Ever wonder how the experience at a hotel might transform your next hospital visit? Stowe Shoemaker is a legend in hospitality academia, and we discuss his new book Hospitable Healthcare: Just What the Patient Ordered! , co-written with Peter Yesawich. Hospitals are taking a closer look at how hotels approach care, service, and satisfaction, and a change in your hospital stay might come sooner than you think. https://hospitablehealthcare.com/ https://www.unlv.edu/news/expert/stowe-shoemaker...
Mar 19, 2024•26 min
The industry veteran and co-founder of Travel Again Advisory dives in to biggest question facing the travel industry. And can we please come up with an alternative to the term "revenge travel?" And what's going on with American Airlines, and the state of loyalty programs in general? https://www.travelagainadvisory.com
Mar 05, 2024•26 min
Today Hilton is comprised of 17 brands, with more than 5,900 properties in 114 countries around the world. Marriott International controls over 7,000 properties in 131 countries, including the Ritz-Carlton and St. Regis luxury brands. But...were they really competing with each other over the last century, or competing with the world? In this episode we're going extremely meta in a review of another podcast you should absolutely listen to. Also, we investigate the intriguingly named "bed wars" of...
Feb 13, 2024•26 min
Lise is Chief Program Officer of the National Park Foundation, leading program and partnerships teams responsible for delivering more than $89 million in grants and other support to national parks. We talk about the NPS' overall economic impact on communities and regions, keeping a healthy symbiosis between public and private interests, combatting overtourism, and hidden gems in the park system. National Park Foundation Leave No Trace Recreate Responsibly NPF Instagram...
Jan 30, 2024•25 min
The award-winning associate professor from Penn State's School of Hospitality Management talks about the possible (?) demise of those dreaded resort fees, how local economies depend on NCAA football weekends, and gives us the state of the union for the hotel industry heading into 2024. https://hhd.psu.edu/contact/breffni-noone https://www.investopedia.com/college-football-provides-an-economic-boost-7964994...
Jan 16, 2024•27 min
The chance to speak with someone who has visited 191 countries was just too good, which is why academic, entrepreneur, advisor to world leaders, and world traveler David Goldberg joins us. What are tips for traveling in a fraught world? What's the hairiest travel situation he's been in? What's an underrated country you should visit? Did he know from an early age he'd become an international man of mystery?
Oct 24, 2023•26 min
Amtrav CEO Jeff Klee sheds light on New Distribution Capability (NDC), a transformative schema that's changing the way we travel. NDC is reshaping the landscape of airfares, third-party technology, and personalization in unexpected ways. We also talk about Southwest's unique (and longstanding) stance on third-party sales, and how NDC elevates the importance of price assurance tools in hotel distribution. https://www.amtrav.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/amtrav/
Oct 03, 2023•26 min
Are major hotel brands taking over the world? Does office attendance directly correlate to hotel occupancy? What's the worst day for occupancy at hotels? And how do you handle travel to places that have recently experienced a disaster? https://www.highatlasfoundation.org/
Sep 19, 2023•23 min
Summer may be winding down, but the road to adventure lives forever in our hearts. Or does it? People still take road trips, but where they go and why has changed drastically over the last 30 years, and the coming wave of EVs is going to alter our idea of a road trip even more. So, do gas prices matter at all? Do sky-high airfares impact our willingness to sit in a car for 20 hours? Did roadside hotels see a post-pandemic dip or boost in summer occupancy? What's the worst state to drive to? And ...
Sep 05, 2023•24 min
How exactly to airline loyalty programs work, and is there any way to game the system? Credit cards play a huge factor, but do any of them give you the edge? We use American Airlines as our case study example of how plane perks and credit cards are so intertwined. The more you know: https://cwsi.net/aa.htm https://viewfromthewing.com/trumps-team-discloses-they-violate-airline-rules-use-throwaway-ticketing-site-skiplagged-for-airfare/ RocketMiles.com https://lpcalculator.com/#/landing...
