Fusioni & Acquisizioni

📦 Blastness acquires travel tech company Athena Solutions, expanding its portfolio with ErmesHotels brand software for the hospitality sector. This strategic move strengthens Blastness's Italian market presence, ensuring business continuity and managerial collaboration from Athena’s founders. In 2024, Blastness celebrated 20 years, matching Booking.com's direct booking volumes in Italy. Over 1,800 hotels will benefit from the merged services, signifying a growth opportunity for both companies.

🔴 Hotels in Los Angeles are providing shelter and supplies to residents evacuated due to wildfires in Palisades, Eaton, and Hurst. The international airport and port remain operational. Airbnb and VRBO are offering free temporary accommodations and refunds for cancellations in affected areas. The Los Angeles Tourism and Convention Board is offering information for assistance and support. Delta Airlines donated $1 million to the American Red Cross, adding to another $1 million grant for disaster relief.

🏩 Lufthansa to acquire a 41% initial stake in Ita Airways with a €325 million investment and plans a total investment of €830 million by 2033. Ita Airways, born from Alitalia's ashes, anticipates a closing date soon, hinted by CEO Carsten Spohr last week. The new board of directors, expanding from three to five members, will include three representatives from the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance (Mef) and two from Lufthansa, with Joerg Eberhart expected as CEO. Lufthansa also aims to hire around 10,000 new employees in 2025, with 2,000 flight attendants, 1,400 ground staff, 1,300 technical experts, 1,200 administrative personnel, and 800 pilots. An agreement extends extraordinary wage supplementation for 2,118 former Alitalia workers until October 31, 2025.

⛷ Over 250,000 people visited Friuli Venezia Giulia's six ski resorts during the holidays, a 34% increase from the previous year. From December 23 to January 6, there were 250,597 first entries, up from 187,075 last season. Piancavallo saw a 61.3% rise in visitors, while Tarvisio led with 85,581, a 49% increase from 2023/24. Visitors came from Veneto, Slovenia, Croatia, Austria, Germany, Poland, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic.

🏖️ Tui Group, under CEO Sebastian Ebel, evolves its business model focusing on strengthening and diversifying its travel package offerings. Aiming for full transformation towards a functional integrated market, it seeks to increase international presence and profit margins. A new unit targets growth in Eastern Europe, America, and Asia, adapting to global consumer travel trends with activities ranging from river cruises to tours.

📍 Hahnair welcomed 18 new carriers in 2025, expanding its network to over 350 airline partners globally. Travel agencies worldwide can now issue flights from these new partners with Hahnair's HR-169 ticket. Additionally, the company secured 12 more airline contract signatures currently in implementation. Seven new partner airlines have interline agreements available with their IATA codes on major GDSs, while the remaining 11 are classified as H1-Air or X1-Air products. New partners include carriers from Mongolia, USA, Hong Kong, Egypt, Peru, France, Haiti, Kazakhstan, Thailand, the Antilles, Denmark, Hungary, Netherlands, Costa Rica, UAE, Bhutan, Panama, and the Philippines.

🚂 Trenord saw a 7% increase in daily passengers in 2024 compared to 2023, from 713,000 to 762,000, with over 200 million journeys. Regio Express and Regional lines marked the highest growth, with over 9% increase, carrying 371,000 passengers daily. Suburban lines experienced a 4% rise on weekdays, reaching 356,000 passengers, while the Malpensa Express saw 35,000 daily movements. The S5 Varese-Milano Passante-Treviglio was the busiest suburban line with 58,000 weekday users, a 4% increase. The most popular RegioExpress was Milano-Brescia-Verona with 36,000 daily passengers (+10%). Regional lines peaked with Milano Cadorna-Saronno-Varese Nord at 29,000 (+11%). Saturdays and holidays surpassed pre-Covid figures, with a 19.7% and 16.8% increase, respectively.

🏕 MSC, through its Explora brand, is seeking to improve its presence in the luxury cruise market, as CEO Gianni Onorato acknowledges the company isn't as prominent as it should be. Onorato notes the challenge in Southern Europe, contrasting with more seasoned luxury cruise markets like the USA and Great Britain. MSC aims to design purely luxury itineraries to gain traction in this sector, encouraging Italian advs to favor the MSC brand, with optimism for significant satisfaction by 2025.

🏨 Velox Group, a national leader in hotel services, marks its 35th anniversary in 2025 and aims to exceed €100 million revenue in six years. In 2024, the company reported €65 million in revenue. The annual convention is set for January 10 at the Muraless Art Hotel, owned by Velox Group and part of BWH Hotels' WorldHotels Crafted brand. President Gianmaria Villa will outline new goals at the event, celebrating both the anniversary and significant achievements, emphasizing quality services and sustainable growth. Velox Group's expansion includes Velox Egitto in Cairo and Velox Hotellerie in Perugia, enhancing operational effectiveness and consolidating its leadership in outsourcing and hotel housekeeping.

🏨 Aldiana, the hotel division of Dertur, acquires Labranda Rocca Nettuno Tropea in Calabria, expanding Fti Group's offerings, which include the newly acquired Club Aldiana Andalucía. The Calabrian hotel features 290 rooms, a pool, restaurants, a beach bar, an open-air theater, and sports facilities. In 2023, Aldiana Club Side Beach opened in Turkey, while Aldiana Club Ampflwang and Fuerteventura were acquired. Aldiana Club Zanzibar Kwanza opened in November 2024, with further openings planned in Austria and Egypt.