After failing to merge with Frontier Airlines and then blocked from merging with JetBlue by the Department of Justice, Spirit Airlines this week  ended up in bankruptcy. But the airline says travelers shouldn’t worry; “you can continue to book and fly now, and in the future.”

The biggest US budget airline filed a Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition after losing more than $2.5 billion since 2020 and facing debt of more than $1 billion in 2025 and 2026.

Spirit’s 90 daily flights from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport and Miami International Airport will continue as usual, the company said, and travelers “can [continue] to book and fly without interruption and can use all tickets credits and loyalty points as normal.”

The company’s 21,000 employees and all their vendors also will continue to receive regular paychecks.

In an open letter to customers, Spirit said, “We expect to complete this process in the first quarter of 2025 and emerge even better positioned to deliver the best value in the sky. Other airlines that are operating successfully today have undertaken a similar process. For more information about our financial restructuring, please visit www.SpiritGoForward.com. We’re grateful you continue to choose Spirit for your travel needs. As we head into the holiday season and beyond, we look forward to welcoming you on board again soon.”

“I am pleased we have reached an agreement with a supermajority of both our loyalty and convertible bondholders on a comprehensive recapitalization of the company, which is a strong vote of confidence in Spirit and our long-term plan,” said Spirit president and CEO Ted Christie said in a statement. A new $350 million equity investment from bondholders plus $300 million in other financing “will materially strengthen our balance sheet and position Spirit for the future.”

There’s an interesting new luxury option in the UK next summer, as Belmond rolls out its newest sleeper train, The Britannic Explorer.

Debuting in July 2025, the train offers fine British gastronomy, an onboard wellness suite and exclusive access to unique sites as they ride the rails on a leisurely journey through the British countryside. Its 18 cabins include three Grand Suites and 15 Suites.

The train’s “elegant interiors with unmistakable British charm” are being designed by London-based Albion Nord, while its menu is being created by Chef Simon Rogan, whose restaurants (including L’Enclume) hold eight Michelin stars and two Michelin Green stars. The afternoon tea, lunch and dinner menus will highlight seasonal, sustainable ingredients, sourced locally to showcase Britain’s diverse regions.

The Britannic Explorer will depart London, offering three different three-night journeys through Cornwall, The Lake District and Wales. Optional guided excursions in each destination include a private tour and dinner at Hauser & Wirth Somerset and on-site restaurant Da Costa, guided hikes through Wales, wild swimming in the Lake district and a visit to Tremenheere Sculpture Gardens in Cornwall. In the evening, passengers can mingle in the train’s botanically-inspired Bar.

Guests also can combine routes, pairing The Cornwall or Lake District routes, which run from Friday to Monday, with a Wales trip from Monday to Thursday. And Belmond’s boutique hotel, The Cadogan, just 20 minutes from London’s Victoria station, can offer a seamless pre- or post-rail stay. For those traveling through the Cotswolds on the Lake District route, the Britannic Explorer offers an exclusive stop at the Michelin two-star manor house hotel and restaurant, Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons, A Belmond Hotel, Oxfordshire.

Gary Franklin, Belmond’s Vice President of Trains and Cruises, said the train will “further enhance Belmond’s global portfolio of market-leading luxury rail experiences. The Britannic Explorer offers something truly unique; an opportunity to discover the rugged Cornish coastline to Snowdonia’s untamed National Park and the vast expanses of the Lake District like never before.”

Belmond’s fleet of luxury trains also includes the British Pullman in England and the Royal Scotsman in Scotland.

A three-night itinerary, including excursions, meals, wine and alcoholic beverages on board the Britannic Explorer starts at £11,000 based on a double cabin. For more information or to book, visit the web page here.

Viking this week placed a bet on the Middle East, officially naming two new river ships, the Viking Hathor and the Viking Sobek, in Luxor, Egypt.

Following its cost-conscious tradition, Viking repurposed the design of the existing Viking Aton and Viking Osiris, following the pattern exactly in these two new ships. All four vessels will carry a maximum of  82 guests in 41 staterooms, on a 12-day Pharaohs & Pyramids itinerary.

Despite troubles in the Middle East, the neutral Egypt expects about 15.3 million tourists in 2024, up 5% over 2023, according to Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Sherif Fathy. And it’s a fascinating destination for tourists. Just this week, an Egyptian-American mission unearthed a 4,000-year-old tomb near the Temple of Hatshepsut on the West Bank of the Nile in Luxor.

