Interesting move by Royal Caribbean as it looks to compete head-on with the likes of Viator with the launch of a standalone brand – GoBe – for activities. The cruise line says GoBe is a subsidiary within the group and was originally created as a consumer-facing service to recapture lost bookings that its passengers were…
Expedia has developed technology to help hotels get a handle on how their guests feel about a property or a stay by analysing reviews. Guest Review Insights aims to aggregate and organise reviews and provide hoteliers with information they can act on such as services they like or elements they would…
Skyscanner believes that the lines between direct and indirect distribution are blurring and is ramping up its facilitated booking strategy as a result. In a white paper, which reads like a manifesto for the future of metasearch, Skyscanner highlights some factors driving the evolution of distribution. In simple terms,…
This year’s SXSW festival in Austin, Texas, was far more muted than recent years. The annual tech, music and film festival has become a worldwide affair, with over 30,000 official attendees taking over Austin. Big brands naturally followed the crowds to Austin, resulting in “peak SXSW:” Lady Gaga netting…
Saudi Arabian Airlines and Royal Jordanian Airlines said they received “instructions from the concerned US departments” to require passengers to check all electronic devices except cellphones and medical devices on all nonstop flights to the US. Both carriers posted alerts online, but Royal Jordanian took its tweet down after…
SITA formed a new Secure Journeys Working Group to address safety and security in non-secure areas of US airports. The focus would include elements such as check-in lines and baggage claim areas, and to combat the insider threat. The group is an expansion of SITA’s Border Automation User Group, which…
There will always be people who are able to find idiosyncrasies in airlines’ pricing models in order to lower their flight costs. NB This is a viewpoint by Jonathan Breeze, CEO of AardvarkCompare.com. Ancillary revenues, yield management and personalisation are some of the reasons why airline pricing models are…
Ticketclever went live a few weeks ago, with a new take on the complex world of searching and booking rail tickets. The online travel agency has some pedigree behind it – for starters with the management team as it is the latest offering from the brainchild of one of the…
Airlines Technology has worked up a proof of concept which could allow airlines to sell assigned seats via a virtual reality (VR) seatmap, all made possible thanks to IATA’s NDC. The business has IATA NDC Capable Level III certification and is part of the Travel StartUps Incubator portfolio. Paras…
Multi-day activities will be made available to sell via third parties through a new platform created by AdventureLink. The xTour product, CEO and founder Kelly Tompkins claims, is a breakthrough in the tours and activities sector as it will be the first software-as-a-service reservation platform for intermediaries to start…