Travelink has incorporated the Galileo global distribution system (GDS) into its tour operator booking system.Ê By integrating GDS content Travelink has ensured that customers can book a wide range of flights - from charter operators through to no-frill carriers and scheduled airlines listed in GDSs.Travelink is the tour operator technology partner at next week’s Travel Technology Show in London and will be displaying its integrated GDS solutions on stand 113.

Galileo-listed carriers now join the charter flights and no-frill carriers that were already bookable in Travelink.Ê Importantly, all bookings are made entirely within the system.Ê

“This is a two-for-one bonus for tour operators,” said Galileo’s UK country manager Jason Clarke.Ê “Tour operators can now get the whole bundle through the Travelink system.”

Clarke expects to grow Galileo’s leisure business as a result of this deal.

“We expect the efficiency of the combined approach will appeal to many tour operators,” he said.

Travelink sales director Howard Frost said the face of leisure travel in the UK was changing quickly.Ê “Gone are the days of a ‘one package fits all’ approach and operators who persist are printing their own redundancy slips,” he said.Ê “Consumers want flexibility and choice, and that’s what this development helps us provide.”

To this end Travelink will also be displaying its flexible, component-based dynamic packaging capabilities, aimed at helping tour operators capture a greater slice of the burgeoning DIY market.Ê The system lets operators sell their products through a variety of methods - on Viewdata, through call centres or online.Ê It also lets them sell individual components of a holiday and vary their prices according to the sales channel.ÊÊ

“There’s a quiet revolution happening in the world of tour operator technology,” said Frost.Ê “Operators are evolving quickly to cater for the changing tastes and habits of the British traveller.Ê There is growing demand for greater flexibility. People want to travel on dates that suit them and this doesn’t always fit the traditional package model.Ê

“Similarly, if I want to book my holiday online, or fly on a given airline so I can use my frequent flyer miles, a good operator will allow me to do so,” Frost said.Ê “It’s called customer choice. Smart technology is enabling this revolution and out-of-date legacy systems are getting the push.”

The move with Galileo follows the company’s announcement in March last year that it had struck a similar deal with Amadeus.
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