What stays. What changes.

A short Christmas wishlist, and a look ahead to 2026 ✨

December 18, 2025

Hi there,

December has been a bit messy on my end. I usually love structure and routines, but the past few weeks have had a rhythm of their own…

It’s been a good reminder to pause and look back.

2025 was a strong year for FutureTravel, thanks to this community and the quality of conversations we’ve been able to have together. It’s been amazing!

As we start thinking about what’s next, I didn’t want to write a long reflection or do a lot of guessing games…

Instead, I’ve put together a small Christmas wishlist: what would you love to see from FutureTravel in 2026? new ideas & formats, or just more of what already works?

This only works with input from you.

But before anything else: thank you for being here. It really means a lot <3

We’ve partnered with Spendbase, a Google-backed spend management platform, to offer up to $100k in free AWS credits to early-stage startups in our community!

It's open to both new and existing customers, with an 85% eligibility rate. All you need is a startup under 10 years old and a live website on a corporate domain. Plus extra discounts on Atlassian, Slack, ClickUp, and more.

If cloud costs are on your mind right now, this is a solid one to look at ☁️

FUNDING SPOTLIGHT

Italian startup Bestie Bite recently raised a €700K round to build what feels like a much-needed layer in hospitality: authentic discovery, powered by real people and real experiences.

The platform uses short-form diner videos to make restaurant discovery feel more natural, tapping into how younger travelers actually decide where to go and what to book.

💬 “The travel and hospitality tech space needs accessible, innovative solutions built on the latest technologies (including AI) which many businesses still struggle to adopt.” says Carlotta Robbe Di Lorenzo, CEO of Bestie Bite.

A lot of operators are still finding it hard to adopt with newer tech, especially when it comes to marketing, loyalty, and payments. Bestie Bite is trying to make that simpler, starting with discovery and growing into a more all-in-one platform.

With this round in place, the team plans to take its first steps internationally.

FROM OUR RADAR 📡

🇮🇱 Duve raises $60M to scale its AI-driven guest experience platform for hotels, bringing more automation and personalisation into the stay journey.

🇩🇿 Völz secures $5M to modernise travel booking and operations across North Africa, pointing to growing regional momentum.

🇳🇱 There has been a lot of talks about Expedia’s move on Tiqets as it doubles down on experiences, with Airbnb passing and Expedia stepping in to strengthen its activities play.

🇳🇱 AirHelp acquires Trein Vertraging, expanding its passenger rights model beyond air travel and into rail.

Before checking out

Not funding rounds. Not product launches. Not deals. Just things we saw this week that made us think twice…

🎁 Keep the magic alive
Travelodge is offering free wrapping rooms for parents over Christmas. Nice idea, backed by some cute data to build brand love :)

👟 Adidas x hospitality
A sports brand dipped its toes on hospitality, with a pop-up hotel in London, built around athlete recovery and performance. Very niche - and spot on.

Happy holidays,
Ana 🎄

Thank you for reading until the end.

The content of this newsletter is curated and published by Ana Metz, an innovation expert, passionate about technology and excited about the future of travel.

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