Viking’s itinerary begins with three nights in Cairo and a flight to Luxor before the eight-day roundtrip cruise on the Nile, including visits to the tomb of Nefertari in the Valley of the Queens and the tomb of Tutankhamen in the Valley of the Kings, plus excursions to the Temple of Khnum in Esna, the Dendera Temple complex in Qena, the temples at Abu Simbel and the High Dam in Aswan, and a village elementary school.

Guests can add Pre and Post Extensions, such as a five-day British Collections of Ancient Egypt extension that begins in London, where guests will visit the British Museum’s Egyptian Collection before it opens to the general public, and then the collection of Egyptian antiquities in the home and personal museum of Sir John Soane.

Viking plans to add four more ships—growing its Nile fleet to 10 altogether—over the next two years. Viking Amun and Viking Thoth will debut in 2025, and Viking Sekhmet and Viking Ptah in 2026.

British Airways has canceled all 103 of its scheduled trips between London Gatwick and New York JFK from December 12, 2024, to March 25, 2025, citing delays in the delivery of Trent 1000 engines from Rolls-Royce. Other routes also are being affected, including flights to Kuala Lumpur, where service is being suspended until April of next year.

BA said it cannot be sure the engines will be delivered as scheduled and does not want to inconvenience travelers at the last minute. “We’re disappointed that we’ve had to make further changes to our schedule as we continue to experience delays to the delivery of engines and parts from Rolls-Royce – particularly in relation to the Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines fitted to our 787 aircraft,” it said in a statement.

BA normally flies one flight a day from Gatwick and eight from Heathrow. Passengers also can fly direct from New York to London on Air France, Delta, KLM, Virgin Atlantic, Jet Blue or Norse Atlantic.

Adding insult to injury, the British flag carrier also today announced that it will end its traditional three-course dining experience in business class, scrapping some appetizers and cutting the number of options for mains and desserts.

On departures after 9 pm, BA will offer customers a “goodnight” that no longer includes an appetizer and a set dessert rather than a choice, as well as paninis, soup and salads as the main course.

In addition, a new and lighter brunch menu will be served on flights departing between 8:30 and 11:29 pm.

With two cities hit by hotel worker walkouts this week, many travel advisors and meeting planners are holding their breath and praying for a settlement before their clients are affected.

In Boston, the nearly 700 employees of the Omni Parker House and Omni Boston Hotel at the Seaport began a strike that will last until their demands are met, according to UNITE HERE Local 26. They join more than 600 workers already on strike at the Hilton Boston Park Plaza and Hilton Boston Logan Airport.

Workers from other properties may join the strike at any time and for any duration, the union said, and strikers will staff picket lines outside the hotel entrances 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Seattle also is dealing with striking workers, but only until October 19, at the Hilton Hotel Seattle Airport and Hilton Seattle Airport & Conference Centre.

Meeting planners whose groups are headed to the affected properties “need to be in immediate touch with the GMs and CSMs of the hotels in which their meetings are contracted AFTER they check their contracts carefully to determine whether hotel worker strikes are covered under force majeure or other clauses,” meetings industry consultant Joan Eisenstodt told TRO. “Determine how the hotel will be staffed and if those attending and servicing your meetings (AV companies and other workers who may service your meeting or the hotel) will cross picket lines. Take nothing for granted.”

Across the country, more than 5,000 hotel workers are on strike at Hilton, Hyatt, Marriott, and Omni hotels, including front desk agents, housekeepers, bellhops and doormen, cooks and servers and bartenders. They are demanding higher wages and complaining their workloads have gotten out of hand due to Covid-era staff cuts.

Hotel strikes also continue in Honolulu, New Haven, Providence, San Diego, and San Francisco. The union is urging travelers not to eat, meet, or sleep at any hotel that is on strike.

Unite Here represents workers in hotels, casinos, and airports across the United States and Canada.

With lots of new attractions about to open and a boom in tourists carrying electronic devices, Mexico has done away with what is arguably its most unpopular policy, a tax on bringing more than one computer or tablet into Cancun.

“After almost a month of talks,” Governor Mara Lezama Espinosa posted on Facebook on Friday, Mexico will “eliminate the charge for bringing more than one computer or electronic tablets into your personal luggage, within the #Cancun International Airport, with the support of Mexican Customs” (https://fb.watch/vcWouT4KBJ/).

