As the industry faces challenges, dynamic operators have embraced new hospitality models to capture market share and engage the experience-driven consumer of tomorrow.

It's one thing to buy a competitor, and another to successfully integrate systems. American Express Global Business Travel has had to do it twice in recent years, and the company says the new tools have been a big boost.

Executives from Expedia and other travel companies acknowledged at an Amadeus tech conference that cloud computing can lead to hidden waste. Mistakes include not monitoring costs and allowing internal strife to delay cross-department projects.

United is the first U.S. airline to let its passengers pick a gender option other than male or female when booking tickets. Delta and other carriers said last month that they plan to make similar moves shortly. We're with they/them.

Americans and Europeans who used to scoff at QR-style bar codes are going to need to learn how to use them to pay for meals, attractions, and tickets whenever they visit Japan. The reason? Swelling Chinese tourism is prompting the country to adopt China's preferred mobile payment method.

Automated bag-drop technology may be widespread at major airports, but the rest of the world still has to add the equipment needed for passengers to scan their own bags. Amadeus aims to help sell those machines now that it has bought ICM. Amadeus is positioning itself to compete assertively with airline-owned SITA for airport tech sales.

What's most interesting about this boutique lifestyle hotel brand is its willingness to take risks and to continually experiment, but not if that means following the pack.

Aside from getting rid of a worthy competitor and making it family, the deal bolsters Uber's position as a global player against rival Lyft as both head for a public listing.

Considering rail connections, Vienna is as good an entry into Central Europe as any German city may be. And it has the benefit of being a top-tier airport, not some afterthought a hundred kilometers away from the city it is named after.

It's a couple of years late but at least Cathay Pacific has finally recognized the need to get into the budget segment.