Tech in Travel: In the air (just) and on the ground, partnerships are flourishing

Klook, Tiqets expand global reach

If you want to get ahead, get a partner. That message is driving new relationships across the tech space.

Latest two to tango are Tiqets, an online platform for cultural and leisure experiences in Europe and North America, and Klook, the fast-growing travel and leisure e-commerce platform in the Asia Pacific.

The partnership is designed to give Klook’s and Tiqets’ suppliers greater visibility and exposure in each company’s key markets.

Tiqets has a network of more than 4,000 museums, attractions and tour operators who provide guided tours at their museums.

Business activity for both Tiqets and Klook has rebounded strongly as travel confidence returns.

Klook chief commercial officer Wilfred Fan said, “Klook has gone from strength to strength during the pandemic, and we’ve quadrupled the number of activities on our platform over the last two years in anticipation of travel recovery.”

Tiqets has a network of more than 4,000 museums, attractions and tour operators who provide guided tours at their museums. Photo Credit: jenoche/istock/GettyImagesPlus

eVTOL developments are hovering, ready to fly

There’s lots of movement in the development of eVTOLs – electric vertical take-off and landing vehicles – but they won’t all fly, according to analysis by Revolution Aero.

Globally, there are more 400 different electric VTOL concepts from some 240 plus companies and innovators, but Revolution Aero says many are still waiting for orders and “will struggle to turn their vision into reality”.

United Airlines in the US is retaining its faith in the concept with a US$15 million  partnership and investment in eVTOL manufacturer Eve Air Mobility. United has a conditional agreement to take delivery of up to 400 Eve eVTOLs.

In Asia, Tony Fernandes, founder and CEO of Capital A, the newly rebranded AirAsia Group, earlier this year signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding with aircraft lessor Avolon for at least 100 VX4 eVTOL aircraft.

Manufacturer Vertical’s eVTOL VX4 aircraft can carry up to four passengers and a pilot. It has a maximum speed of 202 kph and a range of 160 kilometers on a single charge. I

It also boasts a reduced carbon footprint and produces low levels of sound pollution.

No room for errors with HotelPORT

If the pandemic gave the tech sector anything, it was the time to develop new ideas and solutions.

Cue, HotelPORT (www.hotelport.co) a hospitality distribution solutions company whose Software-With-A-Service platform, PropertyVIEW, allows hotels to proactively monitor, audit, and update their descriptive information and photographs across third-party channels.

Its hotel-verified content assures customers that the information they are reviewing on a third-party website is accurate and up to date.

HotelPORT leverages its proprietary PropertyVIEW platform to become an extended arm of a hotel’s online marketing team to monitor the accuracy and completeness of hotel information and to facilitate updates of any errors or omissions across their most important third-party channels that generate most of their online visibility and revenue.

CEO and founder Fred Bean said HotelPORT reduces expenses and increases the frequency by which content can be updated.

Plan your next trip at 36,000-ft

Air Canada has launched WhereWeFly, an interactive route map for passengers to explore routes and view flights on Air Canada’s Panasonic seatback IFE and Thales Wireless Portal.

WhereWeFly provides passengers with a map and searchable directory of Air Canada routes and destinations.

Encouraging future trip planning, all Air Canada’s routes are presented from the carrier’s primary global hub in Toronto, as well as from Montreal, a principal gateway to French and other international markets, and Vancouver, the airline’s premier gateway to the Asia-Pacific.

The flight details allow for swift browsing of dates and specific flights in a calendar view with flight times and aircraft details.