The old boys network is still as strong as can be in online travel and elsewhere. It shows up in several ways, although it was far from a decisive factor, in the pending Vacasa SPAC deal. But those decades-old ties sure didn't hurt, either.
Look for Expedia's vacation rental unit, Vrbo, to keep gaining market share in geographies where it is already strong. But the brand hasn't always been nimble, and it may be missing out opportunities.
Travel companies increasingly looked to go public via SPACs this year, but the exuberance might be short-lived as a slowdown is likely in the U.S. Regulators are already looking into the explosion of activity.
It's a dire warning from one of the sector's most experienced founders and investors — but just don’t talk about trends until 2023, HomeAway's Carl Shepherd made a point to add.
The vacation rental sector is still pretty fragmented with plenty of single destination specialists still around. Awaze, with its private equity backing, wants to change this.
Expedia Group doesn't intend to hoard piles of cash for a rainy day. The company purports to favor share repurchases over acquisitions, all things being equal, but if a rainmaker of a deal comes along, then Expedia may pounce.
With so many hotel rooms in the pipeline, a turnaround of slower revenue-per-room growth in New York City is not expected until after 2020. It's a classic supply-and-demand problem, making it a delicate balance to get pricing power back in a city where tourism remains hot.