The change is effective immediately.

The tax has been listed on the Mexican government website for some time, apparently in an effort to discourage travelers from bringing in electronic devices and selling them tax-free. But media reports about the tax, which was applied only occasionally and seemingly out of the blue to unsuspecting random travelers, have been calling attention to it—and citing tourists charged $190 to bring in their iPad as well as their computer—for the past few weeks. (Perhaps our own story helped bring attention to the issue; see Bringing a Laptop and an iPad to Mexico Can Cost You Hundreds of Dollars | Travel Research Online!)

“This was an old franchise regulation that no longer aligns with these times of technology, home office, in addition to the key tourism sector who travel to our destination to attend conferences, conventions and professional meetings,” Lezama said. “As a result of various uncomfortable and inconvenient situations detected at customs in the Cancun International Airport which have affected our destination’s image such as not allowing international and domestic tourists, as well as residents, to bring more than one device be it computer, laptop or tablet, we visited the area and reviewed the criteria used to allow tourists through customs and thanks to the support and consideration of the Agencia Nacional de Aduanas de México (National Customs Agency of Mexico), we reviewed the procedure to reactivate the tourists flow through customs and eliminate this criteria.”

Apparently CocoCay isn’t the only destination that can offer cruisers a perfect day.

Royal Caribbean today announced the latest entry in the high-stakes sweepstakes for amazing private islands—this one in Mexico rather than on a Caribbean island.

Opening in 2027 in Mahahual (Quintana Roo, south of Cozumel), Perfect Day Mexico will add a little Mexican charm to the menu of pools with ocean views, a water park, and restaurants and bars that have proven so popular with Royal Caribbean guests.

Unlike the others, though, its position on land enables it to add a new transportation hub for guests to use to begin shore excursions or find a taxi to local attractions.

“Perfect Day Mexico will be a hallmark destination of Royal Caribbean vacations, bringing new adventures to the western Caribbean for itineraries sailing from the Gulf Coast markets like Texas and Florida,” the company said today in a printed press release that replaced a planned roundtable, likely canceled due to the approaching hurricane in Florida.

The first Perfect Day, at CocoCay, “has been a gamechanger for both our guests and our business,” said Royal Caribbean Group president and CEO Jason Liberty; it has consistently ranked as the line’s number-one destination.

Perfect Day Mexico will join the recently announced Royal Beach Club Cozumel, scheduled to open in 2026

The new Perfect Day will be built in collaboration with the local government and community, Royal Caribbean said, as part of the SEA the Future commitment to deliver responsible destinations that “sustain the planet, energize communities and accelerate innovation.”

Perfect Day at CocoCay in The Bahamas, meanwhile, continues to grow steadily since opening in 2019. It has since added an adults-only Hideaway Beach. Also on tap are the Royal Beach Club Collection in 2025, the Royal Beach Club Paradise Island in The Bahamas and Royal Beach Club Cozumel in 2026; and the reopening of Labadee, Haiti.

More details about Perfect Day Mexico and the vacation brand’s expanding destination lineup will be revealed in the coming months, the company said.

With no profit to show since Covid, Spirit Airlines is discussing a possible restructuring in preparation for declaring bankruptcy, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.

Citing “people who are familiar with the matter,” The Journal said Spirit has been talking bankruptcy since its failed merger with JetBlue Airways. The airline is struggling to compete with the big carriers, and was hard-hit when a recall of turbofan engines grounded many of its planes, including many that were supposed to fly to the new airport in Tulum, Mexico. Last month it furloughed 186 pilots.

As part of its efforts to enhance the bottom line, Spirit has been cutting flights and making changes to the services it offers. This summer it rolled out a premium “Go Big” fare class that offers a larger seat and early boarding, lifted its checked baggage limit from 40 to 50 pounds, and did away with change and cancelation fees.  Just this week it suspended nonstop service between Cleveland and Orlando, effective Nov. 5.

And still, it reported its 11th consecutive quarterly loss in August.

Breaking into a new country is never easy. Just ask AmaWaterways, which this week announced the delay of its industry-first river cruises in Colombia.

Originally scheduled to launch in November 2024 and then postponed to January 25, the new route down the Magdalena River now is being planned for March 2025.

It’s a complicated thing to work with local communities and officials to develop the infrastructure that will allow luxury excursions to “explore secluded areas rich in biodiversity, opening up parts of Colombia rarely seen by travelers.”

