The Travel Industry Moments We’re Still Thinking About From 2024

In a year dominated by headlines on the global travel industry’s big bets and shifting consumer trends, it was the smaller, more personal encounters—a shave at a century-old London barbershop, a spontaneous tea in a bustling Delhi hotel lobby—that resonated most with the Skift team in 2024. These moments, both surprising and quietly impactful, highlighted the enduring human side of an otherwise high-stakes business. Here’s a look at a few of our favorites that shaped our collective travel logs.

My wife and I decided to spend a few days in London around the holidays this year. Yes, there will be tea, museums (Tate Modern), and a show (Devil Wears Prada with Vanessa Williams). But I’m most fixated on getting a shave at Geo F. Trumper, a 100-plus year old barber shop. I enjoyed calling to make an appointment for my first day and actually speaking to a human. And the moment when I shared there’d be no haircut since I have no hair.

— Lex Haris, Managing Editor

Three flights with two incredibly tight connections. Even if I made it to Japan, would my luggage? As I approached the baggage claim in Tokyo, the prospect of buying an emergency wardrobe in Harajuku’s cosplay stores was growing. Then something remarkable happened. Not only did I spot my bags; but they were being gently coaxed down the chute. An immaculately presented, yet understated, airport staffer was strategically positioned to intercept suitcases. No unnerving thump from Samsonite slamming against stainless steel here – he was even equipped with an oversized pillow to soften the blow. This was my first omotenashi experience. As defined by the Japan National Tourism Organization, “It’s an implicit understanding that there are no menial tasks if the result ensures a great experience for a guest.” Anchored in authenticity, it felt like hospitality in its purest form. 

 — Gordon Smith, Airlines Editor

After our first successful event in India, I set out to explore India’s most touristed triangle. My last stop was Jaipur, where I checked into a hotel revived from former royal residences with a few Skift colleagues for several nights. Known as the Pink City, after a Maharaja had the whole city painted pink to welcome British Royals in the late 1800s, Jaipur has expansive forts and florid palaces to revel in as you negotiate the intense traffic and an onslaught of attention. Trust is at a premium in India, and as a naive tourist, you need a high degree of polite but firm street smarts if you want to truly experience life beyond the hotel lobby. Is it a relaxed vacation? Rarely. For those from the West, India presents a visceral and humbling view of how the vast color of life will never be what you expect. Embrace it.

— Brian Quinn, VP of Editorial Events

India seems to be top of mind for many Skifters this year. The Skift team converged on Delhi for the inaugural Skift India Summit and it’s clear the infectious energy of the place rubbed off on many of us. But in spite of India’s hectic reputation, my top memory from that trip was a simple one: sitting at a desk, tapping away at a research report. Isn’t that what I do every day? Well yes, but what made this moment unique was who was sitting beside me. My colleagues, Varsha Arora and Saniya Zanpure have, figuratively speaking, worked beside me for years. But this was the first day they ever literally worked beside me. Yes, we had met before, on retreats or at the sidelines of conferences. But it’s a different thing altogether to be in the trenches together, working on the same project, at the same time, in the same place. As cheesy as it may sound, connection is at the heart of the travel industry. And an increasingly digital world can’t replace that. It’s a trend that is powering the bounce back in group and business travel. Here’s to many more meaningful trips, both business and leisure, in 2025.

— Seth Borko, Director of Skift Research

After 20+ years as a journalist, not much surprises me anymore, but this blew my mind. While on assignment at the Equinox Hotel in New York to better understand how luxury hotels are using cutting edge science to facilitate better sleep, a decidedly low-tech hack stuck with me. At Equinox the beds are made using the traditional Scandinavian method – that’s two duvets – one for you, one for them. So no more passive-aggressive “good mornings” after a night of cover stealing and thivery. So simple. So genius. I still think about it.

— Sarah Kopit, Editor-in-Chief 

My family is fortunate to have a cottage in Muskoka, sometimes dubbed the “Great Canadian Wilderness.” As expats living in Berlin, we often hear about our friends’ glamorous summer trips – from Austria to Thailand. So, when we told a few European friends we were heading to our cottage for the summer, their responses were always the same: awe and surprise. Canada?! In our business it’s easy to get caught up in the buzz of influencers, luxury hotels, and AI-driven travel advice. But sometimes, the simplest experiences are the most magical. While cities like New York and Dubai shine with nightlife and events, there’s something about the raw beauty of nature that still captivates. Post Covid, it’s clear that despite all the hype, people are still drawn to the quiet of forests, the serenity of lakes, and – if you’re lucky – a moose passing by. Nature, in its purest form, still holds a timeless appeal.

