Extreme Search was first launched in 2009 and won the Top Innovation Award at the PhocusWright conference in Orlando, USA the same year.

According to PhocusWright (Destination Unknown: How US and European travellers decide where to go, October 2010), 40% of European travellers do not have a destination in mind when they start planning their trip, and 80% of travellers carry out online research when selecting a travel destination.

Amadeus now offers online travel agents an intuitive search solution. Extreme Search is now based on flight search, and in the near future, other travel components such as high-speed rail and low cost carriers will be added.

By allowing travellers to ask open questions, consumers no longer need to enter origin and destination information, but can inspire their search by budget, type of activity or geography all on a single page and receive relevant responses immediately.

The underlying technology, leveraging the Amadeus Massive Computation Platform, processes billions of results based on the traveller’s query. The traveller receives practically instant results which are based on real-time availability and price.

Unlike any other on the market, this multi-carrier solution provides the most exhaustive and complete choice of options (including more than 440 airlines), which are bookable and accurate over multiple destinations and during a full calendar year. And thanks to Amadeus Master Pricer, the comprehensive low-fare search and merchandising solution for online travel agencies and online sites of travel agencies, the shopping process is seamlessly integrated into the booking flow, including the purchase of the trip on the same website.
 
Johan Elwin, Director of Business Development at European Travel Interactive (eTRAVELi), who are piloting the solution said: “Amadeus Extreme Search provides our customers with intuitive and efficient options where users can explore and determine their trip based on their holiday requirements. The ability to inspire the traveller to search easily in the same way they think, with quality content, gives us a considerable competitive edge and serves the interests of today’s traveller.” 
 
Stephane Durand, Director Online & Leisure, Amadeus said: “Extreme Search is the natural evolution of today’s consumer practices, overthrowing established search methods based on destinations and dates.

“As important, it is an opportunity for the online travel agency to differentiate itself from the traditional “book it” button which is visible on every website today. Travel sellers are able to capture the traveller’s attention early in the search process due to the unique search experience, by inspiring and engaging them into a booking, thereby growing their share of the leisure market and ultimately increase conversion and customer loyalty.

“Furthermore, Extreme Search provides invaluable business intelligence on how customers search, helping online agents to respond instantly to new trends and target new customer segments.”
 
Amadeus has commissioned an international research organisation to investigate the way that travellers book and search online. The study will be published and made public later this year.