Good morning from Skift. It’s Wednesday, January 22, and here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.
President Donald Trump signed a series of executive orders on Monday just after being sworn in as the 47th of the United States. Editor-in-Chief Sarah Kopit explains the orders that could have the biggest impact on the travel industry.
Kopit notes a federal hiring freeze — while exempting positions tied to national security, immigration enforcement, and public safety — could leave many travel-related federal roles under strain. Potential staff shortages could make wait times for visas longer and discourage inbound travelers.
Trump is also reintroducing more stringent screening rules and considering a new travel ban similar to his 2017 one on travelers from several Muslim-majority nations. That original ban, which was expanded to include more countries in 2020, was rescinded on President Biden’s first day in office.
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Next, online travel agency Hopper is considering an initial public offering that CEO Fred Lalonde believes could see the company valued as much as $10 billion. Executive Editor Dennis Schaal examines the likelihood of Hopper going public.
Lalonde said in the Bloomberg article that to make going public viable, Hopper would have to generate trailing sales of at least $1 billion — or have a path to reach that figure within 18 months — and be profitable. Lalonde didn’t indicate how close Hopper is to that milestone. He also said an IPO isn’t the only exit strategy, adding that a long-term, private equity investor would be another option.
Finally, global tourism recovered to pre-Covid levels in 2024, according to UN Tourism, reports Associate Editor Rashaad Jorden.
About 1.4 billion traveled internationally last year, up 11% from the previous year. That increase was driven in part by substantial increases in visitor numbers to Africa and the Asia-Pacific region. Tourism to the Asia-Pacific was boosted by China easing visa requirements, with the country seeing a significant jump in tourist arrivals during the first three quarters of last year.
UN Tourism projects that international tourist arrivals will grow 3% to 5% this year — a forecast based on the Asia-Pacific’s ongoing recovery and solid growth in other regions.
