The Travel Booking Engine Evolution

As a new generation of travelers considers planning a vacation, their path to purchase has become increasingly complex compared to the generations before them. Growing up amid the technology revolution, today's consumer is tech savvy and will naturally move across different devices, websites and selling channels when researching and planning a vacation. And with all the shopping being done online, the data captured from the research and shopping activity should be driving a new level of traveler engagement.

Today's travel booking engine needs to be able to deliver the right information on the preferred device at any point in the research, shopping or purchase cycle. This includes the increasingly important mobile research part of the travel purchase process. The way consumers interact with a travel agent needs to keep up with the advances in online bookings, so the service a travel agent provides is seamlessly integrated with a consumer's online research and shopping.

And with all the information collected when someone is online, the identification of common preferences through data analysis should produce passenger segment profiles that assist a travel agent in the travel planning process. For example, Singles, young Families and older Couples may each look for a different experience and will probably research, shop and purchase their travel using different methods. A traveler's income level may determine they type of accommodations they require. First time travelers need to be normalized and simplified to educate the new purchaser on the value of different options. A travel booking engine needs to employ techniques such as collaborative filtering that provide examples of what a similar customer purchased can be used to help with the shopping experience. Using past data from similar customers shopping history to recommend options that meet the new purchaser's needs can eventually lead to a more personalized booking experience.

Today's travel booking engine needs to provide information about the specific amenities a hotel property may offer such as free internet or breakfast. Hotels offer varying levels of comfort and service, so matching a client with the right hotel is important. The ability to sort a search for hotel rooms by a particular star rating or the average nightly rate can speed up the process dramatically for example. Detailed descriptions and photos of guest rooms and public areas can help in choosing the right property. Consumers have become accustom to reserving a specific seat on an airplane or requesting a special meal during their flight, so your travel booking engine needs to be able to handle these requests. Live access to content is critical to make sure the most up to date availability and pricing is used. The booking engine needs to have a powerful business rules feature that will allow you to adjust a product's selling price or include a specific marketing message about a special offer.

Finding travel booking engine with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer with the content they are looking for can be just as important.

Flight Reservation Systems Should Build Packages

Dynamic packaging is a new component that has become a key part of today's flight reservation system. The ability to combine airline reservations with a hotel, cruise or tours has emerged as a major revenue source for anyone selling travel today. This extends the process from simply selling a flight to selling the entire vacation experience. And packaging capability is a crucial requirement for cruise booking platforms for example, especially in specific markets such as Australia, Asia and China where packaging increases the ability to sell a cruise itself.

Creating a dynamic package is also essential for the millennial traveler who wants customized experiences. Today's solution should allow a user to easily compare multiple itineraries including individual components and pre-built packages. A sophisticated rules engine can help to deliver the right marketing message and inform the User of all promotions that a Supplier and/or the agency may be offering. Price adjustments to a product selling price need to be able to be made quickly and easily to maintain your competitiveness in the online market. Rich Media should be integrated in the search process to simplify the shopping experience. Users should be able to choose the components they need and dynamically create a custom package. Helpful features such as a pre-defined list of hotels that match a flight itinerary should be offered.

A database that maps the closest hotels to each airport or city location eliminates the guesswork and can match the hotel and flights based on the search defined. All through the process, the total price of the package being built should be clearly visible to the User creating a day by day itinerary for easy review.

A flight reservation system should also provide agents the ability to save a Package as a quote to be repriced at a later time to further simplify their workflow. It should track detailed financials, providing an agency owner the details of what the customer owes the agency and the agency owes to the Supplier. The financial details captured should also allow the agency to track their margins by product and the package. Today's applications have taken a manual and tedious process that often involved multiple team members and tools to build and custom package and simplified it. Custom packaging can make the online comparable shopping difficult.

And with more of the world's population using the internet to research and book travel, the ease and accessibility of a flight reservation system via mobile devices is critical. No matter if someone starts their travel research using their mobile device and then complete their reservation with their travel agent, or they research, shop and book everything online. Your business needs to be there when they begin their search, so make sure the application you choose is mobile ready.

Finding flight reservation system with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer with the content they are looking for can be just as important.

The Online Mixed With Offline Cruise Revolution

Will the online revolution in Travel eventually lead to the demise of the Travel Agent? Some may argue that the days when consumers would go to their local travel agency to book a weekend getaway or annual vacation are long gone. With the Millennial generation now making up such a significant portion of the population, more and more people now use the internet to research and book travel. Ease and accessibility via mobile devices are critical whether your customers start their research and shopping using their mobile device and complete their booking with a travel agent, or research, shop, and book online.

In 2018, almost half of all global travel will be booked online. During the same period, Cruise Lines International Association projects that 27.2 million people will take a cruise. And despite huge advances in online automation, most will complete their booking using an offline method. It is estimated that just less than 20% of all cruise revenue was booked online last year, indicating that booking a cruise is primarily still an offline process. While this may appear to be the case on the surface, the truth is that in today's connected world, it is likely that the majority of these Consumers spent hours online researching and planning their cruise vacation before completing the transaction with a travel agent or cruise line sales representative. This trend clearly highlights a need to integrate online research with the offline expertise of a travel professional. With mobile devices enabling consumers to be online anywhere at any time, today's cruise booking software needs to be mobile ready.

As technology evolves, unique offers like shipboard credits, etc. as part of the availability display will be incorporated into the process and provide options for agents and consumers to "pick the perk" that best meets their needs. Ultimately this is intended to identify the true value of a booking beyond the cabin to the total value of the cruise experience. Big data analytics will continue to drive mass customization targeting specific offers to traveler segments leading to greater adoption. This will lead to the onboard experience influenced by information gathered during the planning and booking process with packaging an essential tool for cruise line resellers generating incremental revenue and enhanced experiences for customers.

Today, it is clear that traditional travel agents need cruise booking software that integrates and standardizes multiple cruise content and captures and controls the user interface for the customer and travel agent. The goal needs to simplify the experience for the consumer and improve the efficiency of the online and offline process. Cruise planning and research will continue to grow online, and the key to this evolution is a next-generation platform that connects the online and offline worlds into a seamless user experience.

