Travel

Updates on travel industry trends, tourism, and economic impact.

Travel
US government travel takes a dip, says United's CFO
Despite steady travel demand, United Airlines said travel from the United States government has slowed down after President Donald Trump took office last month. United Airline’s chief financial officer, Mike Leskinen told a Barclays industry conference on Wednesday (Thursday AEDT) that government travel “has [had] fall off here, post-inauguration”. According to a United Airlines spokesperson, the travel government sector makes up around 2% of United Airlines’s revenue. Last year the airline brought it around US$52 billion in passenger revenue and Leskinen said other demand is helping to make up for the shortfall. Leskinen said strong international and leisure travel demand continues to outshine domestic demand. This comes as Trump and Elon Musk have vowed to cut costs in the administration, with thousands of government workers being laid off oroffered buyouts, asunemployment spikes in Washington. Many of Trump and Musk’s attempts have been met with pushback from judges, unions anddemocrats with the Trump administration evenattempting to rehire some of its staff. Despite this, some government areas have been hit hard with the layoffs, like the Department of Homeland Security, where 400 jobs have been slashed.
Travel
CTD jumps on prospect of strong 2H & FY26 upside
Shares in Corporate Travel Management (ASX: CTD) were trading around 10% higher at the open after the corporate travel specialist posted a better than expected 1H FY25 result with A&NZ and U.S. segments beating estimates by 19% and 10% respectively. While the group posted a 42% slide in first-half statutory profit on the back of lower revenues from Europe (EU), the market appears to be more focused on future growth prospects. The group has flagged earnings growth for the 2H of FY25 and FY26. Overall, the FY25 earnings guidance was downgraded by 2.3% against consensus estimates; and based on RBC Capital Markets analysis, indicative targets provided for FY26 earnings imply a 6% upgrade to consensus expectations for that year. Jamie Pheoris, managing director reassured investors today that rest of the world (RoW) remains on track for 10% revenue growth on the previous period, while earnings margin is expected to be 27.5% for the full year, up 450bps on the previous period. Strong earnings growth This implies strong earnings growth of 35% for the full year and the group has flagged North America (NA) as being the biggest contributor to 2H results as the momentum in the region continues. Performance in A&NZ and NA
Travel
Southwest airlines greatly reduces its workforce
Southwest Airlines has announced a reduction in its workforce to create a leaner and more agile organisation as part of its transformational plan. The reduction is focused almost entirely on corporate overhead and leadership positions, with the reduction of around 1,750 employee roles, representing 15% of corporate positions. In their announcement, Southwest Airlines said eleven leadership positions, including Vice President and above, will also be eliminated as part of the restructuring. Southwest president and CEO, Bob Jordan said the separations will not begin until late April. “Separations do not begin until late April. Until then, most Employees who are notified of their displacement will not work but will continue to receive their salary, benefits, and bonus, if eligible,” he said. Jordan also said the changes will focus on maximising efficiencies and reducing costs, in the company's most comprehensive overhaul in its 53 history. “We must ensure we fund the right work, reduce duplicative efforts, and have a lean organisational structure that drives clarity, pace, and urgency,” he said. “This is a very difficult and monumental shift, and I arrived at this decision after careful and thorough reflection, kn
Travel
ACCC proposes cooperative conduct between Virgin, Qatar
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is proposing to grant authorisation to Virgin Australia and Qatar Airways to allow them to engage in cooperative conduct under an integrated alliance for five years. This deal could make travelling between Australia, the Middle East and Europe easier and eventually cheaper. If approved, the agreement would introduce new weekly return services between Doha, Perth, Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne operated by Qatar Airways aircraft and crew under a ‘wet lease’ agreement. “We consider that the proposed cooperative conduct would likely result in several public benefits including providing enhanced products and services for air travellers which would include increased choice of international flights, with additional connectivity, convenience and loyalty program benefits for consumers,” ACCC Commissioner Anna Brakey said. The ACC is currently seeking feedback on its draft determination before making a decision. The ACCC granted interim authorisation to Virgin Australia and Qatar Airways on 29 November to enable them to commence marketing and selling the new Australia-Doha services, A number of interested parties have raised concerns with the ACCC that the proposed
Travel
Melbourne Airport breaks record number of travellers
Melbourne Airport in Victoria has seen a record breaking number of people flying in this month. January was the busiest month in history for the airport, as a record 3,393,977 passengers welcomed through the terminals. This broke the previous record from December 2019 by more than 70,000 passengers. The Friday of 24 January - before the Australia Day long weekend and Australian Open final in Melbourne - marked the busiest single day in over five years, as 122,751 people travelled through the airport and more than 23,000 of them were international visitors.Credit: Melbourne AirportVictoria's Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events and Chief Executive of Melbourne Airport Lorie Argus both went to the airport on Monday to mark the milestone. “Since the Australian border reopened in 2021, we’ve been working closely with the Victorian government to rebuild international airline capacity into Melbourne, and we’re now seeing the benefits,” Argus said. "“When Melbourne Airport’s arrival halls are busy, Melbourne’s restaurants and cafes are busy, our hotels are busy and Victoria’s tourism industry is busy, which is great for employment and the state economy."

