D/R DOWNLOAD 5.10

What’s Trending

01/ On Google

• “Travel Arrow Extension”, an AI-based travel Google Chrome extension that alerts travelers on the best deals and compares prices, trended +150% this week.

02/ With Media

• This week media were interested in wellness experiences in France, boat and sailboat rentals, extraordinary stays, coolcation destinations in North America, the best new hotels and hot bars, and more. 

• The New York Magazine editorial team allowed the Columbia Daily Spectator, a student-run magazine out of Columbia University, to take over their latest issue with on-the-ground reporting of the current on-campus protests.

03/ In the Zeitgeist

• This past Monday, the annual MET Gala took place with this year's theme: “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion.” It was hosted by Zendaya, Jennifer Lopez, Bad Bunny, and Chris Hemsworth with a performance by Ariana Grande. The best-dressed attendees were South African musician Tyla, actress Dakota Fanning, TikTok Influencer Widsm, and more. 

• Thanks to disinformation, many Americans often mix up environmental problems, such as pollution and a hole in the ozone layer, according to scientists. Holding each other and businesses accountable for spreading the correct information are suggested tactics to combat this issue.

Industry Insights

• Hotels Above Par Reports 2024’s top travel trends are: luxury travel, last-minute travel, entertainment travel, global business travel, set-jetting, and less solo travel. 

• In a recent study by the Internova Travel Group, traveling for business is rising. The study notes that 85 percent of business travelers anticipate traveling the same amount or more in 2024, compared to 2023.

• In comparison to competitors, the US travel industry has struggled to recover its international visitor numbers post-Covid, due to staffing shortages, visa delays and political discord. A study from Euromonitor International displays how the US stands against 17 other countries.

• The European Commission has sent letters to airlines and national consumer protection authorities about potential misleading green claims, also known as “greenwashing”. The letters request that airlines submit proposals to resolve the issues and reach a series of agreed-upon changes. 

• Jamaica has reported a whopping 1.7 million visitors this year, an unprecedented amount. One million travelers have stayed overnight on the island while the remainder have been cruise passengers. 

• The state of Hawaii will begin to implement more regulations for short-term rentals, allowing each county to establish its own set of rules. Counties can ”control the time, place, manner, and duration of land uses” in order to counteract the housing crisis.

• Romer House Waikiki is set to be Oahu’s first adults-only hotel with 179 rooms starting at $195 per night. The 

• After multiple deadline pushbacks, Americans have one year remaining to get a REAL ID. Travelers will need this enhanced form of identification by May 7, 2025, to board flights. 

• Airbnb has launched a new line of rentals called ‘Icons’, most of its most over-the-top and lavish stays, including places like the Musée d’Orsay, Prince’s “Purple Rain” house, the only Blockbuster remaining in the U.S., and more.

• Hotels and short-term rental services are now opting for AI Chatbots to help respond to customers' complaints after reporting that it helps address all of their needs efficiently and in less time. 

• AI is now being used by airlines to save fuel by planning more effective routes and by providing better customer service through sophisticated chatbots. 

• Americans are shopping less, but still spending on travel and theme parks after Disney reports an 11% increase in revenue. 

• Disneyland has been approved to make its biggest expansion since its establishment. The city of Anaheim has approved for the company to build attractions where it once could only build parking lots and hotels. 

• Princess Cruises is launching its first cruises from San Juan, Puerto Rico in over a decade.  From October 2025 to March of 2026, the company plans to offer one-week voyages aboard the Grand Princess.

The Bad

• Apple pulled its “Crushed” iPad Pro commercial, where objects such as pianos, cans of paint, and a metronome are crushed in an industrial crusher to reveal the new device, after receiving backlash. Critics claim that the ad represents how technology is stealing human creativity and replacing it with tech  AI, amid its recent popularity.