— Oliver Martin, Senior Director, Innovation

First time I read the word “coolcations,” I was blegh. It was included in our coverage of  Viator’s top Travel Trends back in September. The word didn’t exactly click for me. Maybe I’m a just a snob when it comes to travel-isms (*insert eye roll at bleisure). But I’ve always been warmed by cold-weather destinations, so I’m happy to see it firmly cemented as a 2025 Skift Megatrend. As a northeastern 90’s millennial, I was raised to believe vacation meant only one thing – the beach. It’s only when you’ve booked a one way flight to Bergen in Norway and find yourself on a small tour boat, facing the towering cliffs of the fjords that you realize – there’s cooler shit to experience than a sunburn. So you go north again, to ski Mount Tremblant on New Year’s Eve, and east to see Iceland with your coworkers, and then west to snow shoe Telluride. What about south? To the Falkland Islands? Coolcations: pack your handwarmers

— Anne Duffy, Chief-of-Staff

My two daughters, my brother, two cousins from Israel, and I traveled to Berlin in October to embed a Stolpersteine in the sidewalk outside an apartment building where my great-grandmother lived in 1942. Clementine Urbach, who was Jewish, was deported to the Theresienstadt transit camp that year, and then to Treblinka, where the Nazis murdered her. After the ceremony, which was attended by about a dozen people, one couple invited us into their apartment in the same building. We met their adorable daughter, maybe nine or 10 years old, who attends a Jewish school. Books in Hebrew lined the shelves. The Nazis gassed Oma (grandmother) Clem, as she was known, but they couldn’t snuff out the human spirit. 

— Dennis Schaal, Founding Editor

This May, I finally made it to Scandinavia with my friends. It was everything we’d imagined: cobblestone streets, cozy hygge vibes, and endless fika breaks. Now, we knew May wasn’t peak aurora season, but Instagram was full of backyard Northern Lights photos from the U.S. and UK. If they could see it from their porches, surely we’d have a shot in the Arctic, right? So, out we went every night, apps shouting “high activity” and optimism in overdrive. The result? Clouds. Endless clouds. Our worst moment? Screaming over a “sighting” that turned out to be a streetlamp. We came back with no aurora selfies, but plenty of belly laughs and unforgettable stories. Scandinavia, we’re coming back for round two — you owe us some serious sky magic!

— Peden Doma Bhutia, Asia Editor

Travel, for all its visceral thrills, can too often feel dehumanizing: “Stand in this line, sir.” “Download our app to ask our staff a question!” “Please submit to a biometric face scan prior to boarding.” That’s why my visit to a small farmhouse inn in Portugal’s Douro Valley in February was such a breath of fresh air. Everything about the experience was personal, unhurried, and prepared with care. The property, set in the steep hillside above the winding Douro River, featured a historic stone farmhouse set amongst a pastoral view of vineyards, horse stables, grazing chickens and fruit trees. After discovering I was traveling solo, the husband and wife who ran the inn invited me to their private residence for dinner my first night, conversing in broken English and Portuguese in between bottomless glasses of the hosts’ own vintage of vinho verde. I spent the rest of my visit gorging on comically large breakfasts with homemade jam and fresh eggs, wandering along on misty hiking trails on the farm grounds, and admiring the inn’s beautiful design touches like fresh cut flowers. As everything about our travel experience gets automated, app-ified, and digitized, it was the perfect antidote to help reset and reconnect.

— Jeremy Kressmann, VP of SkiftX

On a crowded ferry to Bellagio, one of the villages on Lake Como, I was expecting the area to be overrun with tourists. I had already spent two days in Milan and one in Florence, and despite a major heat wave, both cities were filled to the brim with tourists. Activities like seeing “The Last Supper” were sold out. There were long lines to enter most museums. The 100-degree heat felt suffocating. I was ready to write the trip off as a product of bad timing – I had traveled to one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world during the peak season. But something changed when we visited Lake Como. We rented a boat to explore the whole lake and it is probably my most memorable moment of the year. With villas in hues of pinks and yellows dotting the edges of the teal blue waters, I almost couldn’t believe it was real. At that moment, I was finally able to forget about the crowds and heat.

— Meghna Maharishi, Airlines Reporter

Everyone in the Northeast knows fall is the best season – changing leaves, a crisp bite in the air, an earlier sunset reminding you to slow down and spend more time curled up on the couch under a blanket. Not to mention this season brings the best sweet treats: apple cider donuts, pumpkin spice, and so on. So I don’t know why it surprised me to learn more and more cities are looking outside of Thanksgiving and wanting to capitalize on the season in its entirety. But what came as an even bigger surprise, is that your classic spooky Salems or Edinburghs with their histories of witches and paranormal events, did not see the biggest tourism bump this year. That prize went to places like Minneapolis, Kansas City, and Atlanta, which saw between 300% and 500%+ increases in hotel bookings for Halloween. Love a good ghost story and now I’m thinking I need to see what’s happening in Minneapolis around Halloween! 

— Rachel Mines, Head of Subscriptions 

In May, Jake and I borrowed his mum’s 28-year-old campervan for a two-week adventure through Switzerland. The plan? Decide if we could actually live there. Jake was eyeing up a Zurich lab post-PhD. Switzerland was laying it on thick. We gawked at mountains, kayaked in lakes, and ate cheese like it was our job. Each hairpin bend revealed postcard-worthy landscapes, and the famously cool Swiss demeanor left us somewhere between admiration and wondering if we’d ever be efficient enough to fit in. We loved the order, the obsession with the outdoors, and the sheer beauty of it all. By day three, you start wondering why you’ve never commuted by river before. We moved two weeks ago and are already learning to keep up.

— Elsa Verzijl, Client Growth Manager EMEA