Foreword Clarity amid the chaos A
febrile atmosphere consumed the UK, or at least Westminster and the British media, as this report went to press in the first week
of September. Could the tensions generated by three
or more years of uncertainty be released or would they hit a new level? Would Britain leave the EU at the end of October with a deal or without, amid chaos or calm? Would there be an election? Would there be a new government and a revised leave date, a second referendum? Some of these issues may be resolved by the time this report is read, others not. The exasperation of business at the
knife’s-edge climax to the long agony of Brexit was summed up by business newspaper the Financial Times which called on UK MPs to bring down the government. It was a view shared by many. Yet Britain leaving the EU is relatively
incidental to events on the world stage – it is possibly not even the prime concern of EU leaders despite the risks of a ‘bad’ Brexit feeding other pressures, not least the economic slowdown in German and across the eurozone. The main Brexit-related concerns in the
travel industry boil down to maintenance of flying arrangements, stable exchange rates, friction-free movement and availability of skilled labour. These have not changed from the start of the process. Flying arrangements have long since been largely settled. God willing, the outstanding questions will be answered soon. This report considers the wider European
travel market. It begins with a broad summary before focusing primarily on technology developments. The digital trends are explored through a series of interviews with senior figures at travel technology group Amadeus. Jorge Elliott considers the extent of content fragmentation and how search and comparison will develop. Francesca Benati identifies the challenges facing online retailers and the opportunities technology presents.
Marion Mesnage discusses key
The main Brexit concerns in the travel industry boil down to flying arrangements, exchange rates, friction-free movement and skilled labour
technology developments and some practical applications of artificial intelligence and blockchain. Joe Youssef outlines Amadeus’ footprint in hospitality, and Wolfram Schmidt describes developments in hotel distribution. Mal Barritt of Traveltek advocates looking
at travel technology through the lens of a customer. His colleague Cressida Sergeant identifies the changing demands of travel businesses and some positive consumer trends. Matt West of Feefo explains how
authentic consumer feedback can shape business decisions. Duncan Alexander of DXC Technology highlights the importance of people in digital transformation. And Abhijeet Umathe of Eco Hotels outlines the ambitions of a new ecological name in hospitality. Supporting charts and data throughout
the report provide a separate but complementary narrative illustrating the size, growth and resilience of the major European markets, the extent of online and mobile penetration and growth of e-commerce. I am indebted to Amadeus for partnering
on this Travel Weekly Europe report and to Traveltek, Feefo, DXC Technology, iFree Group and Eco Hotels for helping to make the report possible. Any mistakes are my own.
Ian Taylor
executive editor, Travel Weekly
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