Tech update: longer in-flight entertainment; train tickets
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A round-up of travel technology news from the last seven days.
thetrainline.com has extended the availability of its print-from-home tickets to TMCs and corporate customers. The barcoded tickets can now be printed by clients for East Coast, Virgin Trains, Cross Country, Greater Anglia, Grand Central, First Hull Trains and selected East Midlands and First Great Western services. The print your own service is also now available for all payment types.
Passengers travelling with Virgin Atlantic can now watch its in-flight entertainment before take-off and during the landing period. The service means travellers get more than an hour’s extra time to watch films and television shows.
Serenity Holidays has introduced a new trade area to its website. The site includes access to all the tour operator’s brands in one log-in with agents able to order materials and training tools. The individual sites can also be accessed from the trade site for checking availability and to book. A holiday to Gambia is up for grabs to the agents that spot the random word that will be added to the site’s homepage each week. For more information visit www.serenity.co.uk/trade.
Clients heading to Liverpool John Lennon Airport (LJLA) can now use Google Indoor Maps to get around the terminal. The function allows Android phone users to bring up a floor plan of the airport and move their way around easily and locate particular facilities. “Even though surveys show 97% passenger satisfaction levels, we are always looking at ways to enhance the passenger experience here at JLA. This Google Indoor Map application will help to make it even easier for our passengers to locate a particular bar, retailer, restaurant, coffee shop or perhaps the premium lounge,” said spokesperson Danny Pritchard.
Ukraine International Airline (UIA) has opened up its online check-in services to include more departure points. Passengers on UIA flights can now check-in online and print their own boarding pass when travelling from Baku, Yerevan, St. Petersburg, Prague, Yekaterinburg, Kaliningrad, and Moscow as well as its Ukraine airports.
Hillgate Travel has become the first independent TMC in the UK to integrate Conferma’s solution into its client and own booking system. The addition of Conferma’s Payment API means its agents and client hotel bookings are put into the TMC’s front and back office systems regardless when or where they are booked. Bookings and spend can be tracked through the virtual credit card system used by Conferma.