“Our journey here isn’t just about exploration; it’s about forging new paths for our guests while contributing to the growth and development of the region,” said AmaWaterways co-founder and executive vice-president Kristin Karst in a press release announcing the delay. “Economic growth, infrastructure development, and community empowerment are at the heart of what we do in Colombia.”

Exploring the Magdalena River region “was complicated, if not impossible. Our cruises are changing that, offering the seamless experience AmaWaterways is known for, while also providing exclusive access to culturally significant and often inaccessible destinations.”

Ama currently is planning two ships for the route, the 60-passenger AmaMagdalena and the 64-passenger AmaMelodia, which is on schedule for its planned June 2025 launch. They will sail seven-night itineraries between Cartagena and Barranquilla.

When the ships do launch, the plan is to highlight the local culture through tastings of tropical fruit, artisanal chocolate and rum, and Colombian coffee; visits to indigenous communities; and shore excursions to “secluded natural wonders that are often out of reach.”

As if it doesn’t already cost enough to visit Disney World, this month will usher in a number of price increases at Mickey’s Florida home.

Guests using the Lightning Lane Single Pass system will see the cost of four of the most popular attractions increase by $1-$3 per ride, in two stages, on October 18 and 21.

October 18 will bring the first round of price rises:

• Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at Magic Kingdom: $12
• TRON Lightcycle / Run at Magic Kingdom: $21
• Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind at EPCOT: $17
• Avatar Flight of Passage: $17

Those increases will be followed on October 21 to:

• Seven Dwarfs Mine Train: $14
• TRON Lightcycle / Run: $22
• Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind: $19
• Avatar Flight of Passage: $18

The price for Star Wars Rise of the Resistance remains at $25.

Lightning Lane Passes offer access to rides that are not included in the Lightning Lane Multi Pass (for details see Lightning Lane Pass Guide and FAQ.) The prices are based on dynamic pricing, so costs fluctuate based on expected crowd levels.

Getting into the park will be more expensive as well. Disney World already announced the first price increase in five years for its least expensive ticket, the one-day one-park entry, to $119 from $109, and as much as $200 in peak seasons, effective January 1.

New York – Take a deep breath, travel advisors. There’s no escaping a future that includes AI and NDCs—so prepare to embrace it. You’ll be glad you did.

That was the message—or at least the focus of the news—at Global Travel Collection’s Elevate conference in Manhattan last week. In a year when sales are booming, time is short, and good assistants are impossible to find, GTC says it has the answer: A unique AI system it is building in partnership with Microsoft. And on the airline front, both American and Delta promise NDC will make booking air easy and profitable.

“AI is going to support you, it’s not going to take your job,” said GTC product management director Casey Soto—and he should know. He’s spent the past eight months working with Microsoft on his passion project, to develop an artificial intelligence product designed to meet the specific needs of travel advisors, “something that is AI and makes sense for you to use,” he told the crowd on a panel about AI.

To that end, Soto has been “going to every corner of our business looking for information on everything from contracts to contacts,” adding more than 340,000 data points “so you can ask it a question and it will answer in natural language.”

Already, AI systems for travel advisors can take information and generate the next step, such as answering simple questions in a client email, sending out an RFP for a group contract, generating sample white-glove itineraries or sorting through the travel insurance options to highlight the ones that make the most sense. On the corporate side, clients are using AI to ensure travelers are booking in accordance with corporate policies and using preferred suppliers. The goal is always to find efficiencies for the advisor and give you back more time to make human connections with clients.

GTC is rolling out a redesigned travel advisor portal that will include a free six-month trial of atlas.internova.com, “a knowledge base of everything in travel.” You can ask it anything,” from “Who, should I call for IT support?” to “How can I book air without a GDS?”

NDC is coming, “you have no choice”

Addressing the airlines’ new distribution capability (NDC), Delta’s NY managing director Scott Jordan said NDC “is the vehicle that transforms how we sell and service. It’s broader than how we connect, it’s how we evolve the ecosystem.”

Delta is not looking to disrupt the GDSs, “but we need to display a better product so you see it more clearly,” he said. By the end of the year, it will offer an NDC product “not to force people but to offer a choice.” its development is being overseen by Delta’s head of sales support, who is focused on “things to make your job easier.”

