David Wilson, general manager, Waldorf Astoria Dubai Palm Jumeirah
An icon on the Palm Jumeirah, the artificial archipelago than dominates the hospitality sector in Dubai, Waldorf Astoria Dubai Palm Jumeirah welcomes an elite client from around the world.

David Wilson, general manager of the hotel, says it brings to the market, his plans for the future and the likely impact of Expo 2020 on the United Arab Emirates.

He says the focus is always on delivering exceptional, consistent quality of service and creating memorable experiences for our guests.

It is easy to say, but of course much harder to deliver.

He further says at Waldorf Astoria Dubai Palm Jumeirah they have built a culture of engagement and service that has driven positive results for us over the years.

They have wonderful facilities in the hotel with some of the largest rooms available in Dubai, specialized dining opportunities such as Social by Heinz Beck and Lao, a wonderful private beach and selection of pools.

The main thing we want our guests to remember from a stay with us is the interaction with our team members and how we made them feel.

If you can achieve this, you have every opportunity to compete successfully with new hotels coming into the market.

It has changed enormously with new properties opening, new restaurants launching and soon more retail options with the new Nakheel Mall.

The quality of these developments is really outstanding, the Pointe is a good example and with the addition of the mall, guests and residents on the Palm will really have no need to leave.

David Wilson believes over the years the Palm has built a strong identity and has become a global destination in its own right.

There is no denying that the market has been under pressure this year with issues such as Brexit hampering tourism from the UK, for example, and the increased room inventory has put pressure on hotels.

I don’t believe there is as much pressure on the Palm perhaps as other areas, however, these increases in supply versus demand are normal in a growing industry and we certainly hope for stabilization as demand grows to fill the extra capacity.

Dropping rates is a desperate measure, it can create panic in the market and it’s not a strategy that we would advise as it is extremely difficult to build those rates back again after the demand picks up.

The Dubai World Expo 2020 is absolutely an exciting event for us and is coming at a good time for our business.

With many interesting features, entertainment and dining as well as technology and sustainability focuses, this will be attractive for regional and overseas tourists.

This Expo will also draw attention to the magnificent destination that Dubai has become, shining a spotlight on some of the best facilities and attractions in the world.

Exclusive and personalised lounge facility was recently rebranded to the Pearl Club, in recognition of the historical significance of pearls in the region and in Dubai in particular.

It remains one of the highlights of the hotel, a sanctuary for member guests.

Set on the fifth floor, overlooking the Palm and Dubai Marina skyline, it provides a real home away from home.

David believes having worked in many countries and regions in his hospitality experience, he believes they are very fortunate to have such a professional and active body in the DTCM.

Their promotions and awareness campaigns are without a doubt some of the best I have seen.

As a property, David says they receive regular market information and there are organised road shows to key markets which provide great support to the industry.

In the first quarter of next year, the awareness of Dubai Expo 2020 will be very high on the agenda in key markets which will start to translate into bookings and increased occupancy levels.

With ongoing and continued efforts, I am confident that together, we can reach the target.

A haven within the vibrant city of Dubai, the Waldorf Astoria Dubai Palm Jumeirah boasts a private soft-sanded beach, six distinct restaurants and lounges and elegant sea-facing guest rooms and suites.

Situated on the iconic Palm Jumeirah island, the property in a haven of tranquillity.

Tourism Observer

Tourism officials are boasting of what they say is a major milestone in the industry with 1.2 million visitors to Saint Lucia in 2018, a 10.2 percent increase overall.

They say the figure represents an increase of 13.6 percent in cruise arrivals and 26 percent in yacht arrivals.

The UK market continues to be a good performer in the industry.

The UK market is very encouraging, came in with a very strong December, Tourism Minister Dominic Fedee said at a press conference on Thursday. And this is despite all the uncertainty in the world about Brexit. We see the UK in December recorded an 18 percent increase.

He stated that this shows, despite all the challenges and obstacles, that the demand for Saint Lucia in the UK is still strong.

And this is something that we continue to build on and this is something that is very encouraging for the future trends of the industry, he said. I just want to let you know that we will not spare no effort to ensure that we do everything possible to maintain and increase those numbers.

Statistics show that 394,000 people stayed over on the island in 2018, with an overall growth of 10.2 percent over 2017.

Fedee said the impact of the increase on the local economy must be measured.

It’s to make sure that we institute what we call a tourism satellite account, he explained. So that we will be able to trace the tourism dollar step by step but while we are doing that, we are also working on on exciting project to enhance the revenue performance of the destination in all visitor area, in Pointe Seraphine, with our taxi drivers, with our vendors.

He said the project began with vendors.

Over 200 of them have been trained in our OECS Tourism Competitive Project, he noted.

Fedee said that feedback from local properties for the 2018-2019 season has been good and encouraging.

Very good actually, very good feedback, he said.

The tourism minister also stated that his ministry is working to have 2019 the best year and to surpass the 2108 figures.


Tourism Observer

Kenya Tourism Federation like many other Tourism, Travel and Hospitality stake holders are sharply opposed to Kenya Tourism Ministry cutting down of budget for Tourism exhibition attendance.

Are we not supposed under an agreement to have joint stands at tourism trade fairs, which includes Kenya?

Why are they suddenly breaking ranks with us?

Whatever they are trying to say, why not tell the truth that they failed to allocate enough money for tourism marketing this year?

Well let me tell them, if they are AWOL those of us who are at those trade shows will simply sell our own countries and Kenya’s loss will be our gain.

Entebbe and Kigali are now well connected to Europe, the Gulf and across Africa and it is no longer essential to fly through Nairobi to get here said a leading Ugandan tourism agent.

Another from Rwanda said This is an uninformed decision taken for lack of money surely and now trying to explain it away.