Finding cruise booking software with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer with the content they are looking for can be just as important.

Travel Technology Solutions Help Drive Travel and Tourism

Travel & Tourism is an important economic activity in most countries around the world and helps to produce prosperity across the globe. Tourism brings people from different cultures closer together, creates jobs and helps drive the export of goods and services. When you consider the impact that the travel industry has on commerce across the board, it's no surprise that travel technology solutions have been pioneers in online commerce.

The travel industry is estimated to account for about 10%+ of global GDP and nearly one (1) out of every ten (10) jobs worldwide and last year was one of the strongest years of worldwide growth in nearly a decade thanks to strong consumer spending. But Travel & Tourism's total contribution to the world's economy goes deeper than the money spent during a trip. In addition to the obvious expense for products such as airline tickets, hotel accommodations, cruise vacations or ground transportation, the industry provides significant indirect benefits to other industries. Consumer spending on local entertainment or attractions, food & beverage services as well as retail spending before and during a trip can all be considered the result of travel and tourism. Even companies developing travel technology solutions owe their existence in part to this important and exciting industry.

All signs indicate that consumers will continue to use their smartphones as more and more as they become constantly connected to social media. If you're not making your product available on all channels you are potentially surrendering your customers to the competition. As a result, mobile ready travel technology solutions are becoming increasingly important for any travel business looking to reach these customers. People are not only using today's mobile devices to interact with each other, but they are also using these devices to make a significant number of purchases online. Some consumers may use various different devices as they research and eventually purchase products online. For instance, many consumers may start their initial research using their smartphone, but then switch to a Laptop to complete the purchase. Others will choose to use their handheld device exclusively and access a mobile booking engine to complete their purchase. Either way, your business needs to be ready to serve these customers on the device they choose to use.

Today's state of the art travel technology solutions can take full advantage of the easy access to content and powerful features that an online booking engine offers combined with the ease and mobility of using a smartphone. The competitive online market also requires agency owners have the flexibility to quickly and easily control a product's selling price based on a wide range of criteria including travel or booking dates, supplier or class of service.

Finding an online booking solution with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's consumer where and how they shop for travel can be just as important. If you're not making your product available on certain channels, then you are surrendering your customers to the competition.

Travel Agent Software Can Extend Your Reach

The travel industry has experienced tremendous growth over the past few decades and advances in technology have helped fuel this expansion. Some of us are old enough to remember the days when airline reservations were stored in a flight book and airline reservation agents would work the phones to assist travel agents as well as a few consumers with their travel arrangements. As technology evolved, the complicated formats to input "pre-paid ticket" information were replaced by electronic tickets and the airlines practically did away with paper tickets all together. Transformational changes have occurred throughout each of the travel verticals. As more people travel more frequently the need for hotel accommodations and ground transportation also increases.

Travel agents remain an important part of the travel industry and have been evolving the way that they interact with suppliers and customers along with the rest of the industry. Travel agent software such as airline booking engines, hotel booking engines and even cruise booking engines were launched years ago and have been evolving ever since. The transition to online commerce has been crucial for many agencies to remain in business. The online booking engines available today provide agents or their customers the ability to book just about anything online including an airline seat, a hotel room or even a cruise vacation.

With just a few clicks of a mouse, today's travel agent software can access the information that agents or their consumers shopping online need to research which particular hotel meets an individual's needs best. Hotel searches can be narrowed to a specific neighborhood within a city, the hotel star rating or price range. You can even research whether a hotel property has banquet facilities, a restaurant or room service. Air travel searches can be specific to an airline, time of day or even class of service. Online searches for cruise vacations can be specific to a Sailing region, such as Alaska, a specific cruise line or cruise ship and even by the length of the cruise. High resolution photographs of a cruise ship's public spaces as well as sample cabin photos are complimented by detailed descriptions and integrated into the booking engine to help agents and customers when deciding what suits their needs the best. Users can even select which seating time they prefer for dinner, choose their bed configuration preference and even alert the cruise line of a special occasion such as a passenger's birthday.

Like many businesses, consolidation has forced many travel agencies to merge or join forces with other agencies forming new agency affiliate relationships. The ability for a host agency to share their travel agent software with affiliated agencies or agents quickly and easily can be a powerful tool. As agencies form new alliances, many still want to maintain their individual brand name with their customers, so many offer the ability to customize the header, footer and fonts to match the branding.

Choosing a travel agent software with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer with the content they are looking for can be just as important.

A Travel Booking Engine Should Combine Components Easily

Many agents face a complexity of issues and challenges when building vacation packages often making it a time consuming process. Coordinating the various elements such as cruise departure times, flight arrival times, travel distance & time between cruise port and airport (which will vary greatly by Port) can be quite complex with some itineraries. Easy access to local hotel content for any pre or post cruise stay requirements or requests is often a challenge, especially when it involves using different systems or applications. All the elements of a cruise vacation package require precise coordination to ensure a seamless experience for the traveler. Unfortunately, in many cases travel agents are using different methods, applications or devices to research and book each of these package components. Some operations are even set up using product line experts where several agents are involved to complete the booking. A cruise expert will complete the cruise booking before passing it to an Airline expert for the flight arrangements and then a Hotel expert to add any hotel accommodations required.

Today's travel booking engine needs to be designed to allow both agents and consumers to price as well as package Cruises, Airlines, Hotels and other travel products in real time. Many have introduced dynamic packaging modules that take full advantage of their existing connections with various travel suppliers using a client's specific ID with suppliers such as cruise lines as well as airlines, various hotel content sources and even travel Insurance providers. It streamlines the process to book a complete cruise vacation by dynamically combining a cruise itinerary with air and hotel arrangements into a single package. By taking the guesswork out of the equation, agents can serve their customers more efficiently and eliminate errors while reducing the time and effort to complete a package booking. These applications are so simple to use that today's online consumer can even quickly and easily build their own unique package when the booking engine is connected to their travel agent's consumer website.

