Rafat Ali

Emerging from this mix of pulling away and drawing close, for the silent traveler and travel brands, are new models and approaches for both customer relations and local discovery.

Some of the more enlightened travel media companies are going beyond the flashy, advertiser-driven media packages, AFAR is one of them.

This is arguably our most original contribution to the world of travel since Skift launched, and we're excited to share it with the world: A new model to look at the new generation of travel consumer, and opportunities for travel brands to target them.

While it is exciting to see the consolidation happening in the online travel booking space, the lack of new scaled startups to challenge the biggies remains a worry for anyone. And possibly consumers as well.

Skift Global Forum is the first conference focused on top strategists, technologists, and marketers in travel, the people creating the future of travel in 2014 and beyond. Come join us in New York City on October 9th!

Can a touch screen and on-ship Wi-Fi make cruisers feel connected? We're skeptical.

Overall, travelers today are looking to travel with friends and family and use local firms in the destination they’re going to.

2014 is turning out to be a consolidation year, with big getting bigger. But there is lots of interesting jostling beyond leaders, and that's where the action will be rest of the year. Airbnb's rise has been spectacular, and will continue to break through on the charts.

For brands, TravelByDrone is a great resource to see and understand the growing possibilities of using drones and aerial video is a variety of creative ways.

Expect to see Skift's level of insight into travel, now in a consumer-friendly package.