Southeast Asian hospitality management group Archipelago Hotels signed a distribution agreement with Dida Holdings, the global AI-first travel distribution platform last 11th May.
The signing took place at Archipelago's Jakarta headquarters and adds over 300 Archipelago hotels and 45,000 rooms to Dida's global B2B network.
The agreement took effect immediately with the first phase of integration and joint commercial activity already underway.
Beneficial partnerships
Dida's vice-president for commercial planning Bernard Chionh said of the agreement: "We are glad to formalize this agreement with Archipelago Hotels. Archipelago has built something special in Southeast Asia, with a footprint, brand range, and technology mindset that fit very well with how we work. With this agreement, our 35,000 travel sellers across more than 120 source markets can now book Archipelago properties from upscale resorts in Bali to select-service hotels in secondary cities. That is the kind of supply our buyers ask for."
Chionh added that Dida is a technology business first; and, when it teams up with hotel groups like Archipelago, these can reach high value segments like travel agents, tour operators, TMCs, and loyalty programmes across Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and the Americas.
For his part, Archipelago's chief commercial officer Chris Legaspi said: "Dida adds real value to our B2B mix. Their technology and reach let us put our hotels in front of high-value travel sellers in multiple source markets through a single connection. These are guests who book earlier, stay longer, and cancel less. That fits well alongside the other wholesale and B2B partners we work with, and it complements how we run our commercial stack, including FluxRate, our in-house revenue management system."
Archipelago CEO John Flood added: "We work with many strong partners around the world, and Dida is a welcome addition to that group. We share the same view on technology, on speed, and on commercial discipline. We look forward to growing the relationship across our portfolio in Indonesia, Malaysia, and our growth markets in Latin America and the Middle East."
Priority areas
The two companies will focus on four early priorities:
- Expanding Dida's hotel coverage across Archipelago brands, including Aston, Alana, Huxley, Kamuela, Avanika, Harper, Quest, Four Corners, Neo, fave, Nordic, and Park Lane;
- Strengthening API connectivity for real-time inventory and rate distribution across multiple source markets;
- Joint participation in Dida's Engage events, which bring hoteliers face to face with leading travel agents from China and other markets; and
- Exploring how Dida's global network can support Archipelago's expansion in Latin America and the Middle East.
Both companies share a tech-first commercial mindset: Dida was founded as a technology business and continues to lead the B2B travel space on connectivity, speed, and data reliability.
Likewise, Archipelago has built proprietary platforms in revenue management, central reservations, and hotel operations through its Powered by Archipelago programme.
A timely agreement
The timing of this transaction reflects strong fundamentals in Southeast Asia.
In 2025, Indonesia welcomed 1.34 million Chinese travelers, the highest in six years, with Bali and Jakarta absorbing more than one million of those arrivals.
The Indonesian Ministry of Tourism is now targeting two million Chinese visitors and 17 million international arrivals in 2026.
Dida's deep penetration of Chinese outbound channels, combined with its fast growing global footprint in other source markets, helps Archipelago capture that demand efficiently.
Through its open API platform, Dida connects more than 35,000 travel sellers in over 120 markets to 1.5 million travel products worldwide. Under this agreement, Dida's travel agents, tour operators, TMCs, and loyalty programs gain deeper, real-time access to Archipelago's 13 brands across Indonesia, the rest of Southeast Asia, and the group's growth markets.
While Dida is headquartered in Shenzhen, China, the value of the agreement reaches well beyond a single source market, as with one API connection, Archipelago hotels become bookable across Dida's network in Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and the Americas.