I speak of experience because we were told last year that permit fees for gorilla tracking had to be doubled for conservation reasons and we now know that this was equally poorly informed.

At least we still go to tourism trade shows and with the Kenyan competition absent we stand a better chance to sell those expensive permits.

Mohammed Hersi Chairman of the Kenya Tourism Federation made the following statement:
I am one of the few people who are opposed to the move by KTB to pull out of fairs. Even retaining ITB Berlin was after we raised hue and cry.

I do NOT recall any research or study that was done or shared with us for a buy in that indeed participating in these fairs is waste of time and money.

WTM London is mainly for UK agents and some European. It is even more crucial now that BREXIT is happening and UK is taking back Its rightful No 1 position as a tourist source for Kenya . ITB is for entire EU and other buyers

Indaba is mainly for Safari Buyers especially North America. Australia etc. ATM Dubai is for the GCC and Asia.

They talk of ROI. Firstly we have never been told how much we spend on these fairs besides we all fly ourselves and also pay for our accommodation we then share the cost of the stand.

The justification put forward is that we are now adopting a direct consumer approach does not hold any water since it is a known fact that as a safari destination you’ll always need a DMC who in turn works with wholesalers globally.

The logistics of attracting a do it yourself client for a safari itinerary is next to impossible more so when we are trying to attract families.

You tell me which family from Sydney or Seattle or Tokyo would attempt to do that?

Even with a DMC they are never sure about Africa. Kenya as a destination is not some Disney that we can wake up and claim to market direct to the consumer.

You bypass the wholesalers and you avoid the fairs then they’ll happily read your obituary to any potential visitor while our competitors will happily pick the pieces.

They have already done it at ATM Dubai and Indaba Durban and soon at WTM London.

We have no issue with digital campaign but that should complement other channels like fairs.

Even at our worst image crisis as nation like the PEV of 2007/8 while the peace accord was signed on 28th Feb 2008 the following week we were at ITB telling the world we are open for business.

Imagine for once if we missed out?

To KTB if fairs are a failure how comes the rest of the world are all attending?

What is that very special insight that KTB has that has been missed out by the rest of the world who are still wasting their time and money at these fairs so to speak?

If KTB is going digital how come the Tech zones at these fairs are getting bigger and better every year yet all they do is to trade online.

Why would Booking.com, Expedias and The likes "waste" their money at fairs yet they can comfortably do it in a digital way besides that is precisely what they are Online Travel Agents OTA’s.

Where would you meet 30 buyers from 4 continents and 20+ source countries in 3 days?

If you were to physically visit all these source countries to meet all these players you will blow your budget for the next three years.

Coca Cola President was asked by a young pilot why they spend so much money on advertising yet Coca Cola is already popular.

The President calmly responded to the young pilot “Why are we running the engine and yet we are already airborne.”

I am afraid pulling out of these fairs will negatively affect our destination while the competition is rubbing their hands with glee.

Well time will tell and as industry players we are exploring how to take ourselves to WTM London.

If that is to happen then KTB’s very existence will be under focus since marketing and promoting the destination is their first mandate which by default they would have abdicated.

I rest my case
Mohammed Hersi
Chairman
Kenya Tourism Federation

Wizz Air UK Limited, headquartered at London Luton airport, has announced being granted an Air Operator’s Certificate (AOC) and Operating Licence (OL) by the United Kingdom’s Civil Aviation Authority.

Wizz Air UK began operations on 3rd May with its first flight from London to Bucharest.

In the statement the airline highlighted that Wizz Air UK is set to operate 8 brand new Airbus A320 and Airbus A321 aircraft by the end of 2018.

This is an USD 860 million investment which will provide management, pilots and cabin crew with 300 new jobs at Wizz Air UK.

Jozsef Varadi, Chief Executive Officer at Wizz Air emphasized that Wizz Air UK operating license is a great achievement not only for the airline, but it also marks the start of a new era in air travel in the United Kingdom.

The airline is determined to gain advantage from Wizz Air UK as it is a key part of its Brexit contingency plan and also is the first genuine ultra-low cost carrier licensed in the UK.

Therefore, the CEO of the company said that the airline’s continued expansion will mean additional investment and jobs in the UK as we build on our current position as the 8 largest airline operating in the UK.

Everyone in the WIZZ team is delighted to see operations begin under the Wizz Air UK flag, as we bring ever more low fare opportunities to our UK customers to explore our network of exciting destinations from the UK.


Tourism Observer

There is a great deal of negativity in the UK hospitality industry surrounding Brexit but I believe there are some positive outcomes for the sector.

In the recent months after Britain voted to leave the European Union, we have seen a significant drop in devaluation of the British pound which has made the UK an attractive place to travel for tourists and shoppers. This has been particularly good for North American tourists to visit the UK as the Euro has also devalued against the dollar. There is really no better time to visit Britain than now.

This is bound to boost the hospitality businesses in the UK if the pound devalues further especially if Brits choose to stay in the UK for holidays, which will further feed the UK economy and keep the hotels on the seaside towns bursting at the seams. Brits spent £20 billion pounds on holidays within EU countries in 2015 that proves to be a whopping 60 per cent of all travel expenses abroad. Even if we spent a small percentage of that due to the falling pound, it will provide a significant boost to the UK economy.

According to Ufi Ibrahim, CEO of the British Hospitality Association, the UK hospitality industry could also benefit tremendously if the government lower the tourism VAT to 5 per cent, as this will entice foreign travellers to visit Britain and contribute to the hospitality industry.

Currently visitors pay three times as much VAT compared to Germany, France, and Scandinavia and twice as much as Portugal, Italy and Spain. However, this is at odds with stats from the Office for National Statistics, which has reported evidence of economic growth for hotels and restaurants up 1 per cent in the first quarter following the Brexit vote, and up by 2 per cent in the second.

