Top 10 tourism & travel business ideas in 2007

We’re deviating from our regular schedule to bring you the best new business ideas of 2007, featuring our personal favourites. This isn’t a trip down memory lane—all of these smart concepts will continue to provide entrepreneurs with plenty of opportunities in 2008. Next up: tourism & travel.

1. Baby brand space: Acknowledging that travelling with infants can be a strain on both parents and children, Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport just opened Schiphol Babycare Lounge by Nutricia. Located in the airport’s main departure terminal, the lounge is (as the name indicates) a co-branding effort by Schiphol and Nutricia, a Dutch baby food … More »
2. Facilitating cab shares to the airport: Everyone loves New York, except for when they have to take a cab to or from the airport and it ends up costing almost as much as airfare. Which is why smart New Yorkers are starting to plan their airport commutes via Hitchsters.com. Founded by New York attorney Terry … More »
3. Sightseeing on the run: There are close to 40 million runners in the United States alone, according to Running USA, and it’s a pretty safe bet than nearly all of them travel at least once in a while. When they do, City Running Tours can show them the sights while helping them get … More »
4. Remote wardrobe service for travelling luggage-free: Door-to-door luggage delivery services have been sprouting up around the world, helping air travellers avoid the hassles of waits at baggage carousels, searches by security staff and lost luggage. Newcomer FlyLite takes the concept a few steps further. The company not only … More »
5. High design, low touch hotel: Qbic, a Dutch ‘no frills chic’ hotel chain that soft-launched this week, is using innovations in design and service to offer guests a new hotel experience, and investors an efficient approach to converting vacant real estate into hotels. On the surface, the hotel’s most radical innovation is placing everything … More »
6. Enhanced networking for business travellers: Following our post on airline KLM’s successful attempts at creating social network platforms for frequent flyers, we were alerted to a start-up that aims to do something similar. While KLM’s Club China and Club Africa are destination-focused—connecting people who are doing business in specific regions—PairUp matches business travellers headed … More »
7. Helping parents travel lighter: Flying with infants brings an end to travelling light, as a baby’s essentials quickly add up to excess baggage. tinytotsaway.com aims to ease the strain, by letting parents order all of their child’s necessities online and have them delivered to their holiday destination. The British company not only helps … More »
8. Pintsized interns at Tokyo hotel: A while back, we featured a theme park that focused on giving children a taste of various careers by putting them to work for a day. While Kidzania is firmly grounded in the realms of make-believe, elementary-schoolers in Tokyo had a more realistic option this summer. For a … More »
9. Motorcycle taxis rescue stranded business travellers: Business travellers stuck in traffic on their way to Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport were in luck last week, as knights in shining leather were ready to zip them off to their flight on the back of a motorcycle. Three yellow bikes covered the busiest roads near Amsterdam between 7 and … More »
10. Translation cards for travellers with allergies: Travellers with food allergies or other dietary restrictions, who don’t want their diets to get in the way of enjoying international culture and cuisine, are now catered to by Canadian Allergy Translation Cards. The company’s credit card-sized printouts can be customized to suit a person’s dietary needs and travel … More »