Sarah Kopit and Seth Borko explore how new competitors, artificial intelligence, and changing traveler behavior are rewriting the rules for travel companies—and why these seemingly separate stories all point to the same shift happening across the industry.

Sarah Kopit and Seth Borko explore why independent hotels are becoming a more realistic option, how technology is changing the franchise equation, and why new Skift Research suggests consumers—and AI—may no longer see meaningful differences between many hotel brands.

Sarah Kopit and Seth Borko discuss the Knicks' championship, sports tourism, viral European road trips across America, and why the World Cup may be reshaping global perceptions of the United States in real time.

Seth Borko and venture capitalist Gilad Berenstein discuss travel startup funding, hotel robotics, the future of travel distribution, and the race to own the AI agent that could eventually plan and book your trips.

Seth Borko and Sean O'Neill discuss the biggest lessons from Skift's Data + AI Summit and revisit a decade of hotel direct-booking strategy.

Sarah and Seth Borko break down why Airbnb increasingly looks like a full-service OTA, what Expedia’s latest acquisition says about the future of travel commerce, and how AI, creators, and social shopping are reshaping travel discovery.

Sarah Kopit and Seth Borko break down the growing perception problem facing the U.S., the pressure hotel owners are feeling from major brands, and why TikTok may become a major player in travel booking and discovery.

America has never had the equivalent of a tourism minister — until now. In March, President Trump created the role of Special Presidential Envoy for American Tourism, Exceptionalism, and Values, and handed it to Nick Adams: conservative commentator, self-styled "alpha male," and the loudest pitchman U.S. travel has ever had. 

Sarah Kopit and Seth Borko break down what killed Spirit, what it means for budget travel in the U.S., and why Skift Research found that travelers don’t necessarily return to destinations simply because they loved them.

Seth Borko and Dennis Schaal break down Booking’s earnings, the Capital One–Hopper deal, and what it all means for the future of online travel.

Sarah Kopit and Seth Borko break down how culture and technology are changing who controls visibility, demand, and bookings in travel.

Hotel brands are winning while owners face rising costs and softer demand. Sarah Kopit and Seth Borko break down the growing pressure on hotel owners and what it means for the future of the franchise model.

Sarah Kopit and Seth Borko break down the economic forces driving up travel costs — and what it means for travelers, hotel owners, and the future of the industry.

Sarah Kopit and Seth Borko break down what these changes mean for how the industry operates — and how travelers choose where to go.

Sarah Kopit and Lex Haris break down a week where multiple pressures hit U.S. travel at once — and what it reveals about the system’s ability to handle stress.

In this episode of the Skift Travel Podcast, Sarah Kopit and Seth Borko break down the latest travel fallout and explain why Latin America may be the most important market to watch next.

In this episode of the Skift Travel Podcast, Sarah Kopit and Seth Borko unpack what higher fuel prices mean for airline economics, how this week’s travel chaos felt in real life, and why new Skift Research suggests Gen Z may force the industry to rethink some big assumptions.

Conflict in the Middle East is once again raising questions about the resilience of global travel. In this episode of the Skift Travel Podcast, Seth Borko is joined by Skift Airlines Editor Gordon Smith to examine how escalating geopolitical tensions could ripple through the aviation industry.

Hotels are facing political pressures they were never built to handle. In this episode, Sarah Kopit and Seth Borko examine how immigration enforcement, protests, and franchise agreements are forcing hotel owners into impossible decisions.

Marriott expects 35% growth in co-branded credit card fees next year. At the same time, it’s warning investors that AI could disrupt its entire loyalty ecosystem. In this episode of the Skift Travel Podcast, Sarah Kopit and Seth Borko break down what’s happening at the intersection of loyalty, artificial intelligence, and geopolitics.

Weight loss drugs may be one of the most underestimated forces reshaping travel. In this episode of the Skift Travel Podcast, Sarah Kopit and Seth Borko unpack how GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic are quietly changing who travels, where they go, and how they spend.

This week on the Skift Travel Podcast, Sarah Kopit and Seth Borko tackle a wide-ranging conversation that sits at the intersection of geopolitics, growth, and brand identity in travel.

This week on the Skift Travel Podcast, Sarah Kopit and Seth Borko break down a set of travel industry flashpoints that all connect back to one thing: trust. They start with the industry’s most hated topic, fees. Resort fees, junk fees, and the reality that “transparent pricing” usually just means the cost moves around, not that it disappears. They dig into what travelers actually notice, what regulators are trying to fix, and why hotels keep getting stuck in the middle of disclosure, taxes, and pricing optics.

Skift Take Sessions is a weekly, journalist-led podcast built from the most important conversations shaping the global travel industry.