The research conducted by Deloitte/Tourism Respect found that this will boost the investments in coastal seaside towns that operate small independent hotels, pubs and cafes. Research also forecasted that it will contribute an additional £2.6 billion to Her Majesty’s (HM) Treasury between now and 2025 and generate 80,000 more employment opportunities.

We should also see increased number of tourists coming to the UK this summer with the pound dropping and the market picking up from countries like US and China. William Kirby, General Manager of Co Fermanagh’s Lough Erne says he sees Brexit as a good thing and adds “commercially we are being successful and we would like to be driving that even further”.

Moreover, in terms of employment, the UK will still be able to operate under the Economic Law by forging a new trade relationship with the European Union. This new agreement will allow those European workers to continue with their employment within the hospitality sector in the UK. A quarter of the hospitality workforce is made up of migrant workers from EU and in bigger cities like London, this could be half of the workforce. As a result, no doubt we are bound to see a decrease in migrant workers in the UK depending on the negotiations.

Nevertheless, the benefit for those who wish to work in the industry could be far greater than ever before, and a significant rise in new job roles will be on offer for UK citizens in the long run. Challenges to fill up the roles as quickly as they appear may be daunting, but this will further provide opportunities to maximise on productivity with the right training for employers.

With many years spent in the industry, I would also argue on the severe exploitation of European migrants who are lured into working in skilled job roles with no prior experience of the industry or training. It is merely a choice for a better life for a migrant worker on a hope to make five times higher in wages than which they will receive in their home country. In the last decade or so, this is an incentive taken by many companies to lower the cost on recruitment and selection process.

Therefore, Brexit will reinforce the HR strategies for companies on recruitment, training, and retention, in an industry which is facing an endemic issue of staff turnover. Over time this transformation will create a better working relationship between employees and employers, and we can see a significant rise in standards that is so poorly managed within the industry.

According to William Reed HIM Research and Consulting, research discovered that small and independent hospitality industry employers were keen to leave the European Union. Out of the 46 per cent of industry employees and companies surveyed, 39 per cent voted to leave and only 36 per cent to remain. The UK hospitality industry currently trades only less than 30 per cent with EU suppliers, so the employers felt confident in continuing with their relationship despite the result, and felt reassured by them that the business will carry on as normal.

For the UK citizens working abroad in the hospitality sector, Brexit could mean a bad deal as they may not be allowed to work overseas easily. However, this will provide more opportunities for employers to hire skilled workforce who will come back to the UK with substantial international experience from places like Dubai, United States, Caribbean, and South East Asia where standards are a lot higher than the one compared to the UK hospitality industry.

As there is a lot of speculations from hospitality employees and the public in general about Brexit, it is uncertain as to what it really means to the hospitality industry. However, now that the negotiations have begun between UK and the European Union, tremendous opportunities lie ahead for those who are passionate of building this great industry. We must focus on maximising the opportunities to take the industry to another level, and not be discouraged by the challenges ahead.

Fianna Fail spokesperson on Tourism Robert Troy TD has warned that up to 10,000 jobs in the tourism industry are at risk as a result of the ongoing turmoil caused by Brexit.

Deputy Troy pointed out that the latest figures available from the Central Statistics Office show that British tourist arrivals to Ireland are down 6% for the period December to February.

“The tourism industry has been hit hard by the fallout associated with Brexit,” he said.

“The weakening of the sterling, coupled with the uncertainty surrounding the ongoing negotiations, has resulted in the Irish tourism industry facing its biggest challenge since the global recession.

“The latest figures made available by the CSO show British tourist arrivals to Ireland declined by 6% between December and February but what’s even more alarming is the fact that, looking at February alone, there was a decline of 22% compared to the previous year.

“This demonstrates that the negative impact of Brexit on the tourism industry is accelerating. If this trend continues then there will be 850,000 fewer arrivals from Britain to Ireland.

“The tourism industry employs up to 220,000 people in Ireland. The Irish Tourist Industry Confederation estimate that some 10,000 jobs are at risk as a result of the uncertainty caused by Brexit.

“The government needs to take action to protect the tourism industry from the ill-winds associated with Brexit.

“Failure to do so will set the industry back many years considering 41% of total overseas visitors to Ireland arrive from Britain.

“Minister for Tourism Shane Ross’s failure to bring forward a new overarching tourism policy document aimed at dealing with the consequences of Brexit is deeply worrying.

“This should be a top priority for his Department and he should be coming forward with a plan to limit the impact of Brexit alongside growing Ireland’s reputation as a tourism destination abroad to allow the industry to continue expanding,” concluded Deputy Troy.

European Parliament has voted to end visa-free travel for Americans within the EU.

It comes after the US failed to agree visa-free travel for citizens of five EU countries – Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Poland and Romania – as part of a reciprocity agreement. US citizens can normally travel to all countries in the bloc without a visa.

The vote urges the revocation of the scheme within two months, meaning Americans will have to apply for extra documents for 12 months after the European Commission implements a “delegated act” to bring the change into effect.

The Commission discovered three years ago that the US was not meeting its obligations under the reciprocity agreement but has not yet taken any legal action. The latest vote, prepared by the civil liberties committee and approved by a plenary session of parliament, gives the Commission two months to act before MEPs can consider action in the European Court of Justice.

Australia, Brunei, Japan and Canada were also failing in their obligations, but all four have lifted, or are soon to lift, any visa restrictions on travel for EU citizens.

The Commission is legally obliged to act to suspend the visa waiver for Americans, but the European Parliament or the Council of the European Union have the chance to object to the “delegated act” it uses to do so.

In December, MEPs pressed for the move in order to “encourage” Washington to play its part, according to a statement by the parliament.

