Belmond signs up for Open Destinations tech to drive rail and cruise growth

Luxury travel company Belmond is to use travel software provider Open Destinations’ Travel Studio platform, to drive growth of its rail and cruise distribution.

Luxury travel company Belmond is to use travel software provider Open Destinations’ Travel Studio platform, to drive growth of its rail and cruise distribution.

Belmond engaged in an extensive global search taking over a year to complete before selecting Travel Studio.

The operator will use various elements of Travel Studio, including the rail operations module of the application.

The module will provide flexible options for managing and packaging inventory, making it possible for Belmond’s customers to book the Eastern & Oriental Express train and Belmond’s Road to Mandalay river cruise in South East Asia.

Gary Franklin, managing director of trains and cruises at Belmond, said: “We have a wide range of unique, specialist products that demand very specific functionality from our technology.

“Travel Studio has been custom designed for operators like us, particularly in the area of rail and cruise. It also provides us with a platform for growth.

“We are able to utilise the flexible API to ramp up our online presence and increase our distribution to all of our customers, through our websites and trade channels.”

The software will also provide users with the option of packaging various other holiday components with the iconic rail and cruise services. They will have the option of customising their trips using flights, hotels and excursions configured within Travel Studio.

“As we continue to grow, we want to ensure that our technology is adaptable and sustainable,” Franklin said.

“Travel Studio will enable us to sell our experiences in the most flexible way possible, both now and in the future.”

Kevin O’Sullivan, chief executive of Open Destinations, which has worked with large rail operators around the globe for more than a decade, said: “We are pleased to be adding Belmond to our portfolio of specialist tour operators.

“We look forward to helping them to expand the distribution of unique luxury experiences in the travel marketplace.”