NDC “is the future; you have no choice” Peter Vlitas, EVP of Partner Relations at GTC parent Internova Travel Group, said. “We’re going to have to go down this path.” But it will be worth the effort, allowing travel advisors to rebook customers quickly and easily when something goes wrong—and equally important, allowing the airlines to offer unique fares to their top-tier customers, such as Internova.

Princess Cruises has taken a step back—or a step forward, depending on how you look at it – when it comes to the price of water bottles onboard. Last week, with no warning, it tripled the price of a 12-pack of water from $7.09 to $24 (10 CAD to 32.40 CAD for Canadian guests).

On social media some lamented the big jump, calling it corporate greed, but others applauded the efforts of Princess and other travel suppliers to cut down on the use of plastics in the industry.

“I hope they are wearing masks because that’s daylight robbery,” said one member of the Prince Cruises Passenger Forum.

“I’m guessing they are trying to make up for some of the waste they are seeing as more and more people get packages that include unlimited water. I see half-finished and almost full bottles. Everywhere on cruise ships now,” explained another.

“They should raise it to $80 a case,” suggested a third.

There are other options for potable water, of course. Water in the cabin – on which Princess now has installed taps – is safe to drink, and guests can bring their own water bottles and fill them. It’s also permissible to bring up to 12 sealed, unopened 12-ounce cans or cartons of water or soda per passenger in your hand luggage.

Still, many guests have appreciated the convenience of pre-ordering water and having it delivered to their stateroom.

Kiss that option goodbye – or pay up for the privilege of polluting the planet and having someone else recycle all those bottles.

(Note: Princess Cruises did not reply to our request for a comment on this story.)

Record floods from Storm Boris, which have killed at least 21 people and flooded Vast swaths of Eastern Europe, now are impacting tour groups and river cruises on Europe’s second-largest river, the Danube River. Wildfires are spreading across Portugal. And Boris is headed for Italy.

Avalon Waterways has made changes to two cruise itineraries on the Danube and canceled two future cruises as a result of flooding. Travel advisor Gwen Kozlowski, president of Exeter International, tells TRO that her clients, scheduled to depart Budapest on Viking Jarl, instead were bussed to Vienna.

Intrepid Travel, on its website, reports that “very heavy rainfall across Central Europe since 14th September has resulted in flooding in a number of areas causing road closures and further transport disruption” in Austria, Czechia, Slovakia, Poland, Hungary, Slovenia, Romania and southeast Germany. Trips in Austria have been rerouted and minor changes have been made to itineraries in Czechia, Slovenia, and southeast Germany.

The UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), meanwhile, has issued a travel warning to UK travelers headed to Austria, Poland and the Czech Republic, and particularly to Vienna.

Italy, Croatia, Hungary and Slovakia are hunkering down for record rains starting today and continuing for the next few days; in Italy, the National Civil Protection Service has issued yellow alerts for nearly 50 regions, warning of the risk of storms, landslides and floods as two months’ worth of rainfall falls in the next three days.

The Danube continues to rise in Slovakia and Hungary, where the capital cities of Bratislava and Budapest are preparing for possible flooding. Austria has closed parts of the Danube for shipping traffic, and Croatia’s Meteorological and Hydrological Service, warning of an “extremely rare” rise, is prepared to put out flood barriers if necessary.

Got your paper passport and your Real ID-enhanced driver’s license in hand? It turns out you may not need them at all. Google Wallet soon will store a digital version of your passport in your phone, it said in a blog post late last week (New Google Wallet features for travelers and commuters (blog.google)), just as the TSA pushed back its Real ID requirement to 2027.

TSA PreCheck and CLEAR, along with new digital ID systems from Delta and United, seem to be proving that technology really does work as well as paper in identifying travelers.

“People are increasingly looking for ways to digitize everyday items — with one of the top requests being a digital ID. Last year we began rolling out the ability to save select state-issued digital IDs to Wallet. Starting soon, we’ll begin beta testing a new type of digital ID in Google Wallet, giving more people in more places a way to create and store a digital ID, now with a U.S. passport. This new ID pass works at select TSA checkpoints, saving you time and stress at the airport when you’re traveling domestically,” Google said.

The Google Wallet app is available for Android devices or online at wallet.google.com. (Apple has not yet announced an option for storing passports.)

To create a passport ID, users select the Google Wallet prompt, “Create an ID pass with your U.S. passport,” and then scan the security chip on the back of their passport and upload a selfie video to verify their identity. The digital ID then can be accessed using a fingerprint or passcode.