Aug 22, 2023•25 min
Hotel data people: prepare for enlightenment as we sit down with Jan Freitag, CoStar's National Director of Hospitality Analytics. How does 2024 look? Why is occupancy still still trailing 4% below pre-pandemic levels? What data sources does he use? What's his new podcast about? Is he actually a wizard who can predict the future? YES. News you can use: https://www.costar.com/ https://str.com/ https://www.trade.gov/data-visualization/apisi-92-monitor https://www.hatchshowprint.com/ https://www.la...
Aug 07, 2023•20 min
Aaron is the Executive Director of must-see destination The Neon Museum Las Vegas, a space dedicated to collecting, preserving, studying and exhibiting iconic Las Vegas signs. We talk about pushing the boundaries of a traditional museum experience, preserving history in a town that embraces demolition, and the mysterious red button in Siegfried and Roy's mansion. https://www.neonmuseum.org/ https://www.duckduckshed.com/ https://www.instagram.com/theneonmuseumlasvegas/...
Jul 25, 2023•28 min
Wait, the Intercontinental is related to Pan Am? Holiday Inn really came from a movie? Motel 6 was (briefly) $6 a night? Doubletree was just because the land surveyed had two trees on it? Jeff and Matt explore the naming origins of hotels big and small. The more you know: https://www.panam.org/about/606-across-the-pacific-film https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/holiday-inn-70th-anniversary/index.html
Jul 11, 2023•22 min
Does Taylor Swift really affect hotel prices? Which airport has the longest security wait times? Are international travelers favoring the east coast more than the west coast? Should you buy trip insurance? Is there really a hotel designed specifically for pilots and flight crews? Are plane tickets radically more expensive this year? Let's find out.
Jun 28, 2023•28 min
Dave is an award-winning professor, author, and hospitality legend, and he's the recipient of the 2023 Revenue Optimization Educator of the Year award from The Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI). We talk about what NOT to do in a downturn, whether promotions actually work, the reality around loyalty programs, and advice he gives soon-to-be graduates.
Jun 22, 2023•29 min
Dan is Director of Operations for the Andaz West Hollywood, perhaps the most storied rock and roll hotel in history. We talk about the debaucherous past of what was formerly known as the "Riot Hyatt" on the Sunset Strip, the growing focus on wellness in hospitality, what to do when celebrities walk through the lobby, and mysterious campsites of the Old West. https://www.hyatt.com/andaz/laxss-andaz-west-hollywood https://www.newidea.com.au/andaz-west-hollywood-hotel-review https://www.miravalreso...
Jun 08, 2023•24 min•Season 2Ep. 12
This week's No Show is with the one and only Susan Barry , Hive Marketing Queen Bee and host of the superb hospitality pod Top Floor . Together we live, we laugh, we grow ... and we learn. About what? How there's oversupply and "underdemolishment" in certain markets, secret cash stashes in hotel rooms, marauding parrots. The usual. https://www.topfloorpodcast.com https://www.hive-marketing.com...
May 24, 2023•38 min
Endless Events founder Will Curran tells us about the next "Jarvis" leap forward for virtual assistants, how that's going to help travelers, and how events are going to have to evolve over the next 5 years if they want to stay relevant. Also, will humans still sit at the concierge desk? And what's the most underrated city to hold an event? Endless Events #EventProfs Community Event Tech Podcast Flighty app...
May 09, 2023•25 min
Endless Events founder Will Curran has been thinking a lot about how technology will change how and why we get together. The robots are coming, for sure, and they will reshape the process of event planning, the way we network with people, the vacation choices we make, the process of booking trips, and ... well ... pretty much everything else. Endless Events #EventProfs Community #EventIcons Event Brew Event Tech Podcast AISIS - The Lost Tapes...
May 02, 2023•33 min
Canna-tourism generated $17B+ last year, and a wave of state legalization means that number will only get higher. Brooke is the owner of Green Bonnet Pharms in Oklahoma, a complete vertically integrated cannabis business from seed to smoke, and she takes us through the challenges and opportunities in a travel sector primed for growth (and green). https://www.greenbonnetco.com/ https://www.instagram.com/greenbonnetpharms/ https://www.budandbreakfast.com/ https://www.instagram.com/campcana/...
