GDS
To be or not to be... on the GDS
The GDS has been around since the 1960s and love it or hate it, will be around for many more years to come.
There have been many disruptions in the Travel industry and the major GDS players manage to retain their share of this pie through innovative technology but more so, through the extremely rewarding nature of this business model. No matter how much technology may change, the business model has not. The participants on this stage, have come to depend on the financial rewards in order to survive. Therein lies the longevity of the GDS.
Travellers, especially business travellers and government departments, have inadvertently become a secondary pillar to the survival of the GDS. As long as businesses require a central point of booking, be it online, offline, or through innovations which allow for the traveller to book via a self service portal, there will be a demand for the GDS.
Hotels have also become a pillar of support, albeit, involuntarily. In their bid to acquire corporate and government market segments, continue to list on the GDS to ensure they get their fair share if not more.
At Reserlutions, we fully understand this predicament hoteliers find themselves in. This is why we have partnered with ReservHotel, who, almost 3 decades ago disrupted the industry with their online connectivity and distribution solution. They have kept abreast and continue to keep distribution costs to the absolute minimum.
Technology by Hoteliers, for Hoteliers!
Benefits of contracting through us
1. ReservHotel are well established (over 25 years) and were one of the first to use the Internet of Things to change this landscape, and we have been associated with them for almost 2 decades.
2. You will get access to over 600 000 Travel Agencies and Travel Management Companies worldwide.
3. The highest level of connectivity to the GDSs around the world which gives the travel trade the confidence to book your property.
4. The ability to maintain and update availability, rates and hotel information in real-time to all GDS systems from their extranet.
5. The ability to mange your Consortia and Negotiated Rates so that they are listed correctly on the GDS.
6. Ability to participate in Consortia Request for Proposals (RFP).
7. Acess to GDS Marketing & Advertising.
8. Seamless connectivity using Hotel Technology Next Generation (HTNG) and Open Travel Alliance API's making it easy to integrate with your PMS/CRS.
9. They not only have connectivity to Sabre, Amadeus and Travelport, but to leading Online Travel Agents, making them a Channel Mananger as well.
10. Easy to use and best of all, really affordable.
Contact us for a free consultation.
The GDS is a network of inventory made up of Airline seats, Hotel rooms, Car Hire vehicles, Bus and Train tickets which enables Travel Agents worldwide to book any of these items through a centralized service.
These systems deliver world wide data, rates and inventory availability in real-time and at the touch of a button. As the Travel industry evolved over the years, it has resulted in the dominance of a few service providers: Amadeus, Travelport (including Galileo, Worldspan and Apollo), and Sabre. In the Southern African context, this market is dominated by Amadeaus and Travelport. Linking all of this together are companies like DHISCO who act as a switch between the service providers.
Travel Agents and Travel Management Companies choose a service provider from amongst the ones mentioned above, i.e. Amadeus, Travelport or Sabre. It is very rare that they contract with all three although there is record of some of the travel powerhouses having contracted with more than one. The main reason for contracting only one of the three is purely financial.
Although the advent of Online Travel Agents like Booking.com and Expedia has changed how travellers book their trips, there remains a fair number of Leisure travellers who prefer using Travel Agents. With regard to Coprporate and Government travellers however, the majority continue and will continue to make their travel arrangments through Travel Agents or Travel Management Companies for the convenience of being able to book flights, accommodation and car hire through one medium and which also offers a centralized billing facility.
It is imperative for all accommodation establishments who depend on the Corporate and Government sectors to be bookable on this channel. If a Travel Agent or Travel Management Company cannot find you on any of the GDS's, they're more likely to book a competitor hotel which is on the GDS than call the hotel to book.
If you operate in one of the Government or Corporate catchment areas and your market mix does not include these two segments, or they are performing poorly, you must consider this channel.
Lastly, if you would like to grow your revenues, then you definitely need to be on this channel.
You probably could but the costs would be astronomical due to the distribution, delivery and connectivity costs to each of these service providers.
As an accommodation establishment, you ideally want to be represented on all three, depending on your target markets. Amadeus and Travelport have a big footprint in Europe and Africa whilst Sabre is dominant in the US.
As mentioned earlier, costs of direct connection with each is prohibitive. Thankfully, there are intermediaries who provide such a service to multiple establishments, and through economies of scale, make it affordable for hotels.
There are a few operators in this region and in order to increase your options, we at Reserlutions have partnered with one of the market leaders, ReservHotel. ReservHotel who are based in Miami, Florida, have awarded us Gold Partner status.
Absolutely. All that is required is a "switch letter" - a letter on your letterhead authorising the new service provider to make the switch.
Go on. Make that switch today and save! Contact us for a free consultation.
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