Holidays
A Netflix cooking show is changing how people travel — and restaurants are seeing bookings jump 303%
SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA – DECEMBER 17, 2025: Participants Jung Ho-young, Hudukjuk, Monk Sunjae, Son Jong-won, producers Kim Eun-ji and Kim Hak-min, Yoon Jumo Yoon Nara, French Papa, Chinese Cuisine Witch, and Baby Beast pose during a press conference for the Netflix series Culinary Class Wars: Black and White Chef Season 2 at JW Marriott Dongdaemun […]
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‘Significant, but not catastrophic’: A fall in Chinese visitors barely dents tourism numbers to Japan
Visitors (L) dressed in kimonos look at photos they took during a visit to Sensoji Temple in the Asakusa district of central Tokyo on September 16, 2025. Richard A. Brooks | Afp | Getty Images After living in Tokyo for over a year, Karin Nordin noticed something peculiar. The hot spring towns of Kusatsu and […]
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Travelers are turning to AI to plan trips — but hallucinations and trust gaps remain
For many travelers, the process of planning their trips is a grueling slog through endless price comparisons and messy browser tabs. Increasingly, they are outsourcing the task to artificial intelligence. About 91% of global travelers rely on AI travel planners, according to an annual survey of 11,000 global users by travel platform Klook. Travelers use […]
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BTS comeback tour turbocharges concert tourism, with hotel searches jumping as much as 6,700%
Concert tourism is expected be one of the travel industry’s more lucrative drivers this year, according to Trip.com, and the upcoming global comeback tour by K-pop group BTS appears to be reinforcing that trend. Flights and hotel rooms at their tour locations — in 34 cities across Asia, North and South America, Australia, Europe and […]
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Cambodia’s tourism sector takes a hit from geopolitical tensions and scam hub stigma
Cambodia is struggling to recover its tourism sector, as geopolitical tensions and its growing reputation as a cybercrime hub keep tourists at bay. Once a key driver of the country’s economy, the industry has dwindled to make up 9.4% of its gross domestic product in 2024, compared to 12.1% in 2019, according to data from […]
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Vacations can be stressful—here are 3 ways to fully unwind, according to a psychologist
Monica Virga, a 38-year-old entrepreneur based in Norway, found it unsettling to go from a period of working 20 hours a day to almost zero while on holiday, she said. “I would… end up popping into my emails again and checking up on things with work that I didn’t need to be in,” she said. […]
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Watch CNBC’s full interview with Best Western CEO Larry Cuculic
CNBC’s “Squawk Box” team discusses holiday travel and travel trends with Best Western CEO Larry Cuculic. Source
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5 major trends set to shape travel in 2026
Traveling is no longer just about the destination – or even the journey. It’s about the experience you walk away with. Since the end of Covid, experience‑led travel has continued to evolve, shifting away from checking off landmarks and more towards meaningful trips that help travelers connect with the people and places they visit. CNBC […]
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Tanger CEO says retailers are ‘discounting to meet the consumer’ this holiday season
U.S. shoppers are willing to spend this holiday season — despite falling consumer confidence and anxiety over prices — but only if the deals are there, Tanger CEO Stephen Yalof told CNBC on Tuesday. “Retailers are discounting to meet the consumer, and the consumer is responding by shopping,” Yalof said on CNBC’s “Money Movers.” Yalof said […]
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Holiday retail spending rose 4.2% this season, driven by e-commerce and electronics: Visa report
Shoppers at the Glendale Galleria in Glendale, Calif., on Dec. 20, 2025, the final weekend of Christmas gift buying. Myung J. Chun | Los Angeles Times | Getty Images U.S. consumers showed resilience this holiday season, driving retail spending up 4.2% year over year, according to preliminary data released Tuesday by Visa. The report from […]
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