Online travel agency, commonly known as OTA covers wide range of travel services apart from online reservations and agent management. They generally go with a complete travel portal development with all the global travel related services like flight reservations, hotel reservations, vacation packages, transfers, fancy bookings, car rentals, mobile recharge, insurance, DTH recharge, bill payments, social selling, mobile app version and many more. Most of them go with B2B2C business model. OTAs generally contract with many suppliers and individual LCCs to bring vast choice of contents in their website.
PROVAB TECHNOSOFT helps online travel agency OTA go for their own travel portal development with GDS and APIs and other hotel management software. OTAs sometimes have contract with individual LCC (low cost carrier) to have their own airline reservation system to give best price over any GDS system. The major volume of booking is of course through flight ticket bookings and hotel reservations. The dynamic packaging like flight+hotel or flight+car or hotel+car leverages the OTA business to grow in terms of revenue and customer retention.
Features of OTA
B2B/ B2C user Modules
Monitor different user module, allow them to search and book from your system, add markup, add currency in the account, cancellations and many more. It also allows OTAs to send different travel agents promotional offers and boost your business.
Agent Affiliate Program
OTA provides the travel agents a privilege to enjoy their own B2C system with design and content customization.
Call centre account
Stand-alone privilege based module for all call centre executives to support end B2B & B2C customer.
Add to Cart features (T-Commerce)
One time check-out feature allows your customer to book different itineraries just in one click. One can add flights, hotels and transfers in one go without going to final checkout page in between. Once you select all the service and add them into your basket, you can go for final checkout to do payment and get itinerary, PNR, booking confirmation and invoice.
Global Language Library
Manage multiple Language with auto component shifting option - Right to left or left to right
Admin and Staff Privileges
Give real time access of different module and insure accuracy of reports. Separate mark-up can be managed on B2C and B2B, both the modules.
Other features of online travel agencies include
24×7 availability, increased sales and better client satisfaction.
Online reservation system manages from displaying flights and hotels to voucher generation online and thus saves a lot of efforts.
Marketing tools such as email newsletters and promotional discounts help in building bigger client base.
Better search and booking experience for end users.
There has been a massive growth in online travel business and that’s why most travel companies have adopted the OTA business model and going for travel portal development for their companies. Travel agencies are contracting travel technology companies to build and set a robust OTA platform.
Which is best GDS software for IATA travel agencies?
If you are a growing travel agency and aspire to do business globally, gds travel software will be right choice as this will bring you competitive edge. If you are a startup agency and Non IATA, then you can go for non GDS travel software or B2B2C systems.