But Migration Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos warned of “consequences”, including potential “retaliation” and a drop in visitor numbers precipitating substantial losses for the continent’s tourism industry.

Just days ago the Council said it would liberalise the visa regime for citizens of Georgia travelling into the EU.

Georgians can now, subject to final approval of the regulation, stay in any EU country for 90 days in any period of 180 days without needing a visa.

Carmelo Abela, Malta’s minister for national security, said: “This agreement will bring the people of Georgia and the EU closer together and will strengthen tourism and business ties. It follows the completion of the necessary reforms by Georgia, addressing document security, border management, migration and asylum.”

Last month it was reported that the EU was considering the adoption of a US-style electronic travel permit scheme – a move that could create a new administrative hurdle for British tourists after Brexit.

Immigration minister Robert Goodwill told Parliament the EU was discussing the possibility of introducing a version of America’s Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA).

Currently foreign travellers must pay a fee of $14 (£11) when they complete ESTA, an automated online system that determines their eligibility to travel to the US.

“British people are now used to the US ESTA scheme and, therefore, we view with interest how the European scheme might develop and what similarities, and differences, there may be to the US scheme,” Mr Goodwill said.

“This type of scheme is generally there to help enhance security. To get to know as much as possible about the people who are intending to travel.

“It isn’t just flights, it could be people using ferries, or other border crossings into the European Union.”

Alan Brown, an SNP member of the European Scrutiny Committee, pointed out that Leave advocates in the referendum campaign had said there would be no need for visa-like travel schemes after Brexit.

Tourism prospects for Barbados remain negative despite Tuesday’s ruling by the Supreme Court in Britain that parliament must give the go-ahead for the government to begin talks to leave the European Union (EU), political scientist Peter Wickham has said.

The judgment means that Prime Minister Theresa May cannot begin talks with the EU until MPs and peers give their backing –– although this is expected to happen in time for the government’s March 31 deadline to trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty and get formal exit negotiations with the EU underway.

“I think the obvious implication is that the direction of the UK out of the Brexit still holds . . . . The pound has continued to slide . . . the environment in the UK is extremely unstable economically and I think the level of uncertainty which will affect our tourism is still very real,” Wickham said.

He said there was nothing to suggest that the ruling would help people feel more comfortable about the situation to the point where Barbados’ tourism would benefit.

“This decision has not helped the situation,” Wickham insisted.

Soon after the ruling was announced, Brexit secretary David Davis promised a parliamentary bill “within days”.

The measure is expected to receive approval with both government and opposition parliamentarians promising not to derail the process.

During the Supreme Court hearing, campaigners had argued that denying the UK parliament a vote was undemocratic and a breach of longstanding constitutional principles.

The Guyana-born investment manager Gina Miller, one of the campaigners who brought the case against the government, said her victory was “not about politics, but process”.

U.S. airlines have been on a good run recently, with every larger carrier reporting steady profits and healthy margins.

This is a big deal, considering the industry lost a combined $28 billion as recently as 2005, a figure that included special charges.

Yet, there’s a surprising pessimism from many investors, as carriers struggle with higher fuel prices and labor costs than a year ago, as well as lower unit revenues. Absolute profits remain impressive — Delta Air Lines in October reported adjusted pre-tax income of $1.9 billion for the third quarter — but investors and airline executives often focus on another metric, and it has been trending downward, industrywide.

Insiders often obsess over passenger revenue per available seat mile, or PRASM, which measures how much passenger-related revenue an airline makes for each seat it flies one mile. United Airlines made 12.64 cents in passenger-related revenue for each flown mile in the third quarter, a number that fell 5.8 percent year-over year. United blamed the decrease in part on lower ticket prices, as well as less revenue from its corporate customers in the oil and gas sectors. Southwest, meanwhile, earned 12.32 cents in passenger revenue per available seat mile, off 5 percent year-over-year.

“The fare environment is very competitive and we have seen an increase in competitor seats in our markets that is fairly significant year-over-year, and so that obviously has an impact on us,” Southwest CEO Gary Kelly said on the airline’s third quarter earnings call.

No matter how large overall profits, or how high margins, investors likely will remain skittish until PRASM trends turn positive. This is especially true now that costs at nearly every airline are increasing. One problem: As airlines have consistently made money, many unions have demanded and received higher wages.

Travelers may not think that matters to them, but it does. To reach their goals, airlines must increase revenues, and the best way to do that is by charging customers more money for fares and ancillary items.

“The challenge is to get RASM back positive and we’re optimistic that’s exactly what we’ll be doing,” Delta CEO Ed Bastian said on his airline’s third quarter earnings call.

Travelers shouldn’t expect any across-the-board fare increases. The industry is too competitive for fares to jump rapidly. But around the edges, carriers will be doing what they can to increase unit revenues.

After the 2008 financial crisis, when U.S. carriers started first making money, they practiced something called “capacity discipline.” Even as demand increased, the largest airlines put relatively few new seats in the market, a move that gave them pricing power.

Airlines were so committed to “discipline” that in 2015, the U.S. Department of Justice opened an investigation into possible collusion, asking Southwest, American, United and Delta for data relating to their strategy. The airlines have denied the charges. Many consumers filed collusion-related lawsuits against the airlines, and those cases continue.

But nothing hurts capacity discipline like cheaper fuel. When fuel is less expensive, previously marginal routes look better, and airlines add flights. Eventually, that leads to lower fares, and less revenue per available seat mile.

“When you’ve got this much cash running around, everybody’s chest falls out a little bit and we all feel real good, real smart and real tough in many cases,” Allegiant Air CEO Maury Gallagher, perhaps the most out-spoken U.S. airline CEO, said in October 2015.

