The Folo by Travel Weekly

This week on the Folo by Travel Weekly we are featuring a special episode of Trade Secrets, a sister podcast to the Folo that is co-produced by Jamie Biesiada, a senior editor at Travel Weekly, and Emma Weissmann, the executive editor of TravelAge West. In this episode, Jamie and Emma take a rapid-fire look at 25 trends for 2025.  This episode is split into two parts: The first, which you're...

We’re turning to every traveler’s favorite – or least favorite – topic this week, and that’s airfares. After aviation editor Robert Silk wrote an article on which way air prices are trending in 2025, we asked Scott Keyes, the founder of Going -- an app that combines software and human Flight Experts to uncover flight deals and mistake fares and send them to its 2 mill...

In last week’s episode we delved into the trends and predictions for several aspects of the travel business: aviation, cruise, hotel and the outlook for travel advisors. This week, host Rebecca Tobin asks Tom Stieghorst, our interim cruise and river cruise editor, to share some of his findings for 2025. We draw on a new survey from the U.S. Tour Operators Association to look at what tour ope...

Welcome to our annual Preview episode, where we gaze into our crystal ball and draw on interviews with expert sources to talk about what we’ll be seeing in the next 12 months, travel-wise.  In this episode we examine the overall health of the business, changes in the luxury sector and what might happen on the aviation-regulatory-merger front, especially with the Trump administration set...

It’s time for our semi-annual drop-in to the ski industry. Dan Sherman of Ski.com, ski blogger and podcaster Stuart Winchester and our in-house ski reporter Robert Silk talk about the major trends for skiers and riders, namely, Japan and Europe. There's big demand for ski vacations this year: Why? We talk about the tricks to scoring cheaper-than-the-window ticket pricing, which at some...

Travel Industry Survey is our annual, premier research product that surveys travel advisors about their business. To dig deeper into the report’s data and talk about how it dovetails with everyday business trends, we’ve invited retail reporter Jamie Biesiada and news editor Johanna Jainchill to talk about what the survey said about booking trends, preferred products, education and supp...

It’s time for our annual Year in Review discussion, where we look back at some of the biggest travel-related stories and trends of 2024. Joining us on this episode is news editor Johanna Jainchill, the architect of our Year in Review report, and retail editor Jamie Biesiada, to talk (among others) about travel “normalization,” the embrace of generative AI, a big year for cruise,...

This week’s travel trend is the growing popularity of women-only tours. From on-the-ground adventures in far flung destinations like Saudi Arabia and Morocco to a luxurious river cruise in France’s wine country, there are options galore for today’s so-called “queenagers.”  We’ve asked reporter Tom Stieghorst to share his insights and his reporting, and Shirnett Fleet, the chief marketing officer o...

It’s time for our semi-annual drop-in to the ski industry. It’s the unofficial start to the season, so it seemed like a perfect time to gather a few experts -- Dan Sherman of Ski.com, ski blogger and podcaster Stuart Winchester and our in-house ski reporter Robert Silk -- to talk about the major trends for skiers and riders, namely, Japan. And Europe. There's big demand for ski vacations this year...

Black Friday has become a bona fide travel phenomenon, encompassing not only the day itself and the burgeoning Travel Tuesday, but stretching into an entire season. To talk about trends in length of the sales, destinations on sale and other observations, we’ve invited Hayley Berg, lead economist at Hopper, and Travel Weekly senior editor for hospitality Christina Jelski to talk about what they’ve...

The Travel Industry Survey is our annual, premier research product that surveys travel advisors about their business: Booking trends, preferred products, education and support, technology uses, marketing strategies, outlook and concerns.  This year, to dig deeper into the report’s data and talk about how it dovetails with everyday business trends, we’ve invited retail reporter Jamie Biesiada and n...

It’s only been a few days since the election, but already we’re wondering: What will happen to travel policy under the Trump administration?  Naturally quite a bit can change from Biden to Trump -- and even from the first Trump administration -- and in this episode we talk with Johanna Jainchill, our news editor and travel-policy reporter, and View from the Wing’s Gary Leff about what kids of chan...

In this episode, we’re talking about the positive momentum in the cruise industry with senior editor Andrea Zelinski. Now that the third quarter has closed, and our annual CruiseWorld conference is about to begin in Fort Lauderdale, we ask: What are travel advisors, analysts and the cruise lines themselves seeing in cruise – and what are some of the scenarios that would break the cruise lines' str...

