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1. Trump comments spark jump in oil prices
Markets reacted negatively to President Donald Trump's latest commentary indicating there will be an expansion of the U.S. war with Iran over the next few weeks, and oil prices jumped 13%, CNBC reports.
Higher oil prices are likely to translate to higher travel costs both in terms of gas and airfares.
Trump promised to hit Iran "extremely hard" but indicated the war won't last much longer.
“We are going to finish the job, and we’re going to finish it very fast,” he said.
2. Accor to sell off Essendi stake
Accor has reached a deal to sell its stake in Essendi, the hotel ownership platform formerly called AccorInvest that was spun off from the French hotel giant, Business Immo's Benoît Léger reports.
A consortium formed by Blackstone and Colony IM will buy the ownership stake worth up to €975 million ($1.1 billion).
The deal is expected to close in the third quarter and is subjected to approval by Essendi's other stakeholders.
3. Hotel exec says government must take ownership of seamless travel
Across the globe, airport and travel experiences vary greatly, and Radisson Hotel Group CEO Federico González Tejera says part of the problem is government entities don't take responsibility for the experience in the same way private companies do.
"Nobody owns it," he said at the International Hospitality Investment Forum in Berlin. "If any of us have to wait today for three hours in the airport, who pays? Who is responsible? ... When we work on public-private collaboration, you need either ownership and responsibility from the public sector or ownership and responsibility from the private sector that comes with concrete initiatives. But if there is no concrete responsibility, things cannot be moved, and that's why we've suffered."
4. Trump says presidential library will feature hotel
In comments about how he plans to handle his presidential library in Miami, President Trump noted he plans to approach it in a different way than past presidents and it will include a broader commercial real estate component, the Hill reports.
“It’s gonna be most likely a hotel, you know? This concept could be office, but it’s most likely gonna be a hotel with a beautiful building underneath and a 747 Air Force One in the lobby,” he said.
The property is being developed on land donated by the state of Florida and Miami Dade college.
5. As TSA workers return, spring break travel peaks
While staffing numbers have improved as TSA workers are once again being paid, some major airports are warning of heavy traffic from spring break travelers.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport is preparing for a record travel week with long waits at security checkpoints.