Sarah Kopit

“So very painful" sums up how many travel leaders are feeling on the first major milestone of the second Trump administration.

President Donald Trump’s flurry of executive orders signals a potentially turbulent era for the travel industry. From tightened border controls to environmental rollbacks, these early moves could reshape U.S. tourism. 

Skift’s new Climate Hub will spotlight real advances in travel sustainability. By pairing solutions-based journalism with private backing from Intrepid Travel, this initiative will hold the industry accountable and separate genuine progress from hollow rhetoric.

In 2024, tourism pivoted to Live Tourism, with travelers chasing events and moments over destinations. Emotional, communal experiences dominated itineraries, transforming how brands package, promote, and deliver travel.

Anguilla is a small island with a big secret. It owns one of the most lucrative pieces of digital real estate in the world: the .ai domain. Now that ChatGPT brought artificial intelligence mainstream, it holds the potential to transform the island's tourism economy – and its future.

When everything can be clicked, streamed or viewed online, it's the in-real-life-only moments that travelers now crave. From mega concerts to meteor showers, these events will be the driving force in travel in 2025. It’s the age of Live Tourism.

When the cameras are off and PR teams aren’t hovering nearby, what do travel industry CEOs and executives truly think about the prospect of Donald Trump returning to the presidency? We asked — and they didn’t hold back. 

As global temperatures soar, cooler climates are calling. Next year, ‘North’ will be more than a direction; it’s a destination. 

Skift is honored to present the latest installment of our Generation Next series – this time dedicated to spotlighting remarkable women leaders shaping travel in the Middle East and North Africa

Space tourism is no longer a fever dream of wonky scientists and starry-eyed visionaries. It’s real and it’s here, a fledgling economic powerhouse that’s still in its awkward adolescence – clumsy, unpredictable but filled with potential.