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The day's most important travel business news, in one read.  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

Read online 🚪 More Front Doors AI is creating multiple access points for travel distribution — and giving existing intermediaries new roles.   Adriana Lee, Travel Tech Reporter October 6th, 2026 AI isn’t a single front door for travel, but a bevy of access points with different approaches, seams and stages of evolution. Booking Holdings’ new AI-based travel brand, Lola, acts like a chatbot, books like an OTA, but with a membership model. Airbnb is hatching new tools. Meanwhile, a giant looms: Global digital banking platform Revolut is on the verge of bringing full banking and travel services to the U.S. The company, which is already deeply invested in AI for finance, is also weighing an AI concierge. General purpose AI agents Muse and Instinct are already capable of booking travel, though in different ways. In Skift’s tests, the Meta agent relies more on OTAs, struggling with hotel sites like Hilton, Marriott and Hyatt. Instinct seems to tap into them just fine. The interfaces are getting simpler. The distribution fight is anything but.       What It Takes to Make AI Booking Work at Scale RESERVATIONS .AI + SKIFT AI booking is moving beyond the demo and into the harder test of real customers, live inventory, and transactions at scale. GET THE STORY→             Headlines         India Now Has a ‘Digital Tourism Stack.’ Can it Fix a Fragmented Market? By Peden Doma Bhutia October 3, 2026 India is betting that open digital infrastructure can make its vast, fragmented tourism supply easier to discover, book and eventually surface through AI. GET THE STORY → Hilton Isn’t ‘Blocking’ New AI Agents. But They Can’t Always Get In. By Sean O'Neill October 2, 2026 Hilton's CEO says he wants to make booking through AI agents easy. For now, Meta's Muse struggles to pull a price from hotel group sites, and OTAs may remain an easier door. GET THE STORY → ‘The P&L Doesn’t Lie’: Hotels See More AI Costs Than Bottom-Line Gains By Sean O'Neill October 1, 2026 Hotel tech investments keep climbing, but profits aren't keeping pace. Can hotels promise that AI will mean no job cuts and a payoff on the P&L at the same time? GET THE STORY → Revolut’s Travel Distribution Play Faces a U.S. Test By Adriana Lee September 30, 2026 Revolut’s push into travel distribution was built to keep customers inside its financial ecosystem. Europe gave it a proving ground. Now its U.S. banking push is on track to help it break open a new travel market. GET THE STORY → The Travel Distribution Funnel Is Coming Apart By Rafat Ali September 30, 2026 AI is fragmenting travel distribution across many starting points instead of simply replacing Google with a new gatekeeper. GET THE STORY →             Watch or Listen         Do You Have 12 Months to Escape the AI Permanent Underclass? There is a growing cohort of Silicon Valley and AI insiders who believe 2027 is the last great leap. Where you are positioned by then cements your place. After this war is won there are no more. In this clip from the Skift Travel Podcast, Sarah Kopit and Seth Borko get honest about what that actually means, why Seth is not worried about himself but is genuinely worried about his kids, and why nobody sitting here today can tell you what society looks like 30 years from now. GET THE FULL EPISODE             Skift Travel 200         SEE THE ST 200 →         DEFINING THE FUTURE OF TRAVEL. Update your email preferences or unsubscribe here © 2026 Skift 35 W 31st St. New York, New York 10001, United States

Informa is buying Clarion.  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

