Phuket hotels sign up for new online scheme

PHUKET: Phuket-based hoteliers are breaking into emerging travel markets around the world with new channel management technology recently made available in the region.

Local members of the Thai Hotel Association (THA) are expected to be some of the first to benefit from the new channel management solutions following a deal inked in February between Phuket-based hospitality solution service provider Wide Discovery Dot Com and global hospitality software developer RateGain.

The partnership opens up a massive new section of the as-yet-untouched global hospitality market to local hoteliers by giving them access to hundreds of Online Travel Agents (OTAs) and hotel room wholesalers around the world, said Wide Discovery Dot Com Managing Director Mr Bunlert Eksatapornsakul.

“As well as offering unprecedented access to the global market, the new channel management solution saves huge amounts of time for reservation managers and staff, who must usually dedicate several hours a day to updating room availability and information with each OTA that they work with.

“Now hoteliers can instantly update room rates across the board with just a few mouse clicks while greatly reducing the risk of lost revenue or potential damage to reputation due to double or dropped bookings” said Mr Bunlert.

“Independent hotels in the region have for a long time had to rely solely on a handful of locally-based online travel agents (OTAs) and wholesalers to secure room reservations, limiting their customer base to conventional tourism markets in Asia and Europe,” he said.

India-based RateGain Vice President, Mr Sapan Anand, said the strategic alliance with Wide Discovery in Phuket means hotels in the region can now benefit from being able to access more than 350 channels in 72 countries around the world.

RateGain’s system is used by 5,500 hospitality clients in all major regions of the world, including the top fifty Online Travel Agents.