The tensions in the Middle East have been front and center for more than a year, from Hamas’ attack on Israel and continuing with escalations between Israel and Iran. What does that mean for travel in the region? Thanks to reporting by acting tours editor Tom Stieghorst, we’ve got a snapshot of travel demand – and in this episode he talks with news editor Johanna Jainchill and host Rebecca Tobin a...

In this episode we’re looking at the impacts of hurricanes Milton and Helene on Florida’s tourism economy. Florida is such an important state for tourism that whenever a hurricane slams through it’s news. Here, host Rebecca Tobin, hotels editor Christina Jelski and Peter Ricci, the director of the Tourism and Hospitality Management program at Florida Atlantic University, talk about how the recent...

Earlier in this season, we talked about the popularity and trends surrounding all-inclusive resorts. But some listeners – advisors and travelers alike – may not know there’s a growing all-inclusive market in Europe. And the resorts are different from the traditional inclusive properties in Punta Cana or Cancun. On this episode, host Rebecca Tobin and hotels editor Christina Jelski brought together...

We’re now in the run-up to the holidays, also known as the festive season. And it’s a busy time for travel advisors planning their clients’ last big trip of the year. But this year, things are a little different.  In this episode, host Rebecca Tobin and retail editor Jamie Biesiada talk with travel advisors affiliated with the Gifted Travel Network – Jamey Duffy of Duffy Destinations and Robin Hut...

At the beginning of September the U.S. Department of Transportation began an investigation into airline loyalty programs of American, Delta, United and Southwest. The goal, it said, was to protect consumers from potential unfair, deceptive or anticompetitive practice. And as DOT secretary Pete Buttigieg said, airline rewards programs have become a “meaningful part of the U.S. economy and a major p...

Cruising in Alaska has ballooned in popularity since the pandemic. The lines have invested newer, bigger ships and stretched the season longer. But as growth occurs, concerns of overtourism rise, too. The capital, Juneau, is introducing passenger limits in order to curb crowding, and other ports are watching the move closely. On this episode, host Rebecca Tobin talks with cruise editor Andrea Zeli...

One of the more ambitious plans to come out of cruising’s pandemic pause was from Royal Caribbean International: a world cruise on the Serenade of the Seas. It was notable for being an extremely long cruise, at 274 days, and from a contemporary line – a brand not used to the nuances of a lengthy voyage. And not only did Royal Caribbean embark on what it called the Ultimate World Cruise, it took on...

Southwest is having an unusual moment: An aviation industry stalwart that’s typically posted solid results, it has attracted the attention of activist investor Elliott Investment Management, which is calling for change, including the ouster of chairman Gary Kelly and CEO Bob Jordan. In this episode, host Rebecca Tobin, aviation editor Robby Silk and guest Gary Leff, author of the View from the Win...

There's been a rise in demand for all-inclusive resorts, which have gotten more numerous -- and upscale -- in recent years. But in a recent story, hotels editor Christina Jelski reported that at Hyatt, a major player in the market, growth in revenue per available room for its all-inclusive properties slowed in Q2. And we heard from executives from Hyatt to Sandals that demand is moderating or norm...

In this episode we talk about the evolution of the term “overtourism,” which has been used a lot this summer as the post-pandemic tourism boom has continued on. The flash point was protests in Barcelona, where protesters squirted outdoor diners with water guns and chanted “tourists go home.” But it’s not the only place where residents and travelers are feeling frustrated. Our tours editor Nicole E...

Welcome back to the Folo by Travel Weekly. After our annual summer break, we’re back with all-new episodes! We’re kicking off this series with a discussion into what’s happening on Maui, a year after the devastating, deadly fires. The conversation builds off a cover story written by news editor Johanna Jainchill, who is joined by Sherry Duong, executive director of the Maui Visitors and Convention...

On this episode we’re delving into one of the more unique aspects of the cruise experience, and that’s the part that takes place on land. We’re talking, of course, about private islands and private destinations: areas on land that are managed by the cruise line and provide a dedicated area and special amenities to cruise passengers. Senior cruise editor Andrea Zelinski and Cruise Planners advisor...