A dynamic and innovative rules engine can allow clients to drive efficiencies in the sales process by automatically delivering the proper marketing message to agents & consumer users with the ability to preset business rules and adjust a product's selling price using a wide variety of filters. Today's travel booking engine needs to be mobile ready to serve today's consumer and includes other features for traditional B2B and B2C selling channels. There are even a Custom Packaging options available that allow the Travel Agent to price multiple products, bundle them into a package and sell them as packages easily online. By taking the guesswork out of the equation, agents can serve their customers more efficiently and eliminate errors while reducing the time and effort to complete a Package booking.

Choosing a travel booking engine with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer with the content they are looking for can be just as important.

Does Your Flight Reservation System Offer Enough Options?

There is no doubt that airlines have been a driving force in the growth of the travel industry. Not only have airlines been able to change people's behavior by making flying as common as other modes of transportation, but the people they transport need a place to stay, a way to get around while at their destination and something to eat just to name a few things. Airlines, hotels, car rental companies, even cruise lines to a degree have an interdependent relationship with each other and share customers.

As the flight networks grew, it was not long before the airlines began strategic marketing partnerships with car rental companies and hotels. So, it's only logical that a flight reservation system be seamlessly integrated with these other travel components. Today's online travel booking engines are a result of years of technological evolution and have helped travel suppliers expand their business and become early pioneers in the online revolution.

As the online marketplace became increasingly competitive, innovative business rules engines were developed for today's flight reservation systems to allow business owners to drive efficiencies in the sales process by automatically delivering the proper marketing message to agents as well as consumers. Powerful revenue management tools available with today's travel booking engines can provide online travel retailers the ability to quickly and easily preset business rules and adjust a product's selling price. Both are critical tools needed to remain competitive in today's rapidly changing online marketplace.

The custom packaging options available allow the travel agent to price multiple products such as Cruise, Air & Hotel and bundle them into a package to sell as packages online. And there are even dynamic packaging tools that can combine a cruise itinerary with airline and hotel arrangements. By taking the guesswork out of the equation, agents can serve their customers more efficiently and eliminate errors while reducing the time and effort to complete a booking.

The flight reservation system you choose needs to be able to provide your travel business the access the airline content your customers need at the price they are looking for. It needs to include business rules capability for you to easily promote and offer special targeted promotions. The best solutions provide the ability to define business rules based on the date booked, dates travelled, airline, flight number and even the type of airfare used. Value add offers such as free travel insurance or other merchandising opportunities can be included right in the availability display in some cases, alerting customers to where they will find the best value in addition to lowest price. And most of all, it needs to be easy to use and mobile ready to meet the demands of today's consumer.

Finding a flight reservation system with the right combination of options for your travel business can be an important and critical decision for your business. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach your customers when and how they shop for travel can be just as important.

A Cruise Booking Engine Should Be Flexible

Currently the process to research, plan and book a cruise generally takes a long time and involves multiple steps. The initial research is sometimes started online by many consumers using a mobile device, talking with friends and family or seeking advice from a traditional travel agent. Additional research about particular a cruise line or itinerary may also be performed online by checking cruise review sites or other social media. And as a new generation of travelers considers a cruise for their vacation, their path to purchase will become increasingly complex with consumers naturally moving across different devices, sites and channels.

When it comes to booking the cruise, some consumers may prefer to book by phone or online with the specific cruise line. Due to their familiarity with cruising, past North American cruise customers are more likely to book using an online cruise booking engine than the first-time cruiser. A cruise holiday package can be is a significant expense for most, especially those going on longer cruises or high-end cruise lines. Generally, the higher the price tag, the more likely the customer will contact a travel agent or the cruise line directly before making their final purchase. A traveler who is purchasing a $30,000 cruise package will likely need reassurance that they are getting the proper value for their money, even if they are a repeat cruiser.

One of the most difficult challenges faced when launching a cruise booking engine is the complexity associated with cruise content. Access to live availability and pricing is critical to ensure the most up to date information is being provided. Cruise sellers need to be able to access and control content for each individual cruise line including the ability to bias the display and promote preferred suppliers if they wish. One key feature necessary for successful online shopping and bookings is the ability to compare prices and itineraries across multiple cruise lines. However, this can be a complicated effort considering the different ship specific content and configurations which differ dramatically across ships and cruise lines. And these differences continue to grow as cruise lines build larger ships with their own unique design, features and attractions. Integrating a cruise booking engine with detailed descriptions, deck plans, cabin photos combined with links to media rich files and videos becomes increasingly important to help with the research and shopping process.

Cruise lines offer consumers special perks such as onboard spending credits, value add offers and special discounts which can also make it difficult to easily identify the best value for the individual customer's needs. Business Management tools need to include the ability for a business owner to quickly and easily mark up or mark down a product's selling price and the ability to include marketing messages in the availability display to highlight value ad offers and special discounts.

Choosing a cruise booking engine with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer with the content they are looking for can be just as important.

Travel Booking Solutions Offer Many Features

Travel booking solutions have come a long way over the past decade. Flexible and customizable, many of today's applications are easily customized to support a business' own unique brand identity and selling style. In some instance, the booking engine is hosted by a technology provider, however they are able to customize the header, footer as well as the look and feel to provide a seamless online experience for Users. While others offer fully customized applications for the business owner looking to design their own booking solution. Either could be good options for your business depending upon your requirements, so it is always best to check out several different options and the associated costs that are available.

And with different consumers using so many different methods to shop and purchase just about everything, travel booking solutions need to easily manage multiple selling channels using a single application. For example, as Millennials become the largest segment of consumers, you need to make sure your travel booking solution is ready to serve this generation's travel needs with a mobile ready booking engine. Online booking engines should be designed to easily set up additional users and affiliated websites in order to help your business compete and grow. Whether a customer books directly with a travel agent (B2B) -or- they prefer to shop and book online (B2C), your online booking solution needs to provide the ability to service them quickly and easily.

Travel booking solutions need to be secure and accurate and use a scalable online booking platform that will allow your business to expand. Applications should be designed to meet the demands of suppliers, traditional and online travel agencies as well as the end User. Real-Time connectivity with suppliers is always preferable as it ensures the most accurate and up to the minute schedules, availability and pricing are used. And if you are looking to expand your business to include international markets, many of today's travel solutions are designed to meet the unique requirements of global markets and can easily handle multiple currencies as well as be quickly translated into multiple languages.

