There are more questions than answers today. For us in the travel industry, we wonder if and when travel will return to the way it used to be - will people get comfortable again with long-haul flights? Will they favor new destinations? Will business travel pick up?
Amidst the uncertainty, one thing remains constant - people have an innate love for travel. It is about making connections, sharing new experiences and adventure that makes travel an integral part of our lives.
What we, at Amadeus, are doing to usher in the next normal?
Rebuilding traveler confidence and trust requires us all to think imaginatively about how the industry needs to renew. We need to accelerate the emergence of solutions for the travel industry to recover so that people can travel safely and without stress in a sustainable way.
This is the purpose ofAmadeus Nexwave – a business incubator within the Strategic Growth Businesses Unit that helps to identify, incubate and grow transformational ideas to shape the travel experience of today and tomorrow.
Here are three such ideas that Amadeus Nexwave has helped bring to fruition:
Traveler servicing solutions: provide relevant and timely information to the traveler
#GoInformed
With constantly evolving travel rules and multiple sources of information, it can be a challenge for travelers to access the latest, relevant updates regarding their journey. Travelers would like to rely on a single source of information they can trust throughout their journey that provides them with timely, relevant and personalized alerts.
We have developed a contextualization engine, which can help travel companies understand and push what the traveler needs, in a timely manner. Currently we are using it through two channels:
- Feasy is a digital traveler assistant that sends tailored trip updates and travel services straight to the traveler’s phone via Messenger or WhatsApp. With no need to download another app, travelers get briefed on the messaging platform of their choice on areas that can otherwise cause unnecessary friction, such as airline baggage limits or national visa requirements.
- If travelers prefer to access personalized and contextualized details of their trip through a dedicated app, they can useCheckMyTrip . Our personal travel app is especially relevant for business travelers and frequent flyers.
Having Feasy and CheckMyTrip is like having a concierge in your pocket.
Traveler identity services: enable a safer and smoother journey with touchless identity verification
#GoSafe
Imagine if the various travel services you were using during a trip could easily recognize who you are. Wouldn’t it be nice to get rid of those long queues and 'identity verification' touch points we all need to go through at the airport and beyond?
Traveler ID is a secured platform, which aims at offering a more efficient ID verification process through the traveler journey, by accelerating the adoption of digital identities and biometrics in travel. In particular, it enables “interoperability” across providers, which means that once travelers sign up to an identity provider connected to our platform, and their data has been checked and verified (in accordance with local regulations), they can reuse it across their journey, from airport check-in to hotel room, in a fast and hassle-free way.
Even though biometrics and face recognition have been around for a while now, the deployment at scale and the cooperation of a complex network of Identity providers and travel operators will be crucial to increase travelers’ adoption. With traveler ID we can accelerate their deployment and help maintain social distancing in a COVID-19 context.
Destination experiences: support local tourism by facilitating access to a richer offer of sustainable and diversified experiences
#GoLocal
Domestic travel is recovering faster than international travel, putting the spotlight on local tourism content and short distance transportation as a means to bounce back from the crisis.
Moreover, Travelers are increasingly concerned about the impact their travel choices have on the environment.A survey from Publicis Sapient performed in April 2020 , found that 58% of people are thinking even more about the environment and sustainability than before the crisis. They want to engage with local communities, experience authentic activities, spend their money responsibly and minimize the environmental impact of their travel.
Through our offering,Amadeus Sherpa , we provide new waysfor hotels to help their guests locate and book nearby activities. Going forward we want to discover similar opportunities with other travel providers including travel agencies and airlines, finding new ‘things to do' at local destinations fitting their needs and aspirations.
Foster collaboration among all travel actors
It is important to improve collaboration across the industry to minimize pain points for travelers. One key aspect is to help our industry partners to scale their innovations, and in turn minimize development costs, increase adoption and optimize the value they create. In a COVID-19 context, it is even more important to make sure industry’s investments deliver a better travel experience and increase people’s confidence to travel again.
Relying on our internal strengths, our state-of-the art innovation methodology and the creativity of the external ecosystem, Amadeus Nexwave aims at incubating innovative projects that enable the industry to shape the travel experience of today and tomorrow. We remain indeed committed to creating simpler, safer and more enjoyable traveler experiences in the next normal.
For more information, visitAmadeus Nexwave .
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