Skift Travel News Blog

A new store powered by Amazon’s Just Walk Out technology has opened at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. 

The Market on Las Olas, which is located post-security in Terminal 3, is the first location in a Florida airport to feature Amazon’s checkout-free shopping platform. 

The Just Walk Out technology is made possible by using artificial intelligence to determine what shoppers take from shelves in order to create a ‘virtual shopping session’.

To enter, shoppers simply hover their credit card or device at the entry gate at which point a digital shopping cart is created. Shoppers can then choose their items and then leave the store without having to physically check out, with payments taken upon exit. 

You can take a look at the video below for a demonstration of how the system works:

“We are thrilled to collaborate with Amazon and Delaware North to introduce this exciting store format to FLL travelers,” said Mark E. Gale, CEO/Director of Aviation. “As an airport, we strive to explore and embrace new technologies to innovate and elevate the guest experience, and we anticipate this checkout-free store will be well-received by 

“We are proud to bring Just Walk Out technology and Amazon One to the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport,” said Jon Jenkins, Vice President of Just Walk Out technology, AWS Applications. “Even when running late for a flight, South Florida travelers will soon be able to grab snacks and beverages with a fast and frictionless shopping experience.”

Pilots at United Airlines have ratified a new contract with up to 40% pay increases.

The four-year accord, worth roughly $10 billion over its term, was approved by 82% of United’s more than 16,000 pilots, the Air Line Pilots Association said Friday. Ninety-seven percent of pilots voted on the pact.

“I’m happy to give them a great contract that ensures we can continue the United Next growth that is creating great careers for everyone here at United Airlines,” said Scott Kirby, CEO of the Chicago-based carrier, on LinkedIn Friday.

Pilots at United are the last of the Big Three U.S. carriers to ratify a new contract. Cockpit crew members at American Airlines approved a new agreement in August, and pilots at Delta Air Lines in March. All three accords have snap up clauses that make pilot pay rates equal among the carriers.

While deals give airlines stability with their pilots, flight attendants at at least American, Southwest Airlines, and United remain locked in contentious negotiations. And cabin crew members at American have approved a strike if their union, the Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA), cannot reach a mediated deal with the airline.

The new pilot deals at the Big Three, while lucrative for staff, are also driving up costs at the airlines amid increased questions over the travel demand outlook. Neither American, Delta, nor United have reported any worsening but some of their budget competitors, including Breeze Airways, JetBlue Airways, and Spirit Airlines have.

The winter is the period of the lowest travel demand for the major U.S. airlines.

The U.S. has added Israel to the Visa Waiver Program, the U.S. Department of State announced Wednesday. Starting November 30, Israeli citizens and nationals will be to travel to the U.S. for tourism or business without first obtaining a visitor visa for up to 90 days. Israeli citizens and nationals will only need to complete Electronic System for Travel Authorization.

The U.S. Travel Association projects the U.S. will welcome an additional 200,000 Israelis per year, which will generate $800 million in direct travel spending.

The U.S. Visa Waiver Program includes France, UK, Spain and 38 other countries.

Portugal’s Finance Minister Fernando Medina kicked off the long-awaited sale of TAP Air Portugal Thursday with the announcement that the government would sell a 51% stake in the state-owned airline to the highest bidder.

In addition to monetary value, the Portuguese government seeks an investor that wants to grow TAP and its Lisbon hub, guarantee jobs, and bring additional flights to secondary airports in the country, including Porto. The government did not specify how much it values TAP at; Portugal nationalized the airline as part of its Covid aid package to the carrier during the pandemic.

“We want large-scale investors from the aeronautical sector, alone or in consortia headed by them, that are aligned with our strategic goals,” Medina said. “We do not seek to attract pure investments of a financial nature that are looking to get into TAP to then sell it or sell parts of it and we wish to reiterate TAP’s strategic contribution to the country.”

Air France-KLM, International Airlines Group — owner of British Airways, Iberia, and other airlines — and the Lufthansa Group have all expressed interest in TAP. The Portuguese airline’s Lisbon hub is the ideally located for Europe-Latin America connections, as well as for connectivity to Africa. The hub is seen as a sought-after prize among the large European airline group’s as they jockey for an ever greater share of the market.

“TAP has a very strong position geographically at the southernmost point in Europe towards South America, and they do have a very strong network to Brazil with 11 cities online nonstop out of Lisbon,” Air France-KLM CEO Ben Smith said in May. “So it’s very interesting, and could be potentially eventually accretive to our bottom line performance.”

Portugal will first select advisors for the sale first with the aim to finalize the selection criteria by the end of the year, Medina. Talks with interested buyers will also begin but, based on the timeline he outlined, a deal is unlikely until sometime in 2024.

Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority (RAKTDA) has partnered with award-winning creative agency, Beautiful Destinations, on a new creative campaign featuring 30 pieces of short-form video content.

The campaign has been designed to ‘reach travel audiences through ‘real’, snackable content, inspiring travelers as they begin their research, which is increasingly starting – and staying – on social media,’ according to a release from RAKTDA.

