Hotel distribution networks 2026 model showing direct agreements and micro GDS in hospitality distribution strategy

New hotel distribution networks Direct agreements, micro GDS and community sales as structural alternatives to OTA dependency

Odissey, Air Transport, Hotellerie, Innovation, Tour Operators

New hotel distribution networks Direct agreements, micro GDS and community sales as structural alternatives to OTA dependency Online Travel Agencies such as Booking.com and Expedia continue to control a significant share of hotel bookings, reaching up to 70% of demand in some segments. The cost of this exposure is well known: high commissions, often between…

Smart Seasons: De-seasonalisation Strategies That Create Desire in the Empty Times

Odissey, Air Transport, Hotellerie, Tour Operators

De-seasonalisation is not a tactical manoeuvre to fill gaps in the calendar. It is a strategic act of direction: deciding when a destination wants to be desired, by whom, and under what conditions. In periods traditionally considered “empty,” demand does not disappear. It changes its nature. It becomes more selective, more aware, more attentive to…

When flight carries meaning: EGYPTAIR between history, connections and the future

Odissey, Air Transport, Destinations, Tour Operators

Founded in 1932 and voted Best African Airline in 2025, EGYPTAIR is one of the world’s longest-operating airlines and a key player in connections between Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and North America. In a context of transformation in global air traffic flows, Egypt’s national carrier is strengthening its strategic positioning through network development, fleet…

Travelling informed in order to travel protected: The strategic role of digital tools in outbound travel safety

Odissey, Air Transport, Beyond Borders, Insights

In the contemporary lexicon of travel, the word safety is no longer confined to the idea of extreme risk or unstable destinations. It has become a structural component of the global mobility experience, both for leisure and for business travel. Delays, climate events, health crises, geopolitical tensions, localised incidents, or simple logistical disruptions have turned…

People queue-and-wait-with-man-in-airport-for-vac

At the Heart of the Unexpected: Delays, Cancellations, and the Fragile Pact Between Airlines and Passengers

Odissey, Air Transport, Insights, Tour Operators

Flight delays and cancellations have once again exposed the structural fragility of global air transport, especially during peak travel periods such as the New Year holidays. New Year’s Eve, by definition, is the symbolic moment when time seems to reset. People depart with the idea of leaving what has been behind and starting again with…

Conversational interfaces that truly sell: from the bot to the assistant that knows the catalog

Air Transport, Hotellerie, Innovation, Odissey, Tour Operators

In travel, the difference between a “nice” chatbot and an assistant that truly sells comes down to one word: context. A bot that answers generic FAQs eases the load on customer care, but rarely has a real impact on revenue. An effective conversational assistant, instead, is an operational node within the ecosystem: it knows the…

Fair Supply Chain: responsible purchasing, contractual fairness, and transparency toward the customer

Odissey, Air Transport, DMC, Insights, Tour Operators

Some concepts seem simple when read, but become sinuous when brought into the real world. A fair supply chain is one of these: an apparently linear idea that lives on frictions, compromises, local constraints, and operational conditions that change from country to country. Justice in tourism is never a formula: it is a shifting balance,…

Cities to Discover: When Small Capitals Become Cultural Bridges Between Europe, the Mediterranean, and the World

Air Transport, Destinations, DMC, Odissey, Tour Operators

There are cities that do not exist solely within their own geographies. Cities in which the perimeter does not define boundaries, but merely a point of departure. Urban spaces that cannot be explained by a map, because their identity moves along invisible routes, crossing histories, populations, cultural systems, and collective memories. These are bridge cities:…

The format that changes the rules when premium and low-cost are no longer enough

Odissey, Air Transport, Hotellerie, Insights, Tour Operators

For years, we have described the world of travel through a stark crossroads: on one side, low-cost, on the other, full-service. A choice that seemed forced, almost a natural law of the market. Yet, observing how people travel in 2025, this framework appears increasingly distant from reality. Today’s travelers move with a different sensibility: they…