The 17 Most Influential People in Travel of 2013

Travel isn't just about hotels, airlines, cruise ships, theme parks, and destinations. It's about the people who make these things work. And when it comes to people who make our work at Skift interesting, these 17 men and women helped shaped the travel news that made 2013 so exciting. They not only made mega mergers, smart social campaigns, and disruptive technologies happen, they set the bar for their competitors and imitators. Here they are, in no particular order. Travis Kalanick, CEO of Uber The smart, opinionated CEO has barreled through the ground transportation industry with all the delicacy of a rabid bull in a china shop. He's done such a masterful job performing for the media that few bother to question how big the opportunities really are in Uber-like ground transport. Kalanick takes on critics and customers with an "I'm right, you're wrong" approach that is refreshingly blunt, even when he's wrong. If more CEOs were like Kalanick, the industry would be even more fa