And to effectively compete in today's online marketplace, you'll need business management tools to provide the controls required to easily manage your offering to customers. Revenue Management tools should include the ability to quickly mark up or discount a product's selling price using a wide range of criteria including supplier, travel dates, booking dates, class of service and more. Display biasing capabilities and the ability to highlight value add offers in the availability display can give business owners full control of what their customers see while Robust reporting tools allow for quick and easy business tracking.

Today's travel booking solutions can provide any size agency the technology needed to compete with Large Online Travel Agencies and strengthen Customer relationships by expanding the products and services offered. Choosing a booking solution with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer with the content they are looking for can be just as important.

Travel Agent Software Powers Travel

There are so many travel options available online today that it can be overwhelming for many consumers to find the best deal. As some quickly learn, the lowest price doesn't always equal the best choice for many. Take the recent initiative by some airlines to allocate preferential seats within their main cabin to preferred customers only -or- at a higher rate to others. I recently booked a seat on a major airline for the lowest price available, only to find my seat selection options were limited to middle seats in the rear of the airplane. I learned that had I purchased a slightly higher fare, I would have access to preferred seating in a better location on the aircraft. This was an example of when finding a professional travel agent would have been a good first step in planning my trip.

Travel agents are a great resource and help their customers research the different options and find the best deal possible based on their specific needs. And in today's online world, travel agent software plays an important role in just how much help a travel agent can provide. The right travel agent would understand the difference between the two airfares and know the customer's seating requirements or preference. Today's travel agent software would allow agent to enter a passenger's specific frequent flier number, select a seat and even reserve a special meal for them. Arranging for special assistance such as a wheelchair or other special services can be requested quickly and easily online in some cases.

Consumers who use a travel agent often get the best deals and VIP treatment during their entire journey. Travel Agents are experts in the industry and many have negotiated special deals and amenities for their clients. Some use travel booking solutions that enable them to launch their own online solution and allow their customers to research and book travel when and where they want while still enjoying the benefits of using their travel agent.

It's no secret that people today are attached to their mobile devices and in many cases, this is the first place many go when they are looking for information or perhaps to make a purchase. Researching and shopping for travel is no different, so today's travel agent software should be built using mobile ready technology so it is easily accessible via just about any type of device.

Advances in technology now allow for travel booking solutions to integrate a vast amount information as well as media files & rich content such as photos and videos. Some hotel booking engine Users can view pictures of a particular hotel property, including sample guest rooms and public areas. While cruise booking engines include itinerary maps showing a specific cruise ship's itinerary with ports of call, information about ship activities and even videos to help provide the User a better idea of what to expect onboard.

Choosing travel agent software with the right combination of options to serve your customers better can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer with the content they are looking for can be just as important.

Features Make The Cruise Booking Engine

More and more travel agents and consumers are using an online cruise booking engine to research and confirm their cruise vacations. The features, functionality and content available via online cruise booking solutions have evolved tremendously over the past two decades. If you have not taken the time recently to review how your business handles cruise bookings, you may be missing out on the advantages these advances can offer your business.

It's no secret that today's consumer is attached to their mobile devices and in many cases are the first thing someone grabs when they are looking for information or to make a purchase. Researching and shopping for travel is no different. Today's mobile ready technology has made it possible to extend the reach of your online cruise booking solution to be accessible via just about any type of device. So why not have your cruise booking engine available so they can start their research and complete their booking how and when they choose. There are even features available that allow a host agency to extend the reach of their booking engine quickly and easily to affiliated homebased agents. Some even allow for the booking engine's header and footer to be customized to that of the affiliate.

Another area to consider is the extent that you can control the selling price customers see and how you are able to promote special offers that the cruise lines may be offering to promote certain sailings. Your cruise booking engine needs the ability to control a product selling price down to a specific cruise line, sailing and cabin category, including the ability for you to easily mark-up or discount the selling price depending upon criteria that you choose. You should be able to include your own special "value add" offers and promote those offered by cruise lines right in the availability display so that the User has a full picture of the "value" a certain fare may have.

Today's technology now allows for a cruise booking solution to integrate a vast amount cruise line, cruise ship and cabin descriptions linked to media files & rich content such as cabin photos, ship images and deck plans to assist in the shopping process. Users can view pictures of a particular ship, including sample guest cabins and public areas. Maps depicting ship itineraries with ports of call, information about activities onboard, even videos in some cases help provide the User a better idea of what a specific cruise has to offer.

Many cruise lines offer special rates for Past Passengers and in some cases provide special value add offers and onboard amenities to their best repeat customers. To make taking advantage of these benefits easier, some of the more advanced online travel booking solutions include User friendly features like Past Passenger Look-up. This feature allows the travel agent or consumer shopping online to easily look up a Past Passenger number to be used during the booking process and ensure they receive all the discounts and benefits they deserve as a Customer Loyalty Program member.

Choosing a cruise booking engine with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer with the content they are looking for can be just as important.

Travel Booking Solutions For Air, Land & Sea!

There are so many different travel booking solutions available in the market today to research and book travel that it can sometimes be simply overwhelming. The number of online air booking engines alone is staggering, a point perhaps proven by the number of “Meta Search” engines that simultaneously search hundreds of websites to provide the User with the lowest possible airfare. And there are online air booking solutions for just about any size business, whether you are a single location agency looking to extend your reach online or you are looking to extend access to your booking solution to other agency locations or homebased agents. There are even air booking engines that will allow you to simultaneously search multiple GDS IDs for published as well as private airfares for those agencies with multiple locations or perhaps partnering with an air consolidator for private fares.

Online hotel booking engines are also popular, offering consumers the ability to shop for Hotel accommodations quickly and easily just about anywhere in the world. Today's travel booking solutions can access information to research which hotel property meets a customer's particular needs with just a few clicks of a mouse. These state of the art applications allow Users to search for a hotel room by a specific neighborhood within a city, by price range and even star rating. Finding the exact hotel properties that include specific amenities such as free internet or perhaps concierge service may be important. Detailed pictures of guest rooms as well as public spaces can provide the User a good idea of what to expect upon arrival. Hotels offer varying levels of luxury, comfort and service, so matching a guest with the right hotel is important.

