Skift Travel News Blog

The new Eurostar – which has been created following the merger of Eurostar and Thalys – has launched with a new brand identity, all underpinned by its new motto, ‘Together We Go Further’.

The launch, which includes a new website, mobile app and loyalty program, has kicked off with a new 60-second advertisement created by adam&eveDDB and DDB Paris, which will launch across the rail operators European destinations from 16 October 2023.

In addition to the TV spot, the campaign also features a number of out of home and digital elements, for which ten artists were commissioned from the cities served by Eurostar, with the aim of ‘bringing each destination to life’. 

“Travel inspires us and renews our sense of creativity, which we wanted to bring to life in our new campaign. We wanted to create the feeling of excitement customers feel when they are about to embark on a journey to discover Europe. We have packed the commercial and OOH ads with hidden details for the public to enjoy and discover the more they revisit, in the same way we explore our destinations,” said François Le Doze, chief commercial officer at Eurostar.

The Hoxton Hotel has launched ‘The Good Rate’, a new initiative designed to reward guests who choose to travel more sustainably whilst staying at its hotels. 

As the world continues to become more conscious of the environmental impact of travel, companies are encouraging travelers to undertake more sustainable travel practices. Under the new initiative, Hoxton will take £20/€20/$20 off the room rate at each location booked as part of a multi-Hox trip when navigated by rail.

The Good Rate forms part of a wider sustainability and social responsibility programme being undertaken by the group known as ‘The Good Stuff’, which includes eliminating single-use plastics by 2025, reducing food waste and providing support to neighborhood projects, charities, and shelters. 

To take advantage of The Good Rate, guests simply need to book their stay directly on the website and present a relevant train ticket at check-in.

At Skift, we are looking to unearth the most creative and forward-thinking innovations in travel through our Skift Ideas Franchise, which includes the Skift IDEA Awards, Skift Editorial Hub and the Skift Ideas Podcast.

You can listen and subscribe to the Skift Ideas Podcast through your favorite podcast app here.

The Royal Scotsman is set to launch the ‘Dior Spa Royal Scotsman’ in collaboration with Dior Beauty starting from April 2023. 

A new carriage dedicated to wellness will host the spa, with the French Maison’s wellness specialists having designed three personalized treatments, including the D-Travel body massage, D-Elements body massage and the D-Highlands facial. 

In addition to the Spa, the luxury train will also add novel journeys to its 2023 schedule that hone in on culinary and adventurous experiences. 

These journeys include the ‘Highland Survival Adventure’ crafted in association with travel experts WILDNIS, from June 30th to July 3rd, 2023, and ‘A Taste of Scotland with Michelin-starred Chef Tom Kitchin’, which is scheduled to run from September 4th to 6th, 2023.

This post is a part of Skift Ideas, which highlights exciting new creative projects, campaigns, designs, and future-making ideas across the travel industry. Skift will also feature a number of leading projects across travel at our 5th annual Skift IDEA Awards, which has become the travel industry’s most coveted achievement for excellence in innovation, design, experience, and now, automation.

Learn more at: https://live.skift.com/skift-idea-awards-2023/

Train and air services throughout France will be disrupted on Tuesday by a nationwide strike against pension reforms, French authorities said on Sunday.  

French rail operator SNCF said that it would operate only about half of its usual number of high-speed, domestic trains while one out of four trains on the Eurostar line to London would not operate. France’s civil aviation authority also said it expected delays and disruptions to hit airports although it would activate minimum services guarantees. The agency asked airlines to reduce flights out of Paris’ Orly Airport by 20 percent on Tuesday.

Tuesday’s nationwide strike is the third since the French government unveiled plans in January to raise the pension age by two years to 64. More than 1.2 million people took part in protests around France during the second round of strikes on January 31.

Chinese tourists have flocked to train stations over the past two weeks, with 109.5 million journeys made between Jan. 7 and Jan. 21 in the build-up to Lunar New Year celebrations, which took pace on Jan. 22.

That figure is a 27.3 percent increase on trips made during the same 15 days in 2022, local media reported, citing data from national railway operator China State Railway Group.

The increase is attributed to the sudden easing of Covid-related travel restrictions.

The total number of passenger trips for the 40-day Spring Festival travel rush is expected to reach 2.1 billion, which is twice as much as last year, or 70 percent of 2019, the report added.

The modernization of the country’s train stations also played a role, Global Times reported, with the number of stations carrying out online food delivery services increasing from 55 to 76.