Sean O'Neill

Sean O’Neill is Skift's Senior Hospitality Editor. Sean's forte is reporting, and he's broken multiple industry scoops. Sean has also received praise as an event moderator, having interviewed the CEOs of major hotel groups such as Marriott, Hilton, and IHG on stage. He writes analysis pieces that pinpoint industry trends, and he profiles rising industry leaders. In his personal life, someone should stop him before he starts another home improvement project.

Latest Stories

Online Travel

Oasis Receives $2.5 Million for Its Hotel-Style Home Rentals: Travel Startup Funding This Week

Last year, AccorHotels took a 30 percent equity share in Oasis, a curated marketplace for luxury rental properties, while also investing in similar concepts like OneFineStay and Squarebreak. This week Oasis received $2.5 million from an "undisclosed investor." We wonder who might that be.

Oasis Receives $2.5 Million for Its Hotel-Style Home Rentals: Travel Startup Funding This Week

Business Travel

iCars Buys Limos.com in Crowded Corporate Travel Ground Transport Market

The iCars merger with Limos.com could make the combined company a viable competitor against Blacklane and GroundLink, leaders in private car aggregation for corporate travelers. But all the companies need to step up their games.

iCars Buys Limos.com in Crowded Corporate Travel Ground Transport Market

Online Travel

5 New Travel Startups From China That Challenge the Status Quo

Chinese travel startups are innovating, not cloning, these days. For instance, Zanadu is using virtual reality to sell luxury travel in real world shops, Baoku is bringing integrated workflows to corporate travel planners, and Aipinji is applying an Uber-like user interface to an old-school wholesaler model.

5 New Travel Startups From China That Challenge the Status Quo

Airlines

American Airlines Expects to Catch Up to Delta With Its Basic Economy Strategy

Airfares in the U.S. are still near historic average lows, and a transatlantic fare war should last for more than a year. But after a delay, American is copying Delta's playbook. It aims to fix its profit margin problem by coaxing business travelers to pay more on routes worldwide by 2018.

Business Travel

WorldMate’s Retreat Leaves Itinerary-Organizing Rivals in Dogfight

WorldMate suffered as many smartphones and other services added free travel notifications. But TripCase and TripIt still have fans among many frequent travelers.

WorldMate’s Retreat Leaves Itinerary-Organizing Rivals in Dogfight

Online Travel

TripActions Raises $14 Million to Trim Rogue Bookings: Travel Startup Funding This Week

TripActions' funding adds buzz to a category of startups aiming to incentivize travelers to book travel more cheaply, while Bluesmart's fresh funding validates the electronic luggage category.

TripActions Raises $14 Million to Trim Rogue Bookings: Travel Startup Funding This Week

Hotels

5 New Travel Startups Put Niche Spins on Short-Term Rental Booking

Airbnb and HomeAway clones are a dime-a-dozen. But we found a handful carving out niche market segments that seem promising. These startups focus on travelers interested in corporate-friendly lodgings, architecture and design properties, Asia's top destinations, and exclusive luxury residences.

5 New Travel Startups Put Niche Spins on Short-Term Rental Booking

Airlines

United Signals It Wants a Better Deal with Reservation Middlemen

If United were Facebook friends with reservation systems like Sabre and Amadeus, it would have just changed its relationship status from "Friends" to "It's complicated." New President Scott Kirby is worried how those companies will display its new basic economy product to travel agents and (indirectly) to ticket buyers.

United Signals It Wants a Better Deal with Reservation Middlemen

Hotels

Stay Alfred Raises $15 Million to Bring Hotel Service to Short-Term Rentals: Travel Startup Funding This Week

Stay Alfred's $15 million Series A funding may pale next to the roughly $3 billion that Airbnb has raised. But the company — which services apartment rentals and aims for hotel-quality service — is part of a thriving wave of vendors providing an ecosystem of services around short-term urban rentals.

Stay Alfred Raises $15 Million to Bring Hotel Service to Short-Term Rentals: Travel Startup Funding This Week

Online Travel

ReviewPro Acquired by China’s Shiji at $35 Million Valuation

This is a decent exit for the investors in ReviewPro and a wake-up call to a Western hotel industry ignoring China's tech scene. But it is also a validation of ReviewPro's particular approach of giving hotels actionable analytics on guests for sales and marketing, and revenue management -- and not just monitoring TripAdvisor ratings.

ReviewPro Acquired by China’s Shiji at $35 Million Valuation