The fastest growing sector of the travel industry are cruise vacations. As cruise lines continue to build newer ships and expand into different markets, they are offering exciting new itineraries and onboard activities. Travel booking solutions focused on selling cruises have kept pace and now integrate a vast amount cruise line, cruise ship and cabin descriptions linked to rich content such as cabin photos, ship images and deck plans to assist in the shopping process. Users can view pictures of a particular ship, including sample guest cabins and public areas. Maps with ship itineraries that show all the ports of call for a particular sailing are integrated into the display. Detailed information about ship activities, pictures of public spaces and even videos where available help provide the User a better idea of what to expect onboard.

As customers look for a customized travel experience, the ability to offer dynamic packaging of an individual's specific itinerary has become an increasingly popular component for travel booking solutions. Dynamic Packaging solutions are typically an extension of an existing booking engine designed to allow Users to package and book cruises, flights, hotels and other travel products in real time. A custom packaging tool can allow travel agents to tailor make a travel itinerary to be sold online.

Choosing an online booking solution with the right combination of options for your travel business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help set your travel business apart from the competition can be just as important.

Airline Reservations Systems Help Your Business Fly

As online travel technology solutions continue to advance, more and more people are using some type of flight reservation system to research and book their air travel arrangements. Whether looking to just book airline tickets to visit friends or for a business trip, there are online air booking solutions in the market that can help easily guide even a novice user through the entire process of researching and booking and airline reservation. There are countless airline reservation systems and booking engines in the market today.

A little up front research of all the options available will save you loads of time and aggravation in the long run. Choosing the best application for your business can be a critical decision and should be considered carefully. There are airline booking systems designed to meet the requirements of just about anyone selling travel online, but finding a solution with the right combination of product features and content for your business is the key. A good place to start may be to evaluate the way you currently make airline bookings and identify any improvements you would like to see or can be made there. Ask yourself whether your business is operating as efficiently as it could when it comes to making airline reservations. Are your products priced competitively and are they easily available for your clients to book? Has the technology your using today kept pace with today's advancements or your competitors?

As consumers continue to shift just about all their purchases to online sales, you may want to make sure your online booking engine is mobile ready so you can avoid the need to develop a separate, expensive dedicated Mobile APP in the future. For this you will want to make sure the Flight reservation system you choose is built using responsive technology that automatically adjusts the Users screen size based on the type of device they are using.

Consider how your customers like to research and book their airline reservations. Whether your customer prefer to research and book their flight arrangements online or speak with an experienced travel professional, a flight reservation system should be designed to be easy to use for travel agents and consumers as well. Researching and booking an airline ticket online today should be as easy as just a few clicks of the mouse and the application should be simple in design and not require the end User to input too much information or remember complicated formats.

Access to live pricing and availability is key in order to provide your customer the most accurate and up to date information about their flight. Access to the right airline content and lowest available fare can be critical in today's price sensitive marketplace, so a flight booking engine that can simultaneously search multiple content sources via a live connection for the best price can be an extremely valuable feature to have.

Choosing a flight reservation system with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer with the content they are looking for can be just as important.

Get Your Business Cruising

For decades, the cruise industry has grown at a faster pace than the rest of the travel industry. North America continues to produce more than 50% of the Cruise passengers worldwide, however other regions such as Europe and Australia have shown significant growth as well. Many agencies have capitalized on the growing consumer demand for cruising and have focused their travel agency business on selling cruises.

Years ago, researching and confirming a cruise reservation would require a series of visits or phone calls with a travel agent before knowing which cruise lines had which sailings available. Not to mention the diverse type of cruises available or the different numerous choices in ships and cabin categories. Advances in technology have changed this and today it is simple for anyone to research and book a cruise vacation online. Websites connected to a cruise booking engine can provide customers the ability to research and book their cruise vacations 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. But with so many options to choose from, how does a consumer decide which is the best cruise line, itinerary or ship is best for them? Travel Agents have always been a great resource to help cruisers sort through the different options and select the right cruise. And quite often, a travel agent will have access to special deals with cruise lines and they can often ensure V.I.P. treatment onboard. A travel agent's help and expertise can certainly can make a trip easier to plan as well as more enjoyable overall.

And while technology has made it easier for consumers to book directly with cruise lines, many consumers are somehow missing out on the benefits and perks that using a travel agent can bring. Savvy travel agents recognized the value of combining their expertise with the ease of internet bookings and many jumped into the world of online booking engines years ago.

Today's travel agent software makes adding a cruise booking engine to an agency's website easy. Many include a vast amount cruise line, cruise ship and cabin descriptions linked to media files & rich content such as cabin photos, ship images and deck plans to assist in the shopping process. Users can view pictures of a particular ship including sample guest cabins.

And for those looking to expand their business internationally, it is critically important to choose a partner familiar with the unique requirements and supplier constraints that many international markets bring. Some travel technology companies have successfully launched their cruise booking engine in many international markets by working closely with Customers and Suppliers to "localize" the product. This includes local market requirements for applications' display as well as the integration of local content sources such as direct connections with Regional General Sales Agents for several of the world's largest cruise lines.

Choosing a travel technology solution with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer with the content they are looking for can be just as important.

Travel Booking Solutions Can Extend Your Reach

Today's travel booking solutions have been designed to automate the sale of multiple travel products and service multiple selling channels. Booking Engines need to be able to serve customers using traditional Business to Business (B2B) tools as well as Business to Consumer (B2C) for those customers who prefer to shop online. These Web based applications are designed to automate processes, increase revenues and reduce time and effort required to complete travel related booking. Many of these online Booking Engine are hosted by a technology provider, however they can be easily customized to maintain a Client's brand identity and provide a seamless online experience for the end user whether a travel agent or consumer. There are even mobile friendly online booking engines uses innovative responsive technology to optimize the presentation and display for various devices, screen sizes and resolution.

