Fusion & Acquisition

📈 Expedia Group, on October 2023, announced at EXPLORE Connect: Vacation Rentals, it is expanding the distribution of Abritel through its international brands and B2B network. The event gathered hundreds of partners. The Premium Host program has been enhanced to ensure quality and reliability. New tools for hosts were revealed.

🛠 Airbnb, en mai 2025, dans 260 villes dont Paris, a lancé Airbnb Services, offrant 10 catégories de services: chefs à domicile, traiteurs, photographes, masseurs, soins spa, entraîneurs, coiffeurs, maquilleurs, manucures, disponibles même hors séjour Airbnb via l'application. Avec un budget marketing de 200 millions de dollars prévu pour 2025, Airbnb espère étendre ces services à toutes ses destinations, capitalisant sur la demande croissante de services personnalisés et bien-être.

💻 Giata, a Berlin-based hotel data expert, announced on September 11, 2025, its acquisition of Smartseer, a Frankfurt-based AI startup founded in 2023. Smartseer processes 50 million decisions monthly across ten markets. Giata, with over 20,000 clients in 80 countries and annual growth over 20%, aims to use Smartseer’s AI to offer highly personalized travel experiences. Smartseer will operate independently within Giata, leveraging insights from AI-trained models on two billion traveler journeys.

🗺 TUI Musement, a TUI Group subsidiary, integrated 750+ multi-day tours across 30 countries into TravelExchange in September 2025. This enhanced service provides travel agencies with real-time access, updated rates, and instant booking confirmation through an API connection. TUI Musement aims to streamline operations for over 2,600 agencies in 92 countries, particularly targeting European markets like Germany, Spain, France, and Italy. Featured destinations include Thailand, Costa Rica, Spain, and Italy, catering to diverse travel preferences.

✈️ Delta Air Lines will launch a direct flight from Boston to Nice Côte d’Azur on May 17, 2026, with three weekly flights on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. This expansion strengthens Nice’s connectivity after previous links to New York JFK in 2022 and Atlanta in 2023. In 2019, Americans comprised 9% of Côte d’Azur tourists, dropping to below 4% in 2020, but rebounded to over 15% by 2024, marking the U.S. as a crucial market for the region.

🏁 Fondée en 1996, Rusticae gère 210 établissements en Espagne, Portugal, Maroc, Andorre, et Italie. Barceló entre dans ce marché niche avec la récente acquisition. Sara Sánchez conserve 20% de l'entreprise. Barceló a réalisé 7,5 milliards d'euros de chiffre d'affaires en 2024, avec une augmentation de 56% des bénéfices nets. Rusticae se concentre sur le tourisme durable et culturel, proposant plus de 100 expériences locales.

✈️ Ryanair and Booking Holdings have partnered, ending years of conflict and allowing Ryanair flights to be booked via Booking, Priceline, Kayak, and Agoda starting in 2024. This strategic move opens new market potentials for both companies. Travelers can now manage flights and accommodations on Booking’s platforms, enhancing convenience and potentially offering better prices. Ryanair's vast network includes over 235 destinations, promising more choices and value for users.

🚀 Eve Air Mobility, a Brazilian eVTOL specialist and Embraer subsidiary, raised $230 million (€210 million) to advance its electric aircraft, Eve 100, for a 2027 launch. Investors include BNDES and Embraer. Shares priced at $4.85 are listed on the NYSE and São Paulo exchanges. The funding will cover costs in Brazil, aiming to tackle urban congestion. A deal with Future Flight Global foresees producing dozens of eVTOLs for the U.S. and Brazilian markets.

🛫 Webjet acquires Melbourne-based Locomote for $17 million (approx. €14.7 million), with an additional $6 million contingent on achieving EBITDA targets in three years. This acquisition accelerates Webjet's business travel expansion plan by three years, enabling savings, and introduces the "Webjet Business Travel" branding. Webjet aims to double its activities by 2030, focusing on international flights, package sales, hotel bookings, and loyalty mechanisms, retaining Locomote's leadership, including CEO Ross Fastuca.

💳 Booking.com launches the "Genius Rewards Visa Signature Credit Card" in the US, targeting travelers with rewards like 6% travel credits for bookings on its platform, and aims to boost direct reservations. Cardholders automatically become Genius level 3 members, enjoying 10-20% stay discounts. U.S. market holds promise, with direct bookings already rising from 60% to 65% in a year. Booking seeks to counter digital banks like Revolut, enhancing its travel ecosystem. Over 80% of cardholders desire improved travel experiences.