Most airlines now say they’ll grow less in 2017 to better match capacity with supply. Many airlines are planning low single digit growth next year, with even less growth expected in the trans-Atlantic sector, where Brexit and terrorism concerns have hurt revenues.

“We need to be more conservative with our growth,” Southwest’s Kelly said.

On many days, there is more seat supply than demand. When this happens, airlines generally have two choices, they can discount, or they can fly at lower load factors. U.S. carriers seem to be doing a bit of both.

But there’s a major exception. Even in the new paradigm, there are many days when demand is greater than supply, so on the most popular days — when the market can handle it — airlines may increase prices.

Travelers could still see fire-sale prices on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays when business and leisure travel lags, and higher fares at other times. Airlines may try to raise prices on Fridays and Sundays, as well as around major holidays.

“One thing that hasn’t changed in my 30-years in the business is Friday and Sunday remains the very best days,” Spirit Airlines CEO Bob Fornaro said on Oct. 25. That has never changed and there’s a lot of opportunity for us when we run 90 percent load factors to enhance the average fares on those days without changing fares during the week.”

At times this year, large U.S. airlines have done something previously unthinkable: They have discounted last-minute tickets.

A business traveler might be able to buy a ticket a day before departure from Chicago to New York for $69, one way. That’s usually a price travelers can only find weeks in advance, with last-minute tickets on busy routes going for $400 or more.

Nearly every airline except for deep-discounters has complained about industry pricing for what they call “close-in” tickets. Most are hopeful airlines will revert to what worked in the past — high prices within a few days of departure. And with airlines paying more attention to unit revenue, more expensive last-minute pricing should return.

If an airline cannot raise its fares because of competitive reasons, it has another lever it use. It can raise ancillary fees for items like baggage and extra legroom seats.

An airline can raise prices across the board, or it can be more creative, perhaps by charging more for bags during peak periods, such as around the Christmas holiday. Both Spirit and Frontier Airlines have raised bag fees around school holidays, a trend that should continue. Travelers may not like it, but it is lucrative.

For bags, major airlines like American, Delta and United tend to prefer a one-price-fits all approach. But they have been sophisticated in how they vary pricing for extra legroom seats, and that should continue.

Airline executives hate fire-sales — think $39 or $49 one-way fares between major cities — but because carriers are fiercely competitive, if one airline puts them into the market, others usually copy.

Analysts often refer to these fares as “junk” or “garbage” or “trash” fares. They’ll still stick around, because sometimes heavy discounts are the only way to sell seats or fight competition. But some have predicted travelers will see fewer of them, at least from larger airlines.

On Allegiant Air’s third quarter earnings call, Lukas Johnson, vice president for network and pricing, said he is seeing fewer bargain fares from big airlines. Discounters like Allegiant will still sell those fares — Allegiant can make money through its fees — but for legacy carriers, it’s more challenging to charge that price and still make money.

“It’s not completely gone, but it’s improved,” Johnson said of the discounting environment. “Certainly, there’s still some aggressive fares out there still.”

For several years, the term Brexit has become a household name in not only countries in Europe but also countries around the world, being the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union.

In 2012, UK Prime Minister David Cameron rejected calls for a referendum on membership in the European Union. However, he did not rule out a referendum happening in the near future. Fast forward to 24 June 2016, the people in the UK gathered and voted after a heavily publicised and contested pre-referendum period by both the ‘Leave’ and ‘Stay’ camps.

In the end, 48.1% of those who voted preferred to stay and 51.9% preferred to leave. The vote was largely split by the greater London area and Scotland being in favour of ‘Stay’, whereas most other parts of the UK voted in favor of ‘Leave’.

Nowadays, currencies often reflect the health and prospective outlook of countries’ economies. Favorable forecasts yield currency value increments and adverse ones lead to value declines. With voters supporting a Brexit, the UK is on course for major changes and a significant amount of uncertainty surrounding future economic prowess.

No matter the duration of the actual Brexit negotiations, there will be a decrease in political and economic stability. As shown in Figure 1, the British Pound (GBP) dropped in value against key global currencies since the vote on June 24 and its value will likely remain low until the UK will be able to shed a light on a (bright) future path.

Foreign travellers will likely capture this opportunity to visit London and other popular destinations in the UK. Conversely outbound travel will be impacted, certainly among more value oriented travellers that constitute a large share of the European travel market. How about Asia Pacific?

The United Kingdom (UK) has voted to leave the European Union (EU). The so-called “Brexit” is the culmination of years of building anti-European sentiment in the UK, and it will immediately trigger a two-year negotiated exit from the EU once the Prime Minister formally invokes Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU). While the consequences of this decision naturally have a major impact across Britain’s society and economy, the impact on aviation will be particularly acute.

The gating question for how large the impact of Brexit will be on British aviation is whether UK will remain a part of the European Common Aviation Area (ECAA), which includes all of the EU member states as well as Norway, Iceland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Kosovo. Right now, as an EU member, British carriers may fly any route to and from any country in the ECAA (e.g. London – Athens), any route between two separate countries in the ECAA (e.g. Paris – Milan), and even domestic routes within any country in the ECAA (e.g. Berlin – Munich). Of course the same right applies to other European airlines (hence Ryanair’s massive operation at London Stansted).

Europe is by far the largest market for most UK airlines, whether through routes to and from the UK for the likes of British Airways and Monarch, or from bases in Europe for low-cost carriers (LCCs) like EasyJet. This makes maintaining access to the ECAA absolutely critical, and there is certainly a precedent for non-EU members to gain access to the ECAA. As long as Britain maintains access to the ECAA, the overall effects of Brexit would be muted, though the question of outside bilateral agreements would be solved separately. Moreover, the ECAA would require Britain to continue complying, to a certain extent, with EU aviation law.

