Sponsored

Spanning more than 150 pages of Skift Research data and analysis, the State of Travel report offers a new intelligence framework for understanding the $11 trillion travel industry and the shifts shaping consumers, commerce, operations, and experiences.

Capital One Travel built its business around how people actually travel. Its Premier and Lifestyle Collections bring that strategy to lodging, helping premium travelers navigate a growing range of options through more thoughtful discovery and curation.

Vacation ownership, also known as timeshare, may be enjoying a reputational lift with younger buyers. New research suggests Millennials and Gen Z are bringing fresh momentum to the category by seeing ownership as a flexible, high-value way to keep travel central to their lives.

AI is pushing hotel discovery earlier in the traveler journey, forcing commercial leaders to rethink who owns visibility, how to measure success, and whether more budget should move upstream before demand reaches traditional booking channels.

Airlines are investing heavily in direct bookings, loyalty programs, and more flexible offer creation. But the bigger opportunity may depend on something more basic: knowing who travelers are, what communities they belong to, and how to recognize them in ways that build lasting relationships.

AI is quickly becoming part of the travel customer journey, but consumer confidence isn't keeping pace. A new report from Wunderkind examines why trust has become one of the biggest challenges facing AI-powered travel experiences.

Flexible financing is becoming more than a way to complete a travel purchase. For airlines and other travel brands, the next opportunity is using financing to support brand equity and profits.

Travel marketers have become experts at measuring campaign activity. The challenge now is connecting that activity to visitation, traveler value, and economic impact while campaigns are still running. AI-powered measurement can optimize campaigns for business outcomes, not just marketing metrics.

The affluent traveler's definition of luxury has shifted faster than most operators realize. Lindblad Expeditions is proof that the brands built around depth of experience and purposeful discovery are gaining a competitive edge.

The next five years in Saudi Arabia tourism will determine the global order of the travel industry for the next 50 years. Based on a new survey of over 400 travel executives, this new research explores five paths to sustainable success in travel and tourism investments across the Kingdom.

Explore top insights from Skift Data + AI Summit 2026 on AI strategy, agents, search, personalization and what it takes to scale AI in travel.

What happens when an AI assistant knows a traveler better than the brands competing for their business? At Skift Data + AI Summit 2026, industry leaders explored how AI is redefining personalization, trust, and the path to purchase.