Showcases a Number of Industry Firsts for Corporate Travel and Delivers Additional Travelocity Deals to Travelers
SOUTHLAKE, Texas–(BUSINESS WIRE)–July 26, 2004–Travelocity Business(SM), a full-service corporate travel agency, today announced an enhanced online site that represents the culmination of decades of corporate experience from Sabre Holdings(SM) and GetThere(R), combined with the ease-of-use of Travelocity’s recently redesigned site. The new Travelocity Business site offers travelers even more discounted deals from Travelocity Business and Travelocity(R), and complements the wide range of services offered to travelers with experienced corporate travel agents over the phone.
Because of its deep-rooted experience in corporate travel, Travelocity Business is the first full-service corporate travel agency to offer an online site built entirely from the ground up by combining proven corporate capabilities with the easy buying experience of a consumer site. The new site leverages Travelocity’s recently redesigned Web site that consumers favored in testing more than two-to-one over competitors’ sites, and merges it with key corporate functionality, including influencing use of lowest cost options, enforcement of corporate policies and usage of preferred suppliers, as well as customized messaging.
“We have always offered travelers easy-to-use online booking and powerful travel management capabilities, but this new site takes it to another level, offering the highly-acclaimed, redesigned Travelocity site, combined with years of experience in helping companies manage travel online, and tops it off with an even wider range of discounted deals to help travelers get great choices at even lower prices,” said Ellen Keszler, president of Travelocity Business.
Unique Online Options
Travelocity Business’ online site includes a number of significant, first-of-their-kind features. These include:
-- Unique, Traveler-Preferred Site Design - Preferred two-to-one
by consumers in testing over other online sites;
-- Powerful, Easy-to-Use Control Panel for Managing Site -
Enables designated site manager for company to easily adjust
preferred suppliers, policies, traveler messages, etc.,
without getting lost in layers of menus;
-- Thousands of Additional Special Travelocity Merchant Hotel
Discounts - Thousands of merchant hotel discounts are being
made available to complement the thousands of corporate
discounts already being provided by Travelocity Business. Now
approximately 10,000 hotel properties are providing special
hotel discounts;
-- Out of Policy Explanation in the Shopping Process -
Information delivered at the point of booking to help
travelers understand which options are policy-compliant, and
why others are not; out of policy notifications can also be
sent to a manager for review;
-- Automatic Traveler Profile Import from Travelocity - For all
current Travelocity members, Travelocity Business registration
is as simple as signing in with the traveler's current member
name and password. Following an initial login, the member's
travel profile is transferred from Travelocity into
Travelocity Business, completing the registration process,
while always keeping business and personal data (such as
credit cards) separate and secure;
-- AAA Reviews - Travelocity Business is the first full-service
corporate travel agency to provide AAA diamond ratings on its
site;
-- Instant Site Set Up - Travelocity Business has automated
registration and site set-up, enabling a company to launch its
new travel program in minutes in some cases.
Even More Discounted Deals for Travelers
In addition to giving travelers access to their companies’ negotiated discounts, and all published deals, the new Travelocity Business site provides a broader range of discounted hotel rates. In addition, companies have access to:
-- Wide selection of Web Fares;
-- Low-price hotel and car rates typically available only to the
online leisure traveler;
-- Broad range of domestic and international airfares offering up
to 50 percent off coach, business and/or first class seats to
Travelocity Business customers;
-- Up to 25 percent off business traveler-focused, full-service
hotels secured by Travelocity Business.
-- Up to 10 percent off car rental rates, along with premium and
value-added services.
Complemented by Comprehensive Live Agent Services
In addition to guaranteed service levels for phone assistance, Travelocity Business offers a full range of enhanced travel management services, such as:
-- Strategic Account Management
-- Advanced Web-based Reporting
-- Executive/VIP Services
-- International Rate Desk
-- Dedicated Toll-Free Phone Number
-- Consulting Services
Travelocity Business’ online and phone services are provided through a state-of-the-art service center that recently enhanced its technologies to incorporate and automate the corporate travel reservation process from beginning to end. Travelocity Business owns and manages the integrated process and service center, enabling it to support its low-cost offering over the long term.
About Travelocity Business
Travelocity Business is a full-service corporate travel agency that helps companies easily manage travel and reduce costs, while providing more choices to travelers. Travelocity Business combines the savings and convenience of online with the full service of dedicated agents available 24/7 who typically answer the phone in 20 seconds, and within 60 seconds guaranteed. Companies can cut travel costs through flight deals, Web fares, hotel discounts and service fee savings – representing an average savings of more than $100 per trip, including airfare savings averaging 26 percent per ticket and service fee savings of up to 84 percent.
Travelocity Business merges the expertise, service and travel choices of Travelocity with the most proven online corporate travel technology, already used by more than half of the Fortune 200. For more information, companies can visit www.travelocitybusiness.com.
About Travelocity
Travelocity’s industry-leading technology and straight-talking, honest information help travelers take more rewarding and affordable trips. With 44 million registered users and booking nearly $4 billion of travel in 2003, Travelocity negotiates thousands of low-priced deals with the world’s most reputable travel providers – top airlines, hotels, car rental companies, cruise lines, and other destination attractions and services. Additionally, Travelocity offers deeply-discounted rates for weekend getaways and dynamic packages through its Last Minute Deals and TotalTrip(SM) shopping engines, and provides customer service support over the phone 24 hours a day. Based in Southlake, Texas, Travelocity also operates Travelocity Business for corporate customers, powers international travel Web sites in eight languages, and has been recognized for its consumer advocacy and global leadership in online travel. More information about Travelocity is available at www.travelocity.com. Travelocity is owned by Sabre Holdings Corporation (NYSE: TSG), a world leader in travel commerce. More information about Sabre Holdings is available at www.sabre-holdings.com.
CONTACT: Vollmer Public Relations for Travelocity
Mary Kate Smither, 972-488-4790
marykate@vollmerpr.com
or
Chintan Talati, 972-488-4790
chintan@vollmerpr.com
SOURCE: Travelocity