While the EU is the primary market for UK airlines, it is by no means the only one, and right now the UK latches onto several open skies and bilateral agreements that the EU has signed with other countries, including notably the United States and Canada, with initiatives underway to expand access to Turkey, China, Brazil, and ASEAN (a conglomerate of Southeast Asian countries). With or without access to the ECAA under Brexit, the UK would likely need to either negotiate continued access to these bilaterals via negotiation with the EU, or enact its own bilateral agreements with these countries.

As now the UK has voted Brexit, here is some risk of losing access to the ECAA. In particular, a precursor to participating in the ECAA is “close economic cooperation” with the EU, which means a rather broad alignment with EU economic policy (including regulations). One of the big selling point for voters who supported the “leave” option is the potential for eliminating the most cumbersome of EU economic regulations, and indeed this is where a large part of the case for Brexit boosting long run economic growth. If Britain holds its ground on regulatory matters and negotiations with the EU turn acrimonious, its airlines could find themselves unceremoniously booted from the ECAA altogether.

The biggest losers in such a scenario would be the UK’s Low-cost carriers, particularly EasyJet, which has bases and routes all throughout Europe, the majority of which do not touch the UK at all. Without a strong bilateral access, it would be unclear whether EasyJet would be allowed to persist as an entity (in all likelihood its UK entity and European entities would have to be spun off from each other, with the latter transferred to new, European ownership). This would be a disastrous scenario for EasyJet, particularly if accompanied by bilateral uncertainty.

The effects are likely to be more mixed for the UK’s primary full service carrier, British Airways, as its focus is more on longer distance routes from its London Heathrow hub that would likely be maintained outside of the ECAA. Virgin Atlantic, without a short haul network in Europe at all, would be even more insulated. The flip side is that British Airways is more dependent on business travel, which would suffer in the wake of a likely post-Brexit recession (particularly on its European network), and Virgin Atlantic would see similar effects.

For British Airways, the other risk comes in the form of its parent company, International Airlines Group (IAG), which now includes Spain’s Iberia, low-cost carrier Vueling, and Ireland’s Aer Lingus. IAG’s transnational holdings structure is only allowed as a result of the EU’s existence. IAG has generated significant benefits for British Airways, many of which would disappear if British Airways was forcibly spun off in the wake of Brexit.

In general terms, Brexit would cause plenty of harm to Britain’s full service carriers. The one saving grace for the airlines (though certainly not one for consumers), is that Britain might be able to negotiate more aggressive bilateral agreements that curtailed access for the so-called Middle East Big 3 (or perhaps for all but IAG investor Qatar Airways). Perhaps of more interest would be restricting LCC Norwegian Air Shuttle from flying long-haul, low-cost routes at London Gatwick. The long arc of protectionism would be an easy temptation for a Britain without the shackles of the EU (fitting tonally with “Leave”proponents,) but would be a disaster for consumers.

Beyond the airline industry, there are also aerospace considerations from Brexit, in particular the British operations of Airbus and the entirety of Rolls-Royce. These would be affected less by the specifics of the ECAA and more so by whether Britain remains a part of the European common market. As long as it remains, the impact on British aerospace industry would be limited. But if Britain exits the common market, it could wreak on Airbus for a while, and push the European airframer to shift jobs back to the continent.

The overall question of Brexit’s impact on British aviation and aerospace really depends on how severe Brexit actually is. If Brexit is more bark than bite, and the UK complies with the provisions to remain in the ECAA and common market, there will be almost no effect (perhaps a marginal decline in tourism as a result of having to obtain a visa). Conversely, if Britain is booted from the ECAA and common market, it would mean a massive upheaval for its airlines and aerospace companies.

In the long term, Britain may pay a high cost for last week's vote to quit the European Union (EU). That said, it could mean a low cost vacation for travelers.

Since the United Kingdom voted in favor of Brexit, the value of the British pound has fallen to the lowest levels in three decades.

"It's a great time to be in London, " Travel and Leisure News Director Sara Clemence told said "On the Money" in a recent interview. "If you are there now, if you were there last week, you saw things get 15 percent cheaper overnight," she said.

"Your hotel stay, your restaurants, your museum admissions everything."

A weaker pound means a stronger dollar and a cheaper trip for U.S. visitors, which according to Visit Britain, numbered 3.3 million in 2015. They spent a record $4.4 billion dollars.

Last week, Hotels.com said its site saw a 50 percent spike in searches for travel to Britain. So can a trip to England fit in your budget this year?

Even though the currency changes have an effect on the prices on the ground, she explained. for hotel and airfare prices, some of them may be changing but it's not like they're discounting them across the board, she added.

However, airfares are a lot lower than they were a couple years ago. A couple years ago you may have paid $1200 dollars, now you'll pay $500 or $600.

British Airways had a "Brexit" fare sale last week, selling economy fares from New York to London for as little as $639 round-trip.

Yet Clemence pointed out the cheaper fare trend is not due to Brexit, but instead were low-fare airlines that are going Trans-Atlantic, so they're just bringing down those costs tremendously. Wow Air and Norwegian are new low cost carriers offering flights from U.S. cities to London for about $500.

In the other direction, a record 4.9 million U.K. travelers journeyed to the U.S. last year, breaking the previous record set in 2000.

According to the Commerce Department, the U.K. was the third-largest source of international visitors to the U.S., behind only Canada and Mexico.

On the flip side, a weaker pound could mean fewer British tourists flying to multiple destinations within the U.S.

It just got much more expensive for Brits to come here," Clemence says, and we might see a dip in visits to places like New York and Miami and Chicago. That then might mean that prices will come down, which is good for domestic tourists too who want to visit those places.

If you do decide to make that trip to London, should you exchange your dollars for British pounds before you get on that plane?

