Sarah Kopit

In Saudi Arabia, tourism is now geopolitics. By hosting a historic UN Tourism vote and calling on the U.S. to rejoin the organization, Riyadh is positioning itself as both the industry’s banker and its broker.

AlUla isn’t just selling sunsets anymore — it’s pitching investors on a future with a self-sustaining tourism and film economy. Think fewer subsidies, more Six Senses — and maybe even its own White Lotus.

Non-core expansion. Rewired distribution. Live public-policy experiments. This year’s Power Rankings spotlight the leaders taking the biggest risks in travel, staking cash, reputation, and time on moves they can’t easily unwind. The next 12 months will reveal who placed smart bets — and who just rolled the dice.

The travel industry could get a nice boost from lower rates: Think more deals, more investment, and more spending by travelers.

Airbnb is hiring an engineer for an AI-powered natural language search product. If the tech delivers, it could create new creative pressure in shaping how people choose where to go and stay.

“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.