Meanwhile—and perhaps as a result—TSA proposed delaying Real ID enforcement from May 7, 2025, until 2027 (Federal Register :: Minimum Standards for Driver’s Licenses and Identification Cards Acceptable by Federal Agencies for Official Purposes; Phased Approach for Card-Based Enforcement). The Real ID Act of 2005 required US residents over 18 to present a passport or alternative government-issued ID, such as a Real ID-enhanced driver’s license, to board an airplane, even for a domestic flight.

The new proposal encourages travelers to have Real IDs by 2025, but will allow them to board without it until May 5, 2027.

The goal is to ensure that federal agencies “have appropriate flexibility to implement the card-based enforcement provisions of the REAL ID regulations after the May 7, 2025, enforcement deadline by explicitly permitting agencies to implement card-based enforcement in phases,” according to the proposal’s summary. “This rulemaking proposes that agencies may implement the card-based enforcement provisions through a phased enforcement plan if they determine it is appropriate upon consideration of relevant factors including security, operational feasibility, and public impact.”

In addition to Real ID-enhanced driver’s licenses, 11 US states issue digital IDs that are accepted at TSA security checkpoints in more than two dozen airports (see photo or go to Digital ID Map | Transportation Security Administration (tsa.gov)

Google Wallet already also can save transit tickets for many cities; it recently added Hamburg, Germany, and soon will include Taiwan and Hong Kong.

With a weekend strike looming, Air Canada has asked Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to intervene in its contract negotiations with the Air Line Pilots Association.

Talks with more than 5,000 pilots have failed to find common ground over the past 15 months. The government now can ask the Canada Industrial Relations Board to force arbitration, as it did last month, when Canada’s two largest railways locked out their employees.

According to the airline, the parties remain “far apart.” Unless an agreement is reached, either party may issue a 72-hour strike or lockout notice beginning on 12:01 a.m. ET Sunday, which would trigger the carrier’s three-day wind down plan, and a strike beginning on Thursday.

In an update issued Wednesday, Sept. 11, Air Canada said flights are operating normally and it would notify passengers of any impact to their flights ahead of their travel. Passengers can change their flights for free if they’re scheduled to travel during a potential strike.

At a news conference on Thursday, business leaders pressed the government to intervene, saying, “We cannot allow for even a single day of a strike given the consequences on our already very fragile economy.”

There’s a new airport, a new archeological site, and a new director of tourism for the Mexican Caribbean—and, for the first time in recent years, a PR agency to help them spread the word about why travelers should visit—and how travel advisors can help them get there.

“We’re launching a new marketing campaign around our new era of the Mexican Caribbean,” says Andres Martinez, the new director of the Tourism Promotion Council of Quintana Roo, on a Zoom with TRO. “And to me, the travel advisor channel is the best way to get knowledge about this nation to the end customer. As big and successful as we are, we also are complex, and we have a lot to say. And the best way to communicate is through travel advisors who have lived the destination.”

Topping the list of new things is the Ichkabal Archaeological Zone, an ancient Mayan city larger than Chichén Itzá’s Temple of Kukulcan, opening to the public this month. But there also are a host of culinary experiences, aquatic adventures, golf, and theme parks—not to mention two cruise ports that bring 7 million customers a year to the area.

The Tourism Council and its new agency, PTG Consulting, will be managing trade relations and arranging FAM trips. “It’s the first time we used an agency but we understand we have to reach travel advisors,” Martinez said. “I know it works, and I know it’s effective.”

Also new are non-stop flight routes from major US hubs to the new Tulum airport on American Airlines, JetBlue, Delta, United, and more; new hotels including  SHA Mexico, Costa Mujeres; Marriott Cancun, An All-Inclusive Resort; The Riviera Maya EDITION; Hotel Mousai Cancun; and Almare, a Luxury Collection Adult All-Inclusive Resort, Isla Mujeres

For more on the “new era” of tourism for the US market, see their recently launched experiential campaign (here on Instagram), and our TRO article, Mexico Takes the High Road, with Focus on Upscale Travelers and Their Travel Advisors | Travel Research Online.

Visit Florida’s decision to remove dozens of pages highlighting its LGBTQ-friendliness—including a landing page calling Florida beaches “a draw for people of all orientations, but especially appealing to a gay community looking for a sense of belonging and acceptance”—has stirred up Florida residents, the LGBTQ community and the media. And last week the attention forced its CEO to respond.