You can take a look at one of the videos below:

“We try to stay on the cusp of the traveler journey and tap into the visceral nature of tourism. By harnessing the power of short form video with Beautiful Destinations, we effectively trigger inspiration and emotion far quicker and more impactfully than other, more traditional, marketing tools. We welcomed a record-breaking number of visitors in first six months in 2023 – a 14.8% increase from the same time last year, so now is the perfect time to accelerate our destination marketing offering with the global trailblazers in travel content creation,” said Raki Phillips, CEO of Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority.

Hyatt said on Thursday it would shift its strategy in marketing vacation rentals. It plans to launch before year-end a short-term vacation rental platform called Homes & Hideaways by World of Hyatt.

Hyatt also said it intended to sell its vacation rental management business — Destination Residences Management — to a company called Lowe, which, through an affiliate, will run it under Lowe and Coral Tree.

The Homes & Hideaways project will spotlight U.S. vacation rentals managed by Lowe, such as a home by the sea in Hawaii or a ski chalet in Colorado.

To book these vacation rentals, customers have to be one of the 40 million members of the hotelier’s loyalty program.

The move follows other plays in vacation rentals by major hotel groups, such as Marriott’s Homes & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy and Accor’s OneFineStay.

Hyatt’s CEO elaborated on the company’s broader strategy on Wednesday at the Skift Global Forum (story below).

Hyatt Sees a Business Travel Rebound

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Former Allegiant Air CEO Maurice Gallagher is returning to the top job at the budget airline following the sudden departure of CEO John Redmond.

Gallagher, who was Las Vegas-based Allegiant’s CEO from 2003 through 2022, takes the reins immediately. He is currently the airline’s chairman. Redmond, Allegiant said, resigned effective immediately.

Allegiant did not say why Redmond left.

“I am grateful to the board for giving me the opportunity to be a part of this incredible organization,” Redmond said in a statement.

Allegiant, which includes both its namesake airline plus the new Sunseeker Resort in Florida, and a travel business, has emerged from the pandemic stronger than many of its budget peers in the U.S. In the second quarter, it generated a $122 million operating profit excluding special items and an 18.6% operating margin. Spirit Airlines, the largest U.S. discounter, turned a 3.3% operating margin and Frontier Airlines an 8.2% margin.

And the outlook for Allegiant looks good. In the second half of the year — the airline does not provide third quarter guidance — it forecasts a solid profit on flat to 3% capacity growth.

Frontier and Spirit, which are growing capacity by double digits, forecast losses in the third quarter.

“We have built a management team headed by Greg Anderson, president, and many other talented and dedicated executives that is among the best in the industry,” Gallagher said in a statement. “This team is well-positioned to lead the company as we continue to set the standard for the U.S. leisure travel sector.”

Speaking this week in Atlanta, Delta CEO Ed Bastian said the airline would soon revise the changes to the Delta Skymiles loyalty program announced earlier this month. 

Those changes shifted the key loyalty metric to money spent with Delta – and sparked backlash from Skymiles members. 

Bastian acknowledged the response: “We are still assessing what we do. But there will be modifications that we will make. And you’ll hear about it sometime over the next few weeks.”

Bastian said the initial change was driven by a big increase in higher-tier loyalty members during Covid that the airline couldn’t serve.  

“We have so much demand for our premium product and services that are far in excess of our ability to serve it effectively in terms of our assets,” Bastian said. That included offerings like Delta One Sky Clubs, upgrade certificates and other perks. 

“We need to make certain that we can serve our higher tiers with the level of premium experience that you deserve and you expect. No question we probably went too far. In doing that our team kind of wanted to rip the Band-Aid off…I think we moved too fast. We’re looking at it now.”

Marriott International on Wednesday debuted Four Points Express by Sheraton, a midscale hotel brand aimed at Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

The brand aims to target the “midscale” segment of affordable lodging. Marriott estimates that about a half-million independent or locally-branded hotels are in this segment — many of which may be ripe for conversion to a global brand.

The first hotel will be a 52-room property opening later this year in Lara, a district of Antalya in Turkey. Next year, another property in Turkey is likely to open. So is a 201-guestroom property in London near the Euston rail station.

Other hotel groups are also focusing on midscale brands, such as IHG’s Garner,
Hilton’s Spark brand and an upcoming (as-yet-unnamed) extended-stay brand, and Hyatt’s Hyatt Studios extended-stay brand.

Orlando International Airport has launched a pilot program that will see non-traveling members of the public given access to its Terminal C, known as the Experience MCO Visitor Pass.

The Experience MCO Visitor Pass Program has been designed to grant members of the public access to the terminal’s post-security areas in order to explore its ‘unique architecture, interactive media and services’. 

In order to apply for the Visitor Pass, potential guests will need to complete an online application up to seven days before their planned visit, which will then be reviewed by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).

Once approved, guests will receive their Experience MCO Visitor Pass via email, which they will then use to get into general screening before being granted access to the terminal. 

Passes are limited and granted on a first-come, first-served basis and entry will be available from 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.