Travel Industry News - Development

USA TODAY Travel Media Group is adding more tools for travelers and expanding further into digital platforms, and today announced the completion of its acquisition of Tripology. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

Las Vegas is known for continually reinventing itself to provide the best possible experience for visitors. A series of new projects announced recently is injecting more than $5 billion into the destination over the next several years.

It’s an open secret in the waterfront resort community. For the past 40 years resorts have considered little beyond the high tide mark. With the help of a unique environmental design team they are rediscovering acres of property, client engagement, and new sources of revenue.

XOJET, Inc. announced an alliance with Travel Management Company (TMC) that will effectively expand XOJET’s fleet to include TMC’s fleet of 24 Hawker 400XP light jets and 30 Hawker 800XP mid-size jets.

Global tourism is getting back on track and all indications are showing a return to vacation night stays at beachfront hotels and fractional ownership around the world. Once again the industry is grappling with the age old questions of consumer engagement and vacation memory creation branded to resort properties.

Cruise Planners - American Express Travel, the nation’s largest home-based travel agent franchise network in the cruise industry, today announced that CEO Michelle Fee, CFO Tom Kruszewski, and Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing Vicky Garcia together purchased the company from Palm Beach Capital, a private equity investment firm that had been the majority owner of Cruise Planners since 2005.

The new acquisitions are also contingent upon Hawaiian signing new agreements with its pilots and flight attendant unions covering operation of the new aircraft type.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) and Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd. have reached an agreement for a new joint venture that will create an expanded trans-Atlantic network and enhance competition between the U.K. and North America, offering greater benefits for customers traveling on those routes.

The new 158-room Hilton Alexandria Corniche will be Hilton Worldwide's 19th property in Egypt and it's second in Alexandria.

Haiti can capitalize on its natural and cultural resources to get the country back on the world tourism map, thereby contributing to its overall recovery and development. This was the main message of UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai, during his first official visit to Haiti (27-30 October 2012).