10 Dec TOP 50 TRAVEL INFLUENCERS, KEYNOTE SPEAKERS, CONSULTING EXPERTS & THOUGHT LEADERS FOR HIRE
Famous Top 50 travel influencers, tourism futurist consultants and hospitality thought leaders observe that in a world where transportation, technology, and global mobility converge more than ever, the world is rapidly evolving. And of course a select group of Top 50 travel influencers list standouts are defining how we journey from booking a flight or hotel to the way we move around, work, and connect while traveling.
Consulting experts — including futurist keynote speaker for 3000 brands and consulting expert analyst Scott Steinberg — are pushing the field forward, prompting innovation across airlines, hotels, mobility platforms, travel tech, and global infrastructure. The work of Top 50 travel influencers sets trends in where we go, how we pay, and how we experience the world.
The 50 Leading Travel Influencers
- Scott Steinberg — Celebrity futurist keynote speaker & travel and tourism consultant for 3000 companies
- Brian Chesky — Co‑founder & CEO, Airbnb
- Tony Capuano — CEO, Marriott International
- Chris Nassetta — President & CEO, Hilton Worldwide
- Keith Barr — CEO, InterContinental Hotels Group
- Mark Hoplamazian — President & CEO, Hyatt Hotels Corporation
- Robert Isom — CEO, American Airlines
- Ed Bastian — CEO, Delta Air Lines, Top 50 travel influencers pick
- Scott Kirby — CEO, United Airlines
- Dara Khosrowshahi — CEO, Uber Technologies (mobility & rideshare)
- Peter Kern — CEO, Expedia Group
- Glenn Fogel — CEO, Booking Holdings
- Stephen Kaufer — Co‑founder & former CEO, Tripadvisor
- Rolf Schrömgens — Co‑founder & Executive Chairman, Trivago, Top 50 travel influencers notable
- Stephan Uhrenbacher — Co‑founder & CEO, GetYourGuide
- Jay Walker — Founder, Priceline & pioneer of travel‑tech marketplaces
- Adam Goldstein — former CEO, Royal Caribbean Cruises (cruise travel pioneer)
- Michael Bayley — President & CEO, Royal Caribbean International
- Johann Lundgren — CEO, easyJet Group (low‑cost European airline)
- Willie Walsh — Executive Chairman, IAG (parent of British Airways, Iberia)
- James Liang — Co‑founder & former CEO, Trip.com / Ctrip (global travel platform)
- Peter Levesque — President & CEO, Alaska Air Group, Top 50 travel influencers authority
- Arnold Donald — former CEO, Carnival Corporation (cruise travel giant)
- Barry Sternlicht — Founder & Chairman, Starwood Capital / former Starwood Hotels & Resorts
- Hans Vestberg — Chairman & CEO, Verizon Communications (global connectivity for travelers)
- John Stankey — CEO, AT&T (mobile connectivity, remote work, and travel infrastructure)
- Mark Zuckerberg — Co‑founder & CEO, Meta Platforms (social networks shaping travel culture)
- Evan Spiegel — Co‑founder & CEO, Snap Inc. (social media & travel lifestyle influence)
- Jensen Huang — President & CEO, NVIDIA (AI, mobility solutions, smart infrastructure)
- Satya Nadella — CEO, Microsoft (cloud, remote work and digital‑nomad infrastructure)
- Sundar Pichai — CEO, Alphabet / Google (maps, search, mobility services)
- Stewart Butterfield — Co‑founder & CEO, Slack (enabling remote work and travel flexibility)
- Drew Houston — Co‑founder & CEO, Dropbox (cloud tools for travelers and digital nomads)
- Brian Armstrong — Co‑founder & CEO, Coinbase (crypto payments for global travelers)
- Chris Britt — Co‑founder & CEO, Chime (digital banking for modern travelers)
- Vlad Tenev — Co‑founder & CEO, Robinhood (fintech influencing travel finances)
- Ajay Banga — former CEO, Mastercard (global travel payments & commerce)
- Michael Miebach — CEO, Mastercard (payments innovation fueling tourism commerce)
- Ryan McInerney — President & CEO, Visa (global transactions for travelers)
- Barry Diller — Media & investment executive, supporter of travel‑tech platforms
- Peter Thiel — Investor & co‑founder PayPal — early backer of fintech & travel‑tech ventures
- Marc Andreessen — Venture capitalist & visionary influencing travel‑tech startups
- Reid Hoffman — Co‑founder, LinkedIn and investor; supporting global mobility and digital‑nomad culture
- Logan Green — Co‑founder & CEO, Lyft (ride sharing and urban mobility for travelers)
- John Zimmer — Co‑founder & President, Lyft (shaping sustainable mobility in travel)
- Bob Iger — Executive Chairman, Disney — steering global hospitality and destination travel experiences
- Nate Blecharczyk — Co‑founder, Airbnb — visionary in home‑sharing and modern travel accommodations
- David Neeleman — Founder, JetBlue Airways & Azul — airline innovation and passenger‑centric travel
- Oscar Munoz — former CEO, United Airlines — influential in airline operations and global aviation policy
- Geoffrey Ballotti — President & CEO, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts — global lodging and hospitality leadership
Keynote Speakers and Consultants For Hire
Global Top 50 travel influencers paint a picture of the field’s future… a tomorrow that’s defined by seamless technology, global connectivity, and radically new definitions of mobility and hospitality.
Starting off are innovators turning transportation and lodging into flexible, on‑demand experiences. Leaders at Airbnb, Expedia, Booking Holdings, hotel giants, airlines, and cruise lines are redefining what it means to travel — whether for business, leisure, or remote work. The mobility leaders at Uber, Lyft, airlines and cruise companies are making travel more accessible, sustainable, and integrated.
Simultaneously, tech visionaries in AI, SaaS, cloud, and telecom — such as executives at Microsoft, Google, NVIDIA, Verizon, and AT&T — are building the infrastructure that enables remote work, digital‑nomad lifestyles, and real‑time connectivity while traveling. Their platforms support everything from booking and planning to secure payments, data access, and virtual collaboration from anywhere on the globe.
Fintech and payment‑infrastructure executives — from Mastercard, Visa, PayPal veterans, and crypto leaders — ensure that cross-border payments, global transactions, and financial services evolve to match new patterns of travel, commerce, and work.
And investors and venture capitalists like Peter Thiel, Marc Andreessen, Reid Hoffman, and Barry Diller fuel the next generation of travel‑tech startups — pushing boundaries in mobility, hospitality, AI, and digital experiences.
Also Top 50 travel influencers in traditional hospitality — from hotel groups to cruise lines and global resorts — are embracing innovation while preserving the human touch in vacationing. They’re merging legacy hospitality values with technology to meet the demands of a new generation of travelers.