Clemence said there were some strategies that you can use. If you think the pound is going to go back up, and you're planning a trip, you might think about buying your currency now. Before you go.

Clemence cautioned you need to factor in possible exchange fees. Since fees that you might pay could cancel out all the savings that you could get.

She also recommended using an ATM card or a credit card that doesn't charge you a foreign exchange fee.

That is generally the cheapest way to get cash when you're travelling overseas, she added.

The United Kingdom’s vote to leave the European Union (EU) is significant to Jamaica’s tourism industry, Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett says, but there’s no need to panic as every effort will be made to secure the UK market.

Last Thursday, in a referendum on Britain’s exit (Brexit) from the EU, the United Kingdom voted to leave the 28-member bloc.

Bartlett told the media over the weekend that the decision “is of significance to us in tourism for a number of reasons, perhaps, foremost of which is the fact that, based on the economic and political implications, it will have an impact on the travel and tourism community across the region.”

He noted that the Caribbean was most dependent on British visitors on this side of the globe and “it is important for us to consider what implications that will have on the flow of visitors into our destinations.”

“For us in Jamaica, the British market is our third largest and is a growing market and with it comes also important connectivity from other areas of Europe, so that whatever is happening in that economy, in that political space, is of tremendous interest and importance to us,” Bartlett noted.

He gave the assurance that proactive steps were being taken to secure the UK market, but said it was recognized that the immediate short-term impact was the devaluation of the British pound in the wake of the Brexit vote.

This, the minister noetd, had implications for British travellers and their ability to afford visits to the Caribbean and Jamaica, “especially against the background that our prices are predicated on the US dollar.”

On a positive note, he suggested that the immediate impact on arrivals for Jamaica “may not be severe at all.”

“Our immediate market arrangements are covered by a series of packaging which have taken place already; payment for which have either been in the system already or are about to be made,” he explained.

However, Minister Bartlett said Jamaica had to look beyond the next winter season.

“As a result I will be leading a team to the UK in September for the Jamaica Travel Market and thereafter to do a roadshow in the British Isle,” he said, stressing that this is important to shore up partnerships in the area and bolster the country’s market position in relation to the type of products, pricing and general arrangements that will be made “to ensure the competitiveness of destination Jamaica.”

“We are always proactive and, interestingly, our programme for the UK in fact predates the results of the UK’s referendum. So we will continue to monitor the situation and take additional steps as required,” the tourism minister added.

MANY UK holidaymakers travelling abroad will pay more for foreign currency as the pound plunged to its lowest level since 1985 following the EU referendum.

Sterling was down against every single major currency group.

The pound crashed 10% against the dollar overnight to 1.33 US dollars, a low not seen in 30 years.

This could make the UK a more affordable destination for overseas tourists.

The victory for the Leave campaign is unlikely to have any immediate ramifications for UK tourists passing through immigration controls abroad, or for inbound tourism.

A spokesman for Heathrow Airport said: "Anyone travelling through the airport will find it operating normally with no changes to security and immigration."

Bill Gibbons, director of industry body Discover Ferries, which represents 12 ferry companies, insisted that the vote will not have an impact on summer travel plans.

"Ferries will continue to travel as normal and there will be no changes to routes or schedules," he added. "It will be business as usual."

Joel Brandon-Bravo, UK managing director of travel deals company Travelzoo, warned that the referendum result would have an impact on the tourism industry in several ways.

He said: "The next 24 months of negotiations will be crucial for British travel - particularly if the UK Government wants to maintain inbound tourism from the EU, and avoid a price hike for Britons wanting to travel abroad for holidays.

"Obviously top priority is dealing with the impact the referendum result will have on the value of the pound, but there are other factors that could make the result a big blow for the travel industry."

Mr Brandon-Bravo urged the Government to quickly negotiate how an independent UK will operate in the European Common Aviation Area.

Travel organisation Abta warned during the referendum campaign that foreign travel was "likely to become more expensive" following Brexit.

The fall in the value of sterling, after a sharp rise earlier in the week, had tourists rushing to exchange money.

The euro was in particular demand, with the pound down more than 5% against the currency at €1.2398 in Friday trading.

At the travel money operation at the Post Office, Andrew Brown said holidaymakers should "watch currency movements very carefully".

The pound plunged to its lowest level since 1985 following the EU referendum. Sterling was down against every single major currency group, falling 10% against the dollar overnight to $1.33, a low not seen in 30 years.

Throughout the night the Thomas Cook had been offering euros for click-and-collect at Thursday's favourable rate of €1.27 to the pound, despite the fall in the value of sterling in the wholesale foreign exchange market.

A rush of demand from holidaymakers trying to protect themselves against the fall led to queues snaking outside the doors at some Thomas Cook outlets this morning.

The company suspended the online service to make sure that its counters did not run out of cash.

A Thomas Cook spokesperson said: "We have temporarily suspended our travel money website following unprecedented customer demand for foreign currency overnight and this morning.

"We apologise to all customers affected. Our immediate priority is to ensure that we have enough currency in store to fulfil outstanding orders. We hope to be back up and running as soon as possible."

Ian Strafford-Taylor, chief executive of currency provider FairFX, said the reaction of the pound to Brexit could signal "longer term volatility", with holidaymakers "directly impacted".

He said: "Those consumers who did not stock up on their holiday money may find their holiday now becomes more expensive this year, if weak pound-euro rates continue into the summer."

Andrew Brown, of Post Office Travel Money, which accounts for around a quarter of all UK foreign exchange transactions, urged holidaymakers to "watch currency movements very carefully".

He said: "For those who have not yet booked their holiday but are planning to travel abroad during the summer or later in the year, it will be well worth doing some homework before making a decision.