“It’s fairly simple,” said Dana Young at the annual Governors Conference on Tourism in Tampa last week. “Visit Florida is a taxpayer-funded organization and, as such, our marketing strategy, our materials and our content must align with the state.”

Visit Florida is a public-private partnership between the state of Florida and the state’s tourism industry, to which the state contributes about $50 million a year. But other states—and indeed, even parts of Florida—were happy to roll out their welcome mats to the LGBTQ community.

Colorado Governor Jared Polis, the first openly gay man elected governor in the United States, added this post to social media amid the controversy:

Hello gay tourists! Since Florida doesn’t want you, come on over to explore what Colorado has to offer! Though I tried the link just now and it doesn’t work).
In Colorado, we really don’t care about who you date we just appreciate you supporting our economy and spending money in our great stores and restaurants. And you’ll have a gay old time!”

Illinois posted (Your Official Guide to Illinois Travel | Enjoy Illinois):

Lack of love in the Sunshine State?
Come to Illinois
Plan your LGBTQIA adventure. Take notes, Florida.”

Even within Florida itself, FloridaKeys.com still has its LGBTQ-friendly section highlighted on the landing page The Florida Keys LGBTQ Vacations & Gay Key West (fla-keys.com, noting that Key West “is internationally known as a gay mecca, attracting more than 250,000 visitors to this top LGBTQ vacation spot that celebrates openness and pride — the entire destination is renowned for its welcoming and accepting attitude. ‘One Human Family’ became Key West’s official philosophy in 2000 — and was soon adopted by Monroe County, which encompasses the entire Florida Keys island chain.”

But many are put off by the state’s politics. Last year, several civil rights groups issued a travel advisory for Florida, calling its lawmakers “openly hostile toward African Americans, people of color and LGBTQ+ individuals.”

“Why harm the businesses that help your communities? The state is controlling who they want to come to the state by eliminating information of which the destinations were proud,” meetings consultant Joan Eisenstodt told TRO, noting that an estimated 1.4 million LGBTQI+ business owners contribute $1.7 trillion to the US economy annually, and the LGBTQI+ community spends more than $917 billion every year (https://www.forbes.com/…/lgbtqi-businesses-contribute…/) – about $9 billion of it in Miami-Dade.

Asia is a hot ticket these days in the luxury travel market—and Viking is meeting the demand in 2025 with six new itineraries in Japan, China, and Tibet.

The new itineraries are for 15 to 22 voyages from September to November 2025 on the Viking Yi Dun—formerly the Viking Sun. They will stop at such iconic destinations as Shanghai, Beijing, and Xi’an in China; Lhasa in Tibet (Xizang); and Osaka in Japan. The itineraries will continue to highlight rarely-seen destinations and ports in China to which only Viking has access.

“For centuries, these phenomenal destinations in Asia have inspired travelers with ancient history and rich culture,” said Viking chairman and CEO Torstein Hagen, “and we look forward to introducing more of Asia to them in 2025.”

(And indeed, Virtuoso this month reported sales of China itineraries by its luxury travel advisors are up 146%, and Japan sales are 108%.)

New Asia Voyages in 2025 are:

• Jewels of Japan & China (15 days; Beijing to Tokyo) — Including Qingdao, Shanghai, Jeju, South Korea, Miyazaki, and Mt. Fuji, with overnights in Hiroshima and Osaka.
• Classic China Discovery (20 days; Hong Kong to Beijing) — Includes the Great Wall of China; Xi’an’s Terra; and overnights in Shenzhen, Shanghai, Qingdao, Xi’an and Beijing.
• Pearls of Japan & China (22 days; Tokyo to Beijing) — Includes Mt. Fuji; overnights in Osaka and Hiroshima; Miyazaki, Jeju, Shanghai, Xi’an, and Beijing.
• Gems of China & Japan (22 days; Beijing roundtrip) — Includes Qingdao, Shanghai, Jeju, Miyazaki, and Mt. Fuji. Included land package to Beijing and Xi’an.
• 2025 Wonders of China  (22 days; Beijing roundtrip) — Includes Shanghai, Tibet (Xizang), the Potala Palace (UNESCO World Heritage Site), Beijing, and the Great Wall of China.
• 2025 Best of China (22 days; Hong Kong to Beijing) —Sail China’s eastern coast to view iconic giant pandas and journey into the Himalayas, Tibet (Xizang), the Terra Cotta Warriors, the Forbidden City and the Great Wall of China.

