Hilton Worldwide

Results Are In: Corporates Held The Line On Negotiated 2019 Hotel Rates, Tripbam Clients Did Better

With another annual contracting season mostly in the rear view, the three largest travel management companies reported modest increases in their clients’ negotiated corporate hotel rates for 2019. At properties in North America, the average contracted rate is up around 1 percent from 2018. Tripbam CEO Steve Reynolds said his clients secured corporate rates that averaged…

A Few Minutes With ECPAT’s Michelle Guelbart

Jay Campbell last week met with ECPAT director of private sector engagement Michelle Guelbart to discuss the organization’s mission to fight sexual exploitation of children, sex trafficking and labor trafficking. On the 10-minute recording playable below, Guelbart talks about ECPAT’s Tourism Child-Protection Code of Conduct, recent U.S. federal legislation partly modeled after it, how the issue makes…

With Success Stories Piling Up, Industry Seeks Common Virtual Payment Processes

San Diego – Industry players are working to smooth out the rough spots in virtual payment for managed travel. Even without commonality across all the players, many travel program managers are finding the benefits of virtual payment too good to pass up. Reducing fraud, streamlining reconciliation and making things easier for travelers without corporate plastic…

The Year In Polls: Despite Irritations, Business Travelers Are Happy

Travel management’s top priority for a long time was cost control. Now, duty of care and traveler safety are front and center. Traveler satisfaction continues to rank a bit lower (1, 2). Nevertheless, corporate travelers seem to be a pretty satisfied bunch, at least according to 2017 industry research. It sounds counter-intuitive. Business travel is grueling. The list…

Substantial Progress On Gender Balance Eludes Business Travel Professionals

EasyJet last month took heat for a gender pay disparity that it attributed to the preponderance of males among its pilots. The company also is paying its incoming CEO more than his female predecessor. If only such discrepancies were unique to easyJet. Throughout the travel industry, women remain under-represented in executive ranks and boardrooms. In travel management,…

New Hotel Cancel Policies Not ‘Fine’ By Customers, But Greater Negotiated Value Offers Silver Lining

The reception to some hotel chains’ new 48-hour cancellation rules has been “perfectly fine,” according to Hilton Worldwide CEO Christopher Nassetta. “Nobody likes incremental restrictions on the flexibility of reservations, but I think most customers understand that we’ve got a need to manage our inventory and avoid walking people,” said Marriott International CEO Arne Sorenson. “As a…

IHG, Marriott Develop Account-Specific Sustainability Reports

Measuring lodging’s environmental impact is less straightforward than for air travel or car rental. All three contribute to a business trip’s carbon footprint, but hotels also use lots of water and electricity, and deal with a lot of trash. When deciding which properties to work with, most companies don’t consider environmental data. Many, though, ask…

End of content

End of content