Flipkart hails the bus
India’s homegrown digital commerce ecosystem, Flipkart, has launched bus services on its App.
In collaboration with state transport corporations and private aggregators Flipkart, which launched in 2019, will offer customers the choice of choosing bus connectivity to 25,000-plus routes across India.
This is in addition to the flight and hotel booking services that have been available under the Flipkart Travel banner.
Redemption of supercoins for bus bookings is a value-added element that is available on Flipkart.
Velma drives billion-dollar bookings
More news about Quicktext, whose fourth-generation AI assistant, Velma, has been ranked No 2 among 13,000 companies in France across all categories for its AI leadership.
Quicktext was the only company in the tourism sector ranked in the Top 10, a list dominated by medical companies.
Velma combines conversational and generative models, enabling users to obtain quick and accurate responses in over 35 different languages, creating an omnichannel direct booking solution, available at every stage of the customer relationship (before, during, and after the stay).
Quicktext is expected to reach US$1 billion in bookings for its clients in 2024.
Travelport backs ‘understated’ Malaysia
Travelport has expanded its strategic destination marketing collaboration with Tourism Malaysia following the reported success of a campaign driven by data analysis work.
Travelport will continue to provide Tourism Malaysia with data and market intelligence used to drive destination marketing campaign decisions.
The DMO will use insights from Travelport to educate and engage travel retailers about Malaysia as a top destination.
“Our research shows that the unique experiences Malaysia offers visitors has been vastly understated in the past. Travelport’s meaningful insights help to ensure Tourism Malaysia is propelling tourism and seeing a valuable return on their campaign investments,” said AnnaAu-Yeung, global head of destination marketing at Travelport.
“As we expand our strategic collaboration, Travelport’s data insights will continue to empower Tourism Malaysia with setting the right strategic focus, resource allocation and market priorities as traveller preferences and market conditions continue to evolve.”
Hamad International tops the charts
Hamad International Airport in Doha has been named the World’s Best Airport in the 2024 Skytrax World Airport Awards. It was also named the World’s Best Airport Shopping.
Accepting the award in Frankfurt, the airport said in 2024 it aims to enhance sustainability efforts through investments in “new technologies and pioneering industry-first initiatives”, further solidifying its position as a leader in the aviation industry.
Why experiences should come first
Quote of the Week: Douglas Quinby, co-founder and CEO of Arival, on selling and marketing themed trips:
“The typical traveller’s bucket list used to consist of places to go, countries to check off, passport stamps to collect. But, in 2024 and beyond, it’ll be more about the who, what and why, than the where and when.
“Experiences are no longer just ‘things to do,’ but the reason to go in the first place. They are increasingly driving the destination decision. Travel brands the world over, from destinations and hotels to OTAs, travel agencies and tour operators need to start putting experiences first to inspire that traveller and capture their demand.”
