Hotelbeds has acquired HolidayTaxis Group (HolidayTaxis) to reinforce its “commitment to growth in the rapidly the rapidly expanding ancillary distribution space.”
The bedbank said this latest acquisition was a “strategic fit” following its recent decision to rename its ancillary product line as Beyond the Bed, a business unit involved in the sourcing and distribution of transfers, activities, tickets, theme parks, car hire, travel insurance and specialist tours.
Terms of the deal have not been disclosed.
HolidayTaxis, headquartered in the UK, was founded in 2002 and now operates 21,000 transfer routes across 150 countries. It will remain separate and independent from Hotelbeds, but will form part of the Beyond the Bed business unit. Its CEO, Ian Coyle, will report to Javier Arévalo, director of Beyond the Bed.
Joan Vilà, executive chairman of Hotelbeds, commented: “In recent years our ancillaries business has grown substantially as the strength of our technology platform and global distribution network has positioned us effectively to take full advantage of the increasing demand for in-destination activities worldwide.”
He added the addition of HolidayTaxis would strengthen the company’s portfolio, and provides greater choice to its travel trade partners.
Coyle said the acquisition “is a unique opportunity that was unmissable, allowing us to share additional ancillary revenue generating solutions with the 60,000 travel selling partners that Hotelbeds works with globally – many of whom are very hard to reach otherwise.”