As the world seems to become little smaller and the online marketplace opens up new opportunities internationally, many travel technology providers are designing applications with the flexibility to meet the unique requirements of specific markets. These unique market requirements can vary and include specific requirements such as what information and pricing details are required to be included in the actual display, specific supplier content for the market or the ability to easily handle multiple currencies as well as multiple languages. If you are looking to expand your travel business internationally, you'll want to consider a travel technology partner familiar with the unique requirements and supplier constraints that many international markets bring. Some have successfully launched their product in many of these markets by working closely with Customers and Suppliers to "localize" the product as well as integrate local content sources such as direct connections with Regional General Sales Agents for cruise lines. These "state of the art" travel booking solutions deliver flexible & fully scalable applications that allow our travel agents to easily grow their business and expand into new markets while maintaining their own unique brand identity.

To serve today's growing number of consumers using their mobile device to purchase travel products, some travel technology companies are building mobile ready travel booking solutions. Now, regardless of the type of device an agent or consumer uses, solutions are available that will automatically adjust the screen size and layout based on the type of device being used to access the booking engine. Some offer mobile ready applications as part of their existing Booking Engine while some will develop them independently. For example, those travel sellers who prefer to have a dedicated mobile booking App, there are several travel technology companies that can design and develop a custom mobile App for this. Either approach offers consumers the ease and mobility of using a smart phone or tablet

Choosing a travel technology solution with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision in determining your overall success. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer with the travel content they are looking for can be just as important.

Airline Systems Continue To Evolve

The days when making a flight reservation with an airline was a time consuming and complex process seems like a distant past. Today just about anyone can make an airline reservation quickly and easily using an online air booking engine. Whether consumers use an airline website or one of the many booking tools offered by an online travel agencies, they are just a few clicks away from having their air travel arrangements confirmed and ticketed. The airline reservation system you choose for your business can be critical with many having been a driving force in the automation of online travel bookings as these systems have evolved over the years.

Today's online booking engines can help your business reduce it's overall administrative costs while expanding your customer base and increasing your revenues. Online sales have proven to be one of the most cost effective ways of serving customers and the tools available today are better than ever. Today's airline reservation system is the result of decades of upgrades and enhancements that now include features like advance and/or preferred seat selection, choice of meal preference and special service requests.

And as the world went crazy embracing mobile technology, so did the airline systems. Travelers can now make their flight arrangements using the device they choose, including their mobile phone or tablet. The increasing popularity of the air mobile app has been driven by a population that is always on the move and prefers not to carry their laptop with them. Mobile Apps can also provide a great "branding" opportunity your business so all your customers need to do today is to download the air booking mobile app on their cell phone and log-in to your booking engine. The features of an air mobile app not only enable any travel agent to cater to their clients on the move, but most mobile apps can take full advantage of the powerful features and functionality offered by an online booking engine.

And it's not only consumers that enjoy these simple to use applications, they are so easy to use that travel agents can be trained quickly and have them selling faster. Gone are the days when an agent had to understand complex GDS formats to check flight availability and price options. The airline reservation systems of today have streamlined this process and reduced the amount of time it takes to complete a booking. Robust business management and reporting tools also give an agency owner the powerful information and control they need to manage their business in today's competitive marketplace.

For those clients who want to control their own User Interfaces while still taking advantage of some of the powerful tools offered by an airline reservation system, Air Booking Engine API options can provide the capability for large, online travel agencies to host all Air booking user interfaces on their own server while using an air booking engine API for business logic as well as live Pricing, Availability & Booking.

Finding an airline reservation system with the right combination of options for your business can be an important decision and critical to the success of your business. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer where and how they shop for air travel can be just as important.

Travel Solutions Come In Many Forms

Online sales can save any business time and money making it the most cost effective method for many businesses to deliver products and services to their customers. The "state of the art" technology available today helps software developers to design, develop and deliver flexible & fully scalable applications that easily grow with any size business.

Travel booking solutions are available in many different forms and can be a critical component of any travel business, so you'll want to research the different options available in the market. And there are plenty of options out there, so be prepared to do your homework. First, you'll want to understand your customer and determine their travel needs and shopping preferences. You'll want to determine whether your customers are primarily booking their leisure travel or business travel with you. Knowing this can not only help you determine the type of online booking engine you'll need, but also the type of Supplier content you'll need included as well. For example if your client's are primarily leisure based, you'll want to include hotel resort options that are geared towards the leisure traveler as oppose to a downtown business hotel.

Next you'll want to do some quick research on the different booking engine options available. For example, consider travel booking solutions that automatically offer your clients the option to book a hotel room when they have selected an airline itinerary. This can be an excellent way for you to expand your overall sales volumes while helping you serve your customers more completely and build up customer loyalty in the process.

And to remain competitive in today's crowded marketplace, you'll need the capability to quickly and easily adjust a product's selling price or include a value add offer right in the availability display. The ability to pre-define set business rules based on a wide range of criteria including supplier, travel date, booking date as well as a whole list of other parameters. Some of today's sophisticated travel booking solutions even provide the ability to customize the application and maintain a company's own unique brand identity. Using your company's specific unique branding such as company logo, header, footer and CSS can transform an ordinary "out of the box" solution and make it appear like a custom application built specifically for your business.

The booking engine you choose needs to be able to provide your travel business the access the content your customers need at the price they are looking for. It needs to include business rules capability for you to easily adjust a product's selling price and offer special targeted promotions. And most of all, it needs to be easy to use and mobile ready to meet the demands of today's consumer.

Finding a travel booking solution with the right combination of options for your business can be an important decision and critical to the success of your business. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer where and how they shop for air travel can be just as important.

Booking Flights Online Has Become Routine

Booking a flight online has become so routine these days, it's hard to remember the days when this was a time consuming and complicated process. Years ago, it used to be that a trip to the local travel agent or a call to the airline was required to check schedule availability and price in order to make a flight reservation. This often required several trips or calls with your travel agent before your itinerary was confirmed and your ticket issued. The flight booking software available today has streamlined the entire process and is designed to automate the flight booking process and increase the number of airline bookings a travel agency makes.