Apr 20, 2023•32 min
Once the ultimate hotel perk, the minibar was the symbol of a boozier, jet settier time - the ultimate ridiculous convenience for a ridiculous price. Today, minibars have become empty refrigerators. What happened? And are they truly dead? Could they be resurrected in an era of food delivery and streamlined costs?
Apr 05, 2023•22 min
Ned is a hotel industry veteran and principal of Grill Ventures International , and he talks with us about the past, present, and future of breakfast buffets. Also, what's wrong with coffee stations? And is the "grab and go" the future of hotel food? Ned also makes special mention of the Express Start project's initiator and "owner," Jenifer Zeigler; extraordinary leadership (and hard work) was demonstrated continuously by Julie Baldwin, Gary Swanson, Ed Sellers (Royal Cup), Lisa Lang, Core Conc...
Mar 22, 2023•27 min•Season 2Ep. 6
Why do you only get one luggage rack in your hotel room? Why can't pools stay open longer? What's the best compact suitcase for overhead compartments? What outdoor brands should partner up with hotels? Burning questions, spicy answers! Plus one of our predictions about hotel partnerships actually came true.
Mar 08, 2023•25 min
Ok, no more messing around. Travel expert Samir Bhatnagar tells us about getting compensated for delayed European flights, skipping ATM fees around the world, the best airline pajamas, the future of airport lounges, taxi tips when abroad, and the most useful travel apps. Stuff we mentioned: https://www.aerolopa.com https://www.rome2rio.com https://www.forbes.com/advisor/credit-cards/travel-rewards/eu-261/ https://thepointsguy.com/credit-cards/american-express-platinum/...
Feb 21, 2023•37 min
We got going on hacks and could not stop. TSA lines, travel pants, airport lounges, bandanas, detergent pods ... there are so many ways to make your trip easier, cheaper, and much more pleasant. Stuff we mentioned: https://sudshare.com https://www.hydroflask.com/32-oz-wide-mouth https://www.mollyjogger.com/products/ccc-legacy-bandana https://seatosummit.com/collections/dry-bags https://www.chase.com/personal/credit-cards/education/rewards-benefits/a-guide-to-chase-sapphire-reserve-benefits...
Feb 08, 2023•23 min
Boutique and lifestyle hotels are everywhere now. Why? And how do you define "boutique," exactly? And are we headed towards a world where every hotel is a lifestyle brand? What are lifestyle hotel brands you should check out? We'll answer these questions! Links: https://www.graduatehotels.com/ https://www.piaule.com/ https://www.21cmuseumhotels.com/ https://www.sbe.com/hotels/mondrian/park-avenue
Jan 10, 2023•24 min
What's our favorite travel statistic of the year? Our favorite travel tool? The most gratifying travel news? The most interesting corporate acquisition? The dumbest buzzword? Season 2 kicks off with a snappy roundup of the year that was.
Dec 19, 2022•20 min
Hopper's Nima Vaez and Tucker Holland drop in to tell us what's happening with "the world's fastest-growing mobile-first travel marketplace." Splashy new partnerships, machine learning, and fintech solutions are part of it, but what's the secret sauce?
Oct 04, 2022•26 min
Vegas literally defines itself as an experience, but is it selling something people want? As implosion comes for the casino icons of the 80s and 90s, our collective sense of what makes a satisfying user experience is changing. Is Vegas capturing the right “UX” of the moment, or just going through the motions? Is the architectural and experiential design of the town still, what’s the word … fun?
Sep 20, 2022•24 min
Part 2 of our interview with Matt Cornelius, EVP at Airports Council International - North America gets into the real nitty-gritty: how exactly do airports make money? How do dominant carriers affect the cities they're based in? And, most important, what's the best way to board an airplane?
Aug 16, 2022•25 min
