Welcome to the special Christmas edition of the Travel Trends podcast! We are excited to bring you insights from over 15 guests who attended the Phocuswright conference who share their valuable knowledge and predictions for travel trends in 2024.

Season 2 wrap up episode with image of panel around a table.

Season 2 | Episode 15 of Travel Trends Podcast with Robin Yap. Join us as we chronicle Robin's incredible journey, from Singapore Airlines to becoming an industry leader at the Travel Corporation, Insight Vacations, and more.

Join us as we speak with John Boulding, a 40-year veteran of the travel industry, on an engaging stroll down a remarkable memory lane. From his early days as a mobile DJ, Contiki Guide and long standing global executive role with Insight Vacations, to his present association with Vox Group, John's journey is one laden with humor, dedication, and a deep-seated love for the art of travel.

Have you ever wanted a hand held guide to give you the story behind the historic sites you visit on your travels? Our guest for this episode, Marius Nigond, founder of an innovative travel AI startup, certainly did as he found himself in Peru, staring at piles of rocks, yearning to understand them. This curiosity led him to create a unique platform for self-guided audio tours, transforming the way you experience your travels. Join us for an exciting conversation about travel trends, video guides, and how Marius's new AI startup plans to revolutionize the travel industry.

Experience the excitement of 'Travel Trends on Tour' in our live episode from the Arival 360 conference in sunny Orlando, Florida. Join industry experts Mitch Bach and Lori Timony as they delve into the incredible benefits of attending Arival events and dish on the highlights from the 2023 conference.

Discover the groundbreaking innovations showcased at Arival, including a lively discussion on the power of AI. Gain valuable insight into the game-changing potential of this technology, as well as the possible pitfalls. This conversation is just the starting point, and we'll be sharing more on this soon.

Ever wonder how travel can be more than just ticking off famous landmarks? How it could immerse you into the local culture, enriching you and the destination at the same time? We unpack this and more as we welcome Richard Edwards, the CMO of Untours and Managing Director of the Untours Foundation, to our conversation. Richard, a Costa Rican resident, enlightens us, not just about his transformative life in the Central American paradise, but also about the revolutionary concept of 'Untours'

From Mexico City, to Princeton college in the US, and an MBA from UC Berkeley to becoming the founder of a $5.5 billion gross booking business, eDreams, meet the impressive Mauricio Prieto. Our conversation starts from his shift from consulting to the travel industry and the birth of eDreams in Barcelona. We discuss how Mauricio and his team navigated the dot com downturn while maintaining consumer trust and how eDreams became a massively successful enterprise.

Join us on a captivating journey with Craig Dodge, the Director at the Phare Circus in Cambodia. An organization that was born out of a humanitarian effort by Veronique de Croix, a French national, to offer Cambodian refugees a form of therapy through art and has now transformed into a beacon of hope offering a future to its artists using the power of storytelling. This conversation promises to unveil not just the inspiring evolution of the Phare Circus, but also takes you through the dramatic changes in Cambodia's tourism industry as seen through Craig's eyes.

In this episode, we embark on a captivating journey through the world of storytelling—a powerful tool in both travel and business. Join us as we unveil the secrets to crafting compelling narratives with Samantha Hardcastle, the visionary Founder behind The Storied Experience.

Samantha shares the importance of starting with the 'why' and harnessing empathy to create engaging tales. We highlight her new groundbreaking App, Reverie, which beautifully guides people through the storytelling process. Discover how stories have the power to bridge cultural divides and connect us on a deeper level.

What if you could build a successful startup while creating a meaningful connections in people's lives? Meet Charaf, an entrepreneur who's taken this challenge head-on. Listen in as he shares his inspiring journey and lessons learned. From his roots in Morocco to his time in Washington and London, and now in Abu Dhabi, Charaf shares the wisdom he's gathered along the way.

Step into the world of luxury hotels with our special guest, Jonathan Raggett, CEO of Red Carnation Hotels. This episode gives you an inside look into the journey of this prestigious hospitality brand that has been captivating guests since 1995. Jonathan provides an intriguing walk-through of the brand's evolution, including the founding and instrumental roles of the Tollman family. He also sheds light on his own inspiring journey from school to the top rank at Red Carnation Hotels.

Discover how the future of travel is being shaped by social platforms, AI, and even your own travel photos! In our latest podcast episode, we bring you a special 'Live from Vegas' edition of Travel Trends that features the highlights from the Travel Tech Day at Virtuoso's 2023 Travel Week. Join us as we delve into discussions with industry experts; Shane O’Flaherty from Microsoft, Stuart Greif from Forbes Travel Guides and Carlos Garcia from Trip Ventures.

Join us for this fascinating discussion and career journey with a rising star, Natasha Lawrence, Commercial and Product Director at Contiki. Natasha provides us with unique perspective on the resilience of the travel industry and her start in hospitality. She remains an ardent admirer of Red Carnation Hotels from her experience there and being a protégé of RCH CEO Jonathan Raggett. Natasha's passion for travel and new opportunities led to her to Contiki.

Discover the remarkable life and career of Bruce Rosard, co-founder and chief commercial officer of Arival. From a hot dog vendor at a baseball stadium to an avid skier and world traveler, Bruce's journey is truly incredible. In our latest episode, we'll take you through his early days at Veteran Stadium in Philadelphia, the birth and growth of his ski business - Moguls, his first encounter with the internet, and his rise to the helm of Sales and Marketing at Phocuswright.

Join me for an exclusive conversation with Pete Comeau, the Managing Director of Phocuswright, the world's largest travel research company. Together, we explore the exciting transformations happening in travel events, media, and beyond.

We dive into Pete's remarkable career and gain valuable insights into the travel industry. Discover the innovative initiatives he's leading at Phocuswright to support early-stage startups.

Ever wondered what it takes to venture into the travel media industry and trailblaze a path of success? To kick off Season 2 of Travel Trends, we have a very special guest in Rafat Ali, the CEO of Skift, who shares his riveting journey from a struggling graduate student to the founder of a highly successful global media company. His story is an exciting blend of personal growth, cultural experiences, and the powerful impact of an encouraging letter from his father. Rafat's candidness is as admirable as his entrepreneurial triumphs.