent compared with August 2023. 

    The carriers with the lowest rates of canceled flights were Alaska Airlines Network (0.3 percent), Allegiant Air (0.3 percent) and Southwest Airlines (0.6 percent). Those carriers with the highest rate of cancellations included JetBlue (3.4 percent), Frontier Airlines (2 percent) and Spirit Airlines (1.6 percent). Networks include branded codeshare partners.

    Airlines in September handled 37.4 million bags and reported a mishandled baggage rate of 0.53 percent, lower than the 0.61 percent in August 2023, but higher than the rate of 0.48 percent from September 2022. 

    DOT’s September complaint data was delayed, as has been the case each month for all of 2023. Earlier in November, the department released complaint data for March, April and May, which showed that complaints had surged for those months. DOT on Sept. 29 received an $8 million grant to use for updating its complaint application system. The agency anticipates the new system will be operational in January 2024.

    RELATED: August Flight Operations Up, Cancellations Down

    dairoldi@thebtngroup.com (Donna M. Airoldi)

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  • BCD Projects Lower 2024 Fares, Higher Hotel Rates in ‘Complex’ Outlook

    BCD Projects Lower 2024 Fares, Higher Hotel Rates in ‘Complex’ Outlook

    Average airfares are set to decrease globally in 2024 as the recovery loses “upward momentum,” according to a new BCD Travel forecast, which also projects global hotel rates to increase from 2023 levels. 

    It’s part of a 2024 global travel industry outlook that is “complex,” according to the travel management company’s Travel Market Report, released Thursday. 

    According to BCD Travel, the broad “uncertainty” shrouding its 2024 outlook—which includes geopolitical issues and “persistent” high interest rates—will have “direct implications” for air travel and pricing next year. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, increased tensions over Taiwan and conflict in the Middle East have impacted air travel in 2023 and could continue to do so next year, according to BCD.

    BCD also cited supply chain issues, increased fuel and labor costs and varying global travel demand as additional pressures on the airline industry in 2024.

    “Airlines will do all they can to shield themselves from such uncertainties and challenges. Thanks to the sophistication of their revenue management systems, they possess the power to manage their inventory and pricing like at no other time in their history,” according to BCD Travel.

    BCD Travel projects global average ticket prices to fall by 0.8 percent year over year in 2024. Regional fares are forecast to fall by 0.9 percent and intercontinental fares by 0.5 percent. 

    “Asia, Europe, Latin America and Southwest Pacific can expect to see ATPs fall by more than 2 percent,” according to BCD. “Higher average airfares are only likely in Africa and North America, but the increase in ATPs in these two markets looks set to be less than 1 percent,” according to the forecast.

    Average fares in 2023 were 3 percent to 6 percent below 2019 levels, according to BCD.

    Hotel Outlook

    BCD projects average global hotel rates to increase by 6.8 percent year over year in 2024, according to the forecast. 

    “Even as the pace of the recovery shows some signs of slowing, demand should continue to outpace available supply in many markets,” according to BCD. And while hotel development and conversion pipelines have been robust across the globe, those will “take time to come online,” according to BCD. 

    To that end, hotels have shifted their focus from pushing occupancy to raising revenue per available room and average daily rate, according to BCD. 

    “Instead of trying to fill every room, hotels seem more prepared to accept lower occupancy, limiting availability and then holding out for higher rates,” according to BCD, adding the shift in focus could benefit hotels’ bottom lines through lower housekeeping costs. 

    BCD forecasts 2024 ADR in the U.S. to increase 4.3 percent year over year, while it increases 6.5 percent in Canada and 8 percent in Mexico.

    In Europe, BCD forecast ADR to increase 7 percent year over year, while it increases 8.2 percent in Latin America, 6.3 percent in Asia, 5.2 percent in Africa and 3.1 percent in the Southwest Pacific, including Australia.

    BCD projected 2024 ADR in the Middle East to rise 14.4 percent year over year. Expected gains in this region are primarily driven by high expectations in Turkey, according to BCD. 

    aplatas@thebtngroup.com (Angelique Platas)

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  • American Plans High-Speed Wi-Fi on Regional Jets

    American Plans High-Speed Wi-Fi on Regional Jets

    American Airlines plans to make high-speed Wi-Fi available on nearly 500 dual-class regional aircraft operated on behalf of the carrier, the airline announced Thursday. The carrier is working “to extend its relationship with” service provider Intelsat” and plans to begin installing the upgraded service on regional jets in 2024. The carrier anticipates it will take about two years to complete the project. American currently has more than 900 mainline aircraft with satellite connections.

    dairoldi@thebtngroup.com (Donna M. Airoldi)

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  • Lufthansa Expands Green Fares to International Routes

    Lufthansa Expands Green Fares to International Routes

    Lufthansa Group, beginning Nov. 30, will offer what it calls a test of its Green Fares on 12 long-haul flights, with Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and Swiss carriers participating, the company announced Thursday. The Group also offers Green Fares for routes with connecting flights.

    The company’s Green Fares include compensation for carbon emissions within the ticket price. This is achieved through a combination of use of sustainable aviation fuel and contributions to climate protection projects, according to Lufthansa.

    U.S. routes with Green Fares now available include Zurich-Los Angeles and Frankfurt-Miami. The remaining 10 routes are between European gateway cities and destinations in Africa and Asia.

    For the long-haul routes, a traveler’s CO2 emissions for that flight are reduced by 10 percent through the use of SAF, with the remaining 90 percent offset by contributions to climate protection projects, according to the company. Lufthansa began offering Green Fares in Europe in February after a pilot in the Scandinavian market. The short-haul flights are compensated with 20 percent use of SAF and 80 percent offsets. 

    Since the expansion earlier this year, “more than half a million passengers have already opted for a Green Fares flight,” according to the company.

    dairoldi@thebtngroup.com (Donna M. Airoldi)

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