Most flight booking software includes some type of business rules functionality that allows an application's administrator to easily define price adjustments such as price markups or discounts as well as include value add offers and more. In addition to the basic functions such as markup and discount, some booking engine rules incorporate custom rule types such as master promotions and agent commissions. Agents can even define additional filters to decide which type of booking or selling channel they want to apply a specific business rule to. Filters can include the ability to define a Rule by affiliate, supplier, departure, destination and more. Rules can even be defined according to the day week and time of day that a booking is made. Newly added or modified rules are applied almost instantly, ensuring the best deals are offered to customers accessing the flight booking engine.

And in order to serve today's growing number of travelers who use their mobile device to research and book their flight arrangements as well as those that switch between devices during the research and booking process, many of those selling airline tickets are building applications that use responsive technology. This way, regardless of the type of device a customer decides to use, applications built using responsive technology can automatically adjust the screen layout based on the type of device being used. For those businesses looking to have a dedicated Mobile App for their brand, there are several companies designing and developing custom Air Booking Apps. Some offer mobile applications as an optional "add-on" to existing flight booking software while others develop them independently. Either of these approaches offer Consumers the ease and mobility of using a smart phone or tablet when accessing an online airline booking engine. Mobile Apps and mobile responsive technology are no longer for big brand names either. Travel software companies can now provide any size travel agency affordable applications that are built using the latest state of the art technology with the powerful business tools that they need to compete with just about any size online travel business.

Finding flight booking software with the right combination of options for your travel business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer with the right content and tools to automate your business can be just as important.

Travel Agent Software Needs to Keep Pace

Technology has changed the way the world interacts and selling travel is no exception. The travel agent software available today has automated and customized the entire booking process while providing comprehensive and innovative solutions for travel agents to serve their customers better. There are solutions available today for travel agents that will make the entire shopping and booking process quicker and easier for themselves as well as for their customers.

For example, currently planning and booking a cruise can be a long process and generally involves multiple online and offline steps. It starts with online research which may involve cruise line websites, cruise reviews, online travel companies and social media applications. Many of today's consumers shopping for a cruise seek advice from friends and family before they visit and/or talk to a traditional travel agent or call a cruise line representative. And online is no longer limited to using a desktop or laptop with many initial cruise searches were conducted on mobile devices. Integrating the online and offline research, shopping and booking experience is critical since many consumers will switch between various devices as they research and eventually purchase products.

The challenge is to integrate consumer online planning and research with the offline expertise of a traditional travel agent. One way to accomplish this goal is for the travel agency to deploy an online booking engine. This may sound counter intuitive for traditional agents who want to keep the booking offline, but allowing the consumer to plan online with an agency sponsored booking tool may represent one of the most important ways to integrate online and offline activity and capture the customer's business.

Travel agent software must be easily integrated with the entire process and provide consistency in the shopping experience. Applications should have the most up to date availability and pricing along with detailed descriptions with pictures & images to assist both agents and consumers during the research, shopping and booking process. And for those looking to expand their reach into new markets, the ideal solution must also provide for localization of language, currency and market requirements.

Easy to use travel agent software should be built in a way that automates processes and reduces the amount of time it takes to make a booking. Many are designed to be so easy to use that they require minimal training and can have agents selling quickly. The application should be easy to use and contain the relevant information that a travel professional needs to research the options available. For example, finding the right hotel based on an individual customer's specific needs is an important part of planning any trip, but can be overwhelming with so many options available. To help simplify the process and select the right hotel for a client, many hotel booking engines integrate links to media files & rich content to assist during the shopping process.

Finding travel agent software with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer where and how they shop for travel can be just as important.

Travel Technology Needs Integration Capabilities

Customer Loyalty programs, new distribution technology and strategic alliances are all playing a significant role in today's competitive marketplace. Loyalty programs have been used by the travel and tourism industry for years and remain an important marketing tool for Suppliers to attract and retain their best repeat customers. These programs have become an integral part of many the marketing plan for many businesses and can drive consumer behavior significantly.

With VIP special discounts and travel benefits being some of the most popular rewards offered by many industries, travel technology solutions that seamlessly integrate with company loyalty program can be a great benefit and good way to ensure your customers receive the best deals possible. Lucrative discount offers as well as value add offers loyal consumers have earned can be seamlessly integrated into their travel booking. Loyalty program integration with an online booking engine can come in the form of gift cards, travel rewards, discounts or even actual merchandise with the integration being seamless to the end user and relatively quick to set up.

Businesses have been quick to learn that moving sales to E-commerce saves them time and money. Online sales are typically the most cost effective way to serve customers today and innovative new technology helps software solution providers design and develop flexible & fully scalable applications that easily grow with any size business. As the use of mobile devices has exploded over the past few years, easy to use mobile ready solutions have become an important extension of any online retailer. Airline reservations were the first to gain popularity with online booking solutions, so it makes sense that an air mobile app is quickly becoming an important selling tool in today's mobile society. These state of the art air mobile apps use all the powerful administrative features that an online booking engine has to offer combined with the ease and mobility of a smart phone.

And with the price competitive marketplace that exists today, Supplier availability and fares can fluctuate by the minute. Airfare wars, last minute hotel room discounts or free cabin upgrades on cruises can all change the offer. Travel technology solutions that leverage the live connections large Global Distribution Systems (GDS) like Amadeus, Sabre or Travelport have with airlines are able to provide the latest fare availability and complete an airline booking in real time.

Travel technology solutions must provide the ability to easily control business rules such as price adjustments, value add offers or targeted promotions. The flexibility to control business rules a variety of ways can be critical, so here is where you want to make sure the application has the flexibility you'll need. For example price adjustments should have the flexibility to be calculated as a fixed dollar amount ($) -or- a percentage (%) of the fare and apply to certain sales channels or affiliate groups. Business Rules should be easy to define and include filters for a specific suppliers, or product.

As competing for customers becomes increasingly competitive, travel technology solutions should include features like loyalty program integration, mobile ready applications and secure, live connections to supplier content. Finding an online booking engine with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer where and how they shop for travel can be just as important.