Read online The $3 Billion Deal That May Reshape the Events Industry Informa is buying Clarion.   David McMillin, Skift Meetings Head of Content October 6th, 2026 Meeting planners may not spend much of their days thinking about EBITDA and diluted EPS. But dealmakers do — and today's $3 billion announcement that Informa is buying Clarion shows just how much value they see in meetings and events. It's the second-largest organizer deal ever, and if approved, it will give one company even more leverage across venues and suppliers. Head below for the full story from Andrea Doyle, and stay tuned for more reaction to the news. — David McMillin       ON DEMAND Did you miss our debrief of all the action at Skift Meetings Forum? No worries. Sign up to access the recording here and unpack all the insights from New York. Sponsored by Bahamas Ministry of Tourism and Experience Kissimmee. WATCH THE WEBINAR             FEATURED STORIES Informa's $3 Billion Clarion Deal Set to Reshape Events Industry By Andrea Doyle Informa was already the world’s largest exhibition organizer. Its nearly $3 billion acquisition of Clarion Events raises a bigger question: What happens when one company controls roughly 1,000 B2B brands and gains even greater leverage with the destinations, venues, suppliers, and exhibitors it does business with? GET THE STORY New Industry Community Will Focus on Seasoned Pros By Barbara Scofidio The industry devotes a lot of energy to mentoring the younger generation. APEX Event Network is betting that the most experienced planners need resources to continue their professional development, too. GET THE STORY 6 Lessons to Navigate the Future of Events By Andrea Doyle The planners who do well in 2027 won't be the ones doing more. They'll be the ones who know what to protect, what to verify, and when to say no. GET THE STORY Private Equity's $6 Billion Bet on Trade Shows By Andrea Doyle Private equity is paying top dollar for trade shows on the theory that AI can't replace a show floor. PE-owned organizers grew 11.4% last year, well ahead of most rivals, but Informa still dominates the top of the list after buying its way to 30% growth. GET THE STORY             What Australia Gets Right About Sustainable Events Business Events Australia + Skift Meetings Think designing a more sustainable meeting means paying more money? Think again. As planners work to design programs that take better care of the planet, more of them are finding an answer in Australia. LEARN MORE             FREE REPORT Our new research offers a look at how at corporate meeting planners are navigating the current landscape. Download it today to learn how 111 in-house corporate planners are dealing with geopolitical pressures, ROI expectations, AI, contracts, and more. This report was produced in partnership with MPI and is sponsored by Caesars Entertainment and Convene. GET THE REPORT             WORTH YOUR TIME Five things worth your time today. What 20 years of building events proves about their real value. How meeting planners can spot sophisticated scams. What a trade show looks like when the product isn’t allowed on the exhibit floor. Why Gen Z will make us rethink meeting design. When AI agents might start outnumbering humans in the events industry.             SKIFT PICK: TRANSLATING TRAVEL TRENDS FOR MEETINGS Out of Retirement, and Into the Reauthorization Fight Caroline Beteta just retired from leading Visit California, but she isn’t heading for any relaxing beach in the Golden State just yet. Instead, she’s heading to Brand USA as interim CEO, the same temporary gig she held back in 2012. It’s the same title, but it’s a very different job. Congress cut the cap on Brand USA's federal matching funds by 80% last year, the staff shrank 15%, five of 11 board seats sit empty, and funding only runs through September 2027. Beteta calls her priority "singular": getting Brand USA reauthorized. Meanwhile, America's actual brand is in rough shape. Overseas arrivals were down about 12% year over year in August, and the U.S.-Canada standoff is spilling into conference attendance. If your event depends on international registrations, root for Beteta, but don’t budget around her. Destination marketing takes years to pay off, and Brand USA spent last year fighting for its own funding. Plan 2027 as if international numbers stay soft, and build in virtual or regional options for the attendees who won’t make the trip.             Skift Meetings Toolkit Great events are built on strategy, innovation, and the right resources. The Skift Meetings Toolkit is your go-to hub for best practices in managing meetings and events. EXPLORE THE TOOLKIT             Thanks for being a regular reader. We are switching to a new email platform. Why? This change will allow for better delivery, and more engaging newsletters. Please take a moment to add this new email address to your contacts to ensure you continue receiving your newsletters without interruption. During this transition, these emails might land in your promotions or spam folder. To ensure you don’t miss out, please move this newsletter to your primary inbox.       1    DEFINING THE FUTURE OF TRAVEL. Update your email preferences or unsubscribe here © 2026 Skift 35 W 31st St. New York, New York 10001, United States