Travel
UN Tourism celebrates Global Tourism Resilience Day
The United Nations is marking Global Tourism Resilience Day, hoping to boost sustainable and adaptable tourism development worldwide. U.N. Tourism has said it seeks to promote environmental preservation and economic growth through tourism, particularly in developing countries. Its annual conference on resilient tourism will be held this week. The day “aims to emphasiSe the need to foster resilient tourism development to deal with shocks, taking into account the vulnerability of the tourism sector to emergencies,” according to the U.N. “It is also a call for action for Member States to develop national strategies for rehabilitation after disruptions, including through private-public cooperation and the diversification of activities and products.” Global Tourism Resilience Day was first adopted in 2023. An International Year of Sustainable and Resilient Tourism will be celebrated in 2027, the U.N. said in 2024. International tourism returned to pre-pandemic levels last year, the U.N.’s World Tourism Barometer reported in January. The annual Global Tourism Resilience Conference and Expo will be held in Negril, Jamaica from 17-19 February. Discussions will focus on building tourism resilience through new technolog
Travel
Short-term visitor arrivals, resident returns on the rise
The latest release from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) on Overseas Arrivals and Departures, dated 14 February 2025, reveals significant trends in international travel. In December 2024, Short-term visitor arrivals: 945,280 – an increase of 7.8% on one year earlier Short-term resident returns: 823,000 – an increase of 11.3% from one year earlier Total arrivals: 1,853,030 – an increase of 8.7% from one year earlier Total departures: 2,262,020 – an increase of 11.6% from one year earlierCredit: ABSThese statistics report on international border crossings rather than people. Most data in this releaseare rounded to the nearest 10. As a result, sums of components may not add exactly to totals. For visitor arrivals to Australia in December 2024: A total of 945,280 short-term trips were recorded, an increase of 68,420 compared with the corresponding month of the previous year. The number of trips was 12.3% lower than the pre-COVID level in December 2019. New Zealand was the largest source country, accounting for 14% of all visitor arrivals. This surge in both arrivals and departures indicates a robust recovery in international travel, likely driven by the easing of pandemic-related restrictions and the resumption
Travel
Virgin Australia pet-friendly flights to take off soon
Virgin Australia has confirmed that it will introduce its long-awaited pet-friendly flights soon. After announcing the flights last year, Virgin initially said it would take 12 months to get regulatory approval for the pet-friendly flights following a change in the Civil Aviation Safety Authority regulations. However, aVirgin Australia spokesperson told 9news.com.au that it's taking longer than expected. "We have been working hard alongside regulators, industry partners and stakeholder groups to ensure we can offer a compliant, safe and comfortable experience for guests travelling with or without a pet," the spokesperson said. "Due to the new nature of this service in Australia, the approval process is taking longer than anticipated. "Innovation is at the heart of everything we do at Virgin Australia and we look forward to updating travellers on a launch date for our highly-anticipated pets in cabin services soon." The airline is preparing a Pet Travel Guide containing tips and suggestions for travelling with pets before trialling selected flights to gather feedback on the flights. The pet friendly flights will have two rows designated for passengers travelling with pets in the economy seats only, the total weigh
Travel
Celebrating 20 years of Google Maps
On 8 February 2005, Google Maps was brought into our lives after being co-founded by Stephen Ma and Noel Gordon in a Sydney apartment. Initially naming themselves Where 2 Technologies, it has been disclosed thatUS$66 million was laid out in a combination of chas, future performance bonuses, shares and options for four small acquisitions, including Where 2. Adjusting for stock splits in 2004, when Where 2 was acquired, Alphabet shares were worth around US$2 and at the time of writing, are trading at $187.07. Google Maps now lists 250 million businesses and places, has over 500 million users who contribute information, like reviews and 100 million updates are made every day. To celebrate the milestone, Google has published a list of thetop 20 most discovered places in Australia in different categories. The place with the most reviews and a 4.64 average rating is the “Most-reviewed visitor attraction”, Darling Habour in Sydney with over 58,000 reviews. Australia’s “Most-reviewed park”, WA's Kings Park and Botanic Garden earned itself a 4.79 star rating with over 26,000 reviews. The most reviewed places of other categories include: Most reviewed Indian restaurant: Dosa Hut Indian Restaurant, Harris Park, NSW (14.