Added 8 April, 2015
In major cities like New York, London and Tokyo the most precious amenity, of course, is space. For travelers to these cities, it can sometimes seem as though hotel rooms are getting smaller and smaller. Well, it's not your imagination because in fact, city hotel rooms have been shrinking. That's because the latest trend in hospitality is "micro-...
Added 8 April, 2015
A major trend in travel over the past few years has been towards airlines and hotels nickel-and-diming their customers for services and amenities that used to be included free. Charging for things like checking bags and early boarding are now said to add up to about $6 Billion a year for airlines. Similarly, many hotels now charge "resort fees"...
Added 8 April, 2015
AirBnB, the website that lets people rent out their homes to travelers is one of the leaders in the so-called "sharing economy" – a segment that also includes other high-flyers like the private taxi site Uber and any number of other sites that facilitate the sharing of everything from clothes to tools. From a trends perspective, peer-to-peer...
Added 1 October, 2014
Seems like every food these days has versions that are organic, small-batch, artisanal, hand-made, locally sourced, and sustainably grown... these are the new buzzwords of the food world. So it should come as no surprise that one of the latest foods to jump on this trend is popcorn. What with Europeans and healthists worrying about genetically-...
Added 1 October, 2014
Good hoteliers know that, these days, most of their guests are sharing their experiences on social media. The answer for the hospitality industry is to help facilitate their guests' online interactions by offering better ways to connect along with something good to write home about. Royal Caribbean, one of the world's largest cruise operators is...
Added 1 October, 2014
While we can't say whether whisky and haggis flavored potato chips will be a smashing success, we have been tracking a trend towards more exotic snack food flavors. In the USA, the largest maker of packaged snacks is Frito Lay, whose Lay's brand of potato chips extends to mango salsa, wasabi ginger, cappuccino, and bacon macaroni and cheese....
Added 2 September, 2014
A new push by major food companies is underway to address perceived (and often very real) shortfalls in corporate social responsibility. While the major beneficiaries of CSR recently have been the environment and the welfare of workers, companies are now turning their sights towards animal rights. Chief among these is Nestlé, one of the world’s...
Added 2 September, 2014
Green energy is booming. Renewables now produce 22 percent of the world's electricity, a number that will likely rise to 26 percent by 2020. The future is one that is less reliant on fossil fuels. But in some places, the future has already arrived. El Hierro, the smallest and least known of Spain's Canary Islands with some 10,000 residents, is...
Added 2 September, 2014
People of a certain age remember when the names of clothing manufacturers only existed on labels sewn into the inside of garments. It wasn't until the 1980s that brand names started to be emblazoned prominently on the front of clothes, a phenomenon that allows people to "show off" their good (read: bad) taste. The strange prominence of designer...
Added 27 August, 2014
While only a scant 1.3-percent of the general population is said to be allergic to peanuts, many airlines have done away with the popular snack to please a small but vocal group of people who are allergic to them. Fact is, the number of people suffering from allergies in general has been rising in the world over the last decade. While no one is...