Technology
Expedia launches AI travel assistant and creator shops in 40+ spring product slate
15/05/2024 by Arvindh Yuvaraj
At EXPLORE, Expedia’s annual partner conference held in Las Vegas, the company announced the launch of 40+ new products and features across its tech ecosystem - chief of all being the introduction of Romie, an AI-powered travel assistant. Romie is designed to assist travellers at every step of [...]
Go City’s Gauthier on cultivating strong partnerships and Asia’s great potential for growth
14/05/2024 by Arvindh Yuvaraj
Sightseeing passes provider, Go City, announced a few weeks ago that it had formed a partnership with Merlin Entertainments, a prominent player in branded entertainment destinations. This collaboration significantly adds to Go City’s popular London Pass, now celebrating its 25th year of operation, [...]
Sentosa signs multi-lateral MoU with key players to develop Sentosa Precinct Partnership
10/05/2024 by Arvindh Yuvaraj
Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC), Resorts World Sentosa (RWS), DBS Bank (DBS), and Singapore Tourism Board (STB) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to enhance Sentosa’s guest experience through the development of a Sentosa Precinct Partnership. This multi-lateral partnership aims [...]
Bangkok bike-hailing. Expensify’s chat super app. Token answer for busy airports. More.
09/05/2024 by Ian Jarrett
Travel search on the cusp of a new era Speaking at Arabian Travel Market (ATM) this week in a session on “How To Build Influence with Gen Z in Just 30 Seconds”, Marc-Antoine Simon, industry manager, Travel and Tourism – MENA, TikTok, shared insights on the latest trends in community-led marke [...]
APAC performs best in Air Distribution as Amadeus records double-digit growth in Q1 2024
08/05/2024 by Arvindh Yuvaraj
Technology provider Amadeus has recorded double-digit growth across all reported segments demonstrating strong financial performance for the first quarter of 2024.    Financial Highlights for Q1 2024: Air Distribution revenue grew by 12.6% to €764.4 million. Air IT Solutions re [...]
Expedia expands to United Arab Emirates, its first new market in eight years
08/05/2024 by Arvindh Yuvaraj
Leading online travel agency (OTA) Expedia has announced its expansion into the United Arab Emirates (UAE) market, marking its first entry into a new market in eight years. The announcement was made at the Arabian Travel Market, where Expedia Group participated in the thriving $25 billion travel and [...]
The Symphony of Humans and Machines: A travel CTO’s balancing act
07/05/2024 by Timothy O'Neil-Dunne
At the Phocuswright WiT Middle East summit in Dubai, held May 3, 2024, a panel of four senior CTOs discussed the critical issue of AI’s interface to humans. Timothy O’Neil-Dunne provides this summary.   In the ever-evolving world of travel technology, CTOs stand at the precipice of a [...]
Real-time hotel feedback. GoCity goes London. Tencent explores the Metaverse. More.
03/05/2024 by Ian Jarrett
Designing hotel rooms by the people who sleep in them The launch of MM:NT Berlin Lab sees Adina Hotels partnering with Häfele, Germany’s supplier of architectural hardware systems, furniture fittings, electronic access control and LED lighting to design hotels of the future. MM:NT Berlin Lab [...]
Asia-Pacific continues to lead the way with 38.5% surge in airlines demand
02/05/2024 by Arvindh Yuvaraj
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has released its latest data for March 2024, revealing a surge in global passenger demand.  Here are the key highlights: Total demand, measured in revenue passenger kilometers (RPKs), increased by 13.8% compared to March 2023. Total capacity, [...]
Airbnb puts new spin on experiences with ‘Icons’ launch
02/05/2024 by Mitra Sorrells
For the last several years, every May and November, Airbnb has announced a package of updates and new products related to its core accommodation product, with a focus on offerings to fine-tune the platform for its short-term rental hosts and guests.  The 2024 May update, dubbed the “Summer Releas [...]