The traveling industry has been facing a significant upturn in recent years, catching up with pre-pandemic statistics. Considering the need for travel advice and services, travel agents do their best to make the booking process as simple as possible. 

The internet space is full of B2B online booking engines, each one offering the best possible conditions and choice of hotels, flights, etc. Yet, diversity isn’t the key to quality. How to choose the travel booking engine with global availability and instant request procession? Let’s explore together. 

What Is An Online Booking Platform?

A travel booking engine is a software solution that provides comprehensive reservation management targeting major travel aspects – flights, hotels, transfers, and car rentals. It processes purchases of travel products made through websites, mobile apps, social media, or metasearch. 

The online booking platform is a consolidating system of search, as instead of multiple applications, all the information is available through the centralized point-of-access. Booking engines provide an automated search through a global pool of options, selecting suitable variants to fit the customer’s needs. 

Due to its cloud-based nature, the booking engine can instantly retrieve up-to-date information about booking availability, filter it according to customer requests, and present accessible options. 

How Does Booking Engine Work?

Travel booking engines are two-layered:

• The customer interface is responsible for handling the queries and providing all the required search tools.  

• The internal system of travel product suppliers (hotel management system, airline reservation system, GDSs, etc.). 

The engine retrieves the required data, consolidates it, and transfers it to the customer. 

Benefits Of Online Booking Engines

Travel booking software covers all the aspects of travel planning, allowing agents to choose the most suitable offers for travelers. 

1. Cross-platform synchronization – travel booking engines provide real-time updates, ensuring their clients get valid information regarding bookings. 

2. Enhanced client satisfaction – as the platform provides instant information regarding travel essentials, the clients are sure to get the service that meets their expectations. 

3. Flexibility – the platform can provide information regarding different dates, allowing the clients to choose the best options. 

4. Filters – an online booking engine features multi-filtered systems, allowing clients to choose the best-fitting options. 

5. Analytics – travel booking platforms are AI-propelled, which allows timely analytics and reports regarding popular choices. 

6. Automation – booking platforms replace all the time-consuming manual inputs of information, streamlining the agency's workload and minimizing the risks of mistakes. 

Key Features of Online Booking Platforms

1. User-friendly interface

The optimal booking engine features a responsive and intuitive UI/UX design, which provides a simple and intuitive user experience. Moreover, the platform should be equally accessible across various devices – laptops, tablets, and smartphones – without compromising performance quality. 

Another feature to consider – a customizable design, as it allows for aesthetic adjustments of the platform interface. Layouts, fonts, and colors should be changed according to the company’s brand and vision. 

2. Payment procession

The financial component is one of the most important characteristics to consider. Ensuring that the travel booking engine features high-grade security is important, as it is the key to safe and timely transactions. 

The platform should also be capable of handling the most common payment methods like PayPal, Stripe, Authorize, etc., as it is one of the basic conveniences for the clients. 

Before assigning to a certain platform, check up on the commissions and transaction chargers, as they may significantly elevate the total costs of their usage. 

3. Rate plans

The booking system should be able to handle various requests and multiple scenarios regarding every particular stay. The conditions should cover: 

• Arrival timing – early or late booking.

• Discounts – vouchers, gift codes, codes, etc. 

• Duration of stay – the length may influence the price.

• Add-ons – extra services and activities. 

• Occupancy – number of people, availability of rooms, etc.

The more options are given, the more precise the selection process. 

4. Integrations

Integration with third-party portals is inevitable, if there is a need to perform a global search of available options for booking. 

The booking engine should be able to link to other external booking systems and aggregators to retrieve in-depth data about all the hotels, rentals, B&B, properties, etc. A streamlined synchronization will prevent overbooking, poor reviews, and reputation damage.

5.Reviews

The Internet era blessed us with online reviews. After narrowing down the list of travel booking engines, make sure you scan all the available websites with reviews like Google reviews, TrustPilot, TrustRadius, Glassdoor, etc. Every review and testimonial will help you see the big picture and choose the best-functioning platform, which will maximize the performance of your travel agency and bring more satisfied clients. 

The Final Thoughts

The success of the traveling industry depends on the efficiency and hospitality of all its participants, including travel agencies and tour operators. The right choice for an online booking engine is the major step towards improving and streamlining the performance of the travel company. 

Real-time updates of bookings and available options, a global pool of bookings available for scanning, various filters that help to match the needs of the customers – all the benefits can become accessible once you choose the right platform. Make sure you dedicate enough time to searching for the right engine, as it will make the foundation for your successful performance.