Time To Upgrade Your Flight Reservation System

It is no secret that just about every industry has been focusing more resources on e-commerce solutions as more people rely on the internet for just about everything. However many travel companies have had their own, unique challenges developing and enhancing their flight reservation system. Some are still using solutions built with legacy technology and are unable to easily add new content or make simple changes to their User Interface. The architecture used by these legacy systems is not at all as advanced or flexible as that of today's distributed and layered applications. Many legacy systems hardcode business policies using inflexible, predefined process flows. This makes any integration with customer relationship management systems and Internet-based business applications difficult and sometimes simply impossible. And if falling behind from a technical standpoint isn't bad enough, it has become increasingly difficult for companies to find developers who want to maintain applications written in languages that are not widely used in today's technology.

The internet revolution is usually a key driving force behind a company's decision to switch away from a legacy system. E-commerce sales can save a business time and money making it the most cost effective method for many to deliver products to customers. The "state of the art" technology available today can help a software solution provider design and develop a flight reservation system that is flexible & fully scalable. Some can even provide the ability to customize the application to maintain a company's own unique brand identity.

Experience has shown that some of the best software solutions are the result of collaboration. Software Developers, Suppliers and Users can all provide valuable input to help design and develop the ultimate travel booking engine. Each of these entities play an important role in the process and any flight reservation system should meet each of their individual needs. To serve today's growing number of consumers who use their mobile device to purchase travel products as well as those that switch between devices during the research and booking process, many companies are building applications that use responsive technology. Now, regardless of the type of device a customer uses to access a website, online applications built using responsive technology can automatically adjust the screen layout based on the type of device being used. And for those looking to have a dedicated Mobile App, there are several companies designing and developing custom mobile Apps. Some offer mobile applications as an optional "add-on" to an existing Booking Engine while others develop the Apps independently. Either approach can provide the online consumer the ease and mobility of using their smart phone or tablet. Mobile technology is not just for big brand names either.

Travel technology companies can now provide any size travel agency affordable applications built on the latest technology with the powerful tools to they need to compete with any size travel business. Finding a flight reservation system with the right combination of options for your travel business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer where and how they shop for travel can be just as important.

Hotels Transform To Capture Millennial Travelers

The population born between the early 1980s and 1990s, referred to as the millennial generation, now represent a significant percentage of leisure travelers. This generation grew up in a digital world and use their mobile devices for just about everything. They prefer to spend most of their discretionary dollars on experiences as oppose to owning material products. They search for relevant information on social media while researching options and look for customized, memorable experiences which they are willing to pay for. The emergence of home-sharing and new formats of hospitality have added a new dimension to the way this generation travels. These are all factors that Suppliers are considering when evaluating ways to attract today's consumer to their hotel and something to consider when choosing a hotel booking engine for your business.

The hotel industry has undergone a transformation as iconic brands and new trendy boutique hotels try and compete for today's traveler. Hotel properties have been upgrading their guest experience to meet this demand with contemporary room designs, new public spaces and modern amenities. Just about every aspect of a hotel property is being scrutinized today, whether that be the colors used, the lighting or just overall aesthetics. New technology is being deployed to address the entire guest experience including the research, reservation and check-in processes as well as intuitive in-room technology and post stay follow up.

And hotels are not the only place technology is constantly being upgraded to serve today's traveler. To serve the growing number of consumers using their mobile device to purchase travel products today, many sellers of travel are building mobile ready booking engines. So, no matter what type of device a customer uses to access a travel website, applications are available that can automatically adjust the screen size and layout to fit the type of device being used. The internet has become such a valuable and convenient resource to research just about anything and travel is no exception. Recent trends indicate that many travelers start their research using their mobile device, so having a mobile ready hotel booking engine can be critical.

Establishing a connection with the consumer and being part of their entire experiential journey can ensure alternative options don't build an emotional connection with them better. Make sure your hotel booking engine has the information and tools they'll need during the research and shopping process. Have detailed descriptions of the hotel along with pictures and information like nearby attractions, access to public transportation and restaurants. Travel businesses have been quick to learn that moving sales to E-commerce saves them time and money. An online booking engine is typically the most cost-effective way to serve customers today and the innovative technology available helps software solution providers design and develop flexible & fully scalable applications that easily grow with any size business. Some even provide the ability to customize the application to maintain a company's own unique brand identity.

Finding a hotel booking engine with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer where and how they shop for travel can be just as important.

Travel Booking Solutions Should Be Integrated Online and Offline

Whether consumers book their travel arrangements online or simply start their research there, today's travel related business needs to be ready to assist them throughout the entire process. And all signs indicate consumer use of smartphones will continue to increase as more people are constantly connected to social media, so finding travel booking solutions with mobile technology is becoming increasingly important.

Integrating the online and offline research, shopping and booking experience is critical since many consumers will switch between various devices as they research and eventually purchase products online. Mobile devices enable consumers to be online anywhere at any time, allowing today's consumer to start their research using their smartphone and then switch to a tablet or laptop to complete their purchase. While others may choose to start their research and shopping online before calling their travel agent to confirm their cruise booking. Regardless of the how a consumer ultimately makes their travel purchase, travel booking solutions need to integrate the online and offline process, provide the consumer with up to date availability and pricing and include detailed descriptions with pictures & images to assist during the research, shopping and booking process.

Applications should be easy to use and reduce the amount of time required to complete a transaction. The best travel booking solutions are flexible and easily customized to support each client's own brand identity or unique selling style. While some technology providers may host the application, the header, footer as well as the look and feel should all be easily customizable to provide a seamless online experience. Multiple selling channels should be easily managed using a single application and designed to quickly set up additional users and affiliated websites. Whether your customer books directly with a travel agent (B2B) -or- they prefer to shop and book online (B2C), your Booking Engine needs the ability to service them quickly and easily.

Many travel booking solutions are built using secure, scalable online booking platforms that are designed to meet the demands of suppliers, traditional or online travel agencies as well as consumers. And with the pace at which fares or schedules can change, real-time connectivity with suppliers can help you ensure that the most accurate and up to the minute schedule, availability and pricing are provided. Business management tools can help provide you the controls needed to easily manage your business. Revenue Management tools include the ability to mark up or mark down a product's selling price and even the ability to search multiple provider content sources for the best price. Display biasing capabilities and the ability to highlight value add offers in the availability display can give your business full control of what your customers are presented. Robust reporting tools are also available that allow for quick and easy business tracking.

Finding a travel booking solution with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer where and how they shop for travel can be just as important.