Argophilia

Αργοφιλία: For the love of the journey.

World

How to Avoid Europe’s Dark Anti-Santa

Phil Butler

Leave it to the sunny dispositions of the Germans to come invent the Anti-Santa affectionately called Krampus. A product of Norse lore, the half-goat, half-demon, beast, the supposed son of the Norse god Hel, may come and beat the badness right out of your kids. Here’s a dark Christmas tale if every there was one.

TUI and easyJet Partner for Crete and Rhodes Flights

Aleksandr Shatskih

In news from easyJet, the air carrier is slated to carry out TUI flights from Berlin to Heraklion, Rhodes, and Tenerife in the Summer of 2017. The British low-cost carrier also partnered with TUI for travel to Holland. Both companies share good and bad news edging into Q4 of 2016.

St. Petersburg Wins World’s Leading Cultural City Award

Aleksandr Shatskih

St. Petersburg, Russia has won the coveted title of World’s Leading Cultural City Destination from World Travel Awards. The gala events held last Friday evening heralded the city’s cultural importance and potential for future tourism growth.

Coming up December 5th thru 8th ILTM Cannes

Aleksandr Shatskih

Coming up December 5 – 8 at the Palais des festivals in Cannes, France, the International Luxury Travel Market (ILTM) promises attendees an an unmatched collection of international travel experiences.

The Digi.travel Conference: Day Two On Athens Business

Phil Butler

Yesterday I reported on day one of our business excursion to Athens for the Digi.travel EMEA Conference & Expo. Day two was, as was expected, all about contributing to an all-star lineup at the event organized by Travel Media Applications. Today I will attempt to recap some of the most informative sessions and speakers at […]

Plateno Collection to Showcase Future Hotel Experience

Aleksandr Shatskih

Plateno Group, the Chinese hotel entity sporting 20 brands, has just announced it will once again host the hospitality industry’s newest fashion show, Plateno Collection 2017. Running from December 9th through the 11th in Guangzhou China, the event is the second iteration of a “one of” concept envisioned by the group’s founder and CEO, Alex Zheng

Crimea for Vacation: Beyond CNN and the Political Stir

Phil Butler

CNN and other mainstream media need westerners to feel like geo-policy has somehow ruined the Crimea peninsula for tourism. Since voting to return to being Russian, the people of this fascinating part of the world have weathered a political blitz, sanctions, and outsiders doing everything possible to misrepresent the reality there. Here is a candid […]

SnapShot Rolls Out Hotel Technology Index

Aleksandr Shatskih

Hospitality analytics leader SnapShot rolls out a Crunchbase-like Hotel Technology Index, a comprehensive database featuring hotel software and technology providers crucial for hospitality professionals.

China Hotel Giant Plateno Group Launches PAI in Europe

Aleksandr Shatskih

China’s Plateno Group, the brand that just united with Jin Jiang International to create one of the top 5 biggest hotel companies, launches PAI Hotels in Europe today. Set to premier on the European market, the PAI endeavor affords independents and chains striking benefits.

Ethiad Airways bailing out on Air Berlin

Aleksandr Shatskih

Beleaguered airline Air Berlin is to cut its fleet by half and is all set to lay off 1,000 employees by the end of this year. The airline, which is in a tailspin caused by stiff competition, and the delayed opening of Berlin Brandenburg Airport, plans to reduce its fleet to about 70 aircraft and cut its workforce down to 7,600 employees.

According to the reports, Air Berlin’s biggest shareholder, Etihad Airways, was in talks with Lufthansa and travel company TUI over chopping up the dead weight and aircraft of the troubled airline. The reports paint a picture of a kind of midair rescue where TUI’s German airline TUIfly and Air Berlin’s Austrian subsidiary Niki might absorb unwanted parts of the business.