Viking also is offering a variety of pre and post-land extensions in Beijing, Hong Kong, Guilin, Mongolia, and Tokyo.

The Viking Yi Dun is an identical sister ship to the others in Viking’s ocean fleet. Viking’s ocean ships have 465 staterooms hosting 930 guests, all with verandas; Scandinavian design; light-filled public spaces; and al fresco dining options.

Bill Coyle has become an essential travel industry resource with over 30 years of experience leading his own brick and mortar travel agency, serving on several agent advisory boards, and advocating for travel advisors on a national level with the American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA). His experience empowers and educates KHM Travel Group’s agents as the Vice President of Agent Engagement. As KHM Travel Group’s first-ever Limelight Award recipient for going above and beyond, Bill brings a spirited passion for travel in all his professional endeavors and continues to book travel for his longtime clients. Read the rest of this entry »

Everyone loves a winner—and apparently Icon of the Seas is just that. In last month’s analyst call, Royal Caribbean International CEO Michael Bayley reported that Icon’s load factor is running around 132%, meaning every cabin is full, often with three or four guests.

So it’s no surprise that in a bigger-is-better world, Royal Caribbean would be doubling—or even tripling—down on its ace in the hole. Today it did just that, announcing an agreement with Finnish shipbuilder Meyer Turku for a fourth Icon Class ship, due for delivery in 2027, plus options to build two more.

RCCL’s largest ship ever, Icon of the Seas launched in January 2024. A second Icon-class ship, Star of the Seas, already is on sale, scheduled to debut in August 2025, and an as-yet-unnamed third sister will join the fleet in 2026. (Also this year RCCL welcomed Utopia of the Seas, Silversea’s Silver Ray and TUI Cruises’ Mein Schiff 7, and announced a seventh Oasis Class ship for 2028.)

“Icon of the Seas is unlike anything the world has seen before, and we’re just getting started,” Bayley said in today’s announcement. “We are leading the vacation industry in developing new experiences for our guests to create lifelong memories, and we continue dreaming and evolving to deliver more ways to chill and thrill.”

Even as some pooh-pooh the trend toward larger and larger ships (Icon carries 5,610 passengers, about 200 more than Oasis class), Icon and Star have been selling faster than any other ships in Royal Caribbean’s 50-year history.

Icon-class ships feature eight distinct neighborhoods; over 40 restaurants; 28 cabin types, including a three-story Ultimate Family Townhouse; and the biggest water park, the tallest drop slide, and the biggest swimming pool at sea. They also have the Royal Promenade and Central Park familiar from the Oasis-class ships, as well as new elements like the family-oriented Surfside neighborhood, plus two new top-deck recreation areas, Chill Island and Thrill Island. The aqua shows have moved to an AquaDome, a huge glass-enclosed space with a 50-foot waterfall, while the Royal Promenade adds the Pearl, a multi-sensory walkway. There is a dedicated suites-only neighborhood—and you can have your own private butler. (For more on the joys of butlers, see Finding Peace and Quiet – and a Great Butler – at Breathless Montego Bay.

Luxury is having a day, and Hilton is celebrating the travel advisors who sell that niche with a new, and better, preferred partner program.

Hilton on Tuesday launched Hilton for Luxury, an invitation-only program for travel advisors who sell the 100 properties in its luxury brands: Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, Conrad Hotels & Resorts, LXR Hotels & Resorts, Signia by Hilton, and Hilton’s newest luxury brand NoMad Hotels.

Members of the program will have their own dedicated concierge desk, improved connectivity through a private website, value-added benefits from the hotels and direct contact with on-property hotel team members. And each hotel will have a team of Hilton for Luxury ambassadors whose job is to ensure that program features and benefits are fulfilled.

Clients of participating travel advisors will receive a variety of benefits, including the best available rates, double Hilton Honors Points, complimentary breakfast for up to two guests, next-category upgrades and, wherever possible, early check-in or late check-out.

In addition, the program soon will offer rewards to participating travel advisors; details will be announced soon.

Good to know: Hilton Luxury Brands comprises 100 hotels and resorts around the world. Most recently, Hilton welcomed the NoMad Hotels brand into its portfolio.

For more information, visit www.hilton.com/hilton-for-luxury.