"Choosing a destination where sterling is strong and also where the local cost of living is low could make a significant difference to how far the holiday budget will stretch."

Joel Brandon-Bravo, UK managing director of travel deals company Travelzoo, warned the referendum result would affect the tourism industry in several ways.

He said: "The next 24 months of negotiations will be crucial for British travel - particularly if the UK Government wants to maintain inbound tourism from the EU, and avoid a price hike for Britons wanting to travel abroad for holidays."

Tour operators in India expect a spurt in the number of travellers to the UK and Europe as a sharp fall in the British pound (GBP) value may make these destinations cheaper post Brexit. "The pound has depreciated against the rupee.

This would mean that travelling to the UK will be cheaper for Indians. This will aid our outbound business for the remainder of the year," Cox and Kings Ltd CFO Anil Khandelwal said.

Yatra.com President Sharat Dhall said: "Brexit has resulted in a big drop in the value of the pound and if this trend remains then we could see a surge in leisure tourism to Britain, as it will become significantly cheaper.

However, it is too early to establish that a weakness in pound will be sustained and we are yet to see any surge in travel bookings to the UK.

A drop in the Pound could also result in an increase in students from India choosing the UK as a destination as it will make education significantly cheaper there."

MakeMyTrip spokesperson said with British pound dropping, there is a possibility that of an increased number of travellers from India to UK and EU nations.

In a historic development, the UK has voted to leave the European Union after 43 years as 'Brexit' camp trumped 'Remain' supporters in a down-to-wire referendum with far reaching implications for the world.

Many UK holidaymakers travelling abroad will pay more for foreign currency as the pound plunged to its lowest level since 1985 following the EU referendum.

Sterling was down against every single major currency group.

The pound crashed 10% against the dollar overnight to 1.33 US dollars, a low not seen in 30 years.

This could make the UK a more affordable destination for overseas tourists.

The victory for the Leave campaign is unlikely to have any immediate ramifications for UK tourists passing through immigration controls abroad, or for inbound tourism.

A spokesman for Heathrow Airport said: "Anyone travelling through the airport will find it operating normally with no changes to security and immigration."

Bill Gibbons, director of industry body Discover Ferries, which represents 12 ferry companies, insisted that the vote will not have an impact on summer travel plans.

"Ferries will continue to travel as normal and there will be no changes to routes or schedules," he added. "It will be business as usual."

Joel Brandon-Bravo, UK managing director of travel deals company Travelzoo, warned that the referendum result would have an impact on the tourism industry in several ways.

He said: "The next 24 months of negotiations will be crucial for British travel - particularly if the UK Government wants to maintain inbound tourism from the EU, and avoid a price hike for Britons wanting to travel abroad for holidays.

"Obviously top priority is dealing with the impact the referendum result will have on the value of the pound, but there are other factors that could make the result a big blow for the travel industry."

Mr Brandon-Bravo urged the Government to quickly negotiate how an independent UK will operate in the European Common Aviation Area.

Travel organisation Abta warned during the referendum campaign that foreign travel was "likely to become more expensive" following Brexit.

It published a report which stated that holidaymakers and business travellers may face increased costs if an exit vote leads to a fall in the value of sterling, while travel businesses may also raise prices in order to recoup the cost of new taxes and levies being introduced.

Another potential factor which could make travel more expensive is consumers needing to cover additional insurance costs if the UK leaves the European Health Insurance Card scheme, according to the report produced with economic analysis by Deloitte.

The research concluded: "In the longer term, following a Brexit, travel is likely to become more expensive."

Andrew Swaffield, chief executive of low-cost airline Monarch, responded to the study by saying that the UK leaving the EU could lead to an increase in air fares and a reduction in the number of flights.

United Kingdom's referendum vote to exit the European Union has led to a free fall of the pound, making travel to Britain cheaper. India's travel companies said they are likely to see a short term spurt.

"Brexit has resulted in a big drop in the value of the pound and if this trend remains then we could see a surge in leisure tourism to Britain, as it will become significantly cheaper," said Sharat Dhall, president of travel portal Yatra. Anil Khandelwal, finance chief of Cox & Kings said this would aid outbound travel for the company.

"A drop in the Pound could also result in an increase in students from India choosing the UK as a destination as it will make education significantly cheaper there," said Dhall.

Catch all the views, news and reaction on Britain's EU referendum here

Britain's decision to exit from the European Union led to a fall in markets and local currency. The benchmark FTSE 100 index fell by as much as 12% while the pound suffered its worst slump in three decades according to global media reports.

"with the GBP dropping, there is a possibility that we will see an increased number of travellers from India to UK and EU nations.

The long term impact on business travel and trade relations remains to be seen," said a spokesperson at Makemytrip, India's biggest travel portal however saying it was too early to make long term assessments.

Both Thomas Cook and Cox & Kings said their businesses were protected from the volatility.

"Our various businesses at Thomas Cook India, including the foreign exchange business remains fully hedged. The current volatility will not impact our core business in any way, however we will witness wide spreads in the currency trade for the short term and expect that the market will settle down and currencies will find their own levels.

On our product strategy, we constantly review prices in line with the input cost and that will remain unchanged," said Madhavan Menon, chairman of Thomas Cook India Group.

"Our operations in the UK in both Leisure - International and Education enjoy both revenues and costs in the same currency and hence there won't be any impact from the currency movement. Our Meininger hostel business is based in Europe and has both its revenues and its costs based in Euros. Hence, there is no material impact from the currency movements.

The Euro is stronger against the rupee on a y-o-y basis anyway. Some portion of our debt is denominated in GBP; the amount of debt will naturally reduce in rupee terms as a translational effect of the depreciation of the GBP against the rupee. So the leverage on the balance sheet will reduce," said Khandelwal of Cox & Kings.