Book Together and Save: Travelocity Launches the Latest in Savings

June 30 /PRNewswire/ -- Travelocity, the most popular travel site on the Web, today introduced Travelocity TotalTrip technology, its new dynamic shopping engine that allows consumers to book airfare and hotels together in just a few simple clicks, giving them access to special rates not available when booking components separately.

Booking together with Travelocity TotalTrip provides significant discounts for consumers versus booking airline tickets and hotel rooms in separate transactions. The new technology also offers value-added travel planning and booking tools that give consumers the most flexibility in customizing their trip.

The new technology broadens Travelocity's ability to use specially negotiated wholesale, or merchant, rates for airfare and hotels, meaning consumers get greater access to discounts on their travel purchases. Travelocity TotalTrip is accessible through the re-designed Travelocity homepage under the heading "Book Together and Save" or at any "Get It Together" ad running on Travelocity.

"Our customers tell us that price, value and ease of use continue to be the determining factors in today's travel planning," said Sam Gilliland, Travelocity president and CEO. "Booking multiple parts of your trip together in real-time is the most cost-effective way to buy travel online, and it's easy."

"Consumers can find numerous everyday examples where buying together translates into savings," said Jeff Glueck, Travelocity's vice president of packaging. "In fast food, for example, you order a combo meal -- burger, fries and drink -- together and pay less than if you ordered them separately. This is the aim we're now taking with Travelocity TotalTrip for the travel industry."

New, Exclusive Travel Tools
Travelocity TotalTrip provides several features and enhancements that online travel shoppers cannot find on any of the other major travel Web sites. These features mean Travelocity shoppers now have more power to shape a trip unique to their needs and preferences. They include:

-- Hotel Room Choice: Are you a non-smoker who somehow always manages to get stuck with a smoking room? Have you ever traveled with the family on vacation only to find out that there's only a single bed in the room? Travelocity TotalTrip presents shoppers with more hotels with a specific room type than any other travel site, thanks to new technology that links directly to hotels' central reservation systems. The most choice for the most hotel rooms allows shoppers to reserve the room that's right for them.

-- Airline Seat Maps: Travelers now can avoid getting sandwiched in a middle seat in the last row of the plane, the howl of an engine in one ear, the clangs and pangs of the galley in the other. With Travelocity TotalTrip's new and improved interactive seat maps, you choose your seat with the click of your mouse.

-- Flexible Booking Options: Travelocity recognizes that when it comes to researching and purchasing travel, shoppers' buying habits vary. Some travelers prefer to book flights before making hotel reservations, and vice versa. Travelocity TotalTrip gives travelers the option of booking either flights or hotels first. Plus, new hotel functionality lets consumers shop hotels based on preferred neighborhoods.

-- Hotel Ratings and Reviews: Travelocity shoppers can get the low-down on a hotel from the professionals at AAA with its prestigious "Diamond" ratings system. They also can tap into the thoughts and opinions of actual travelers who have eaten at its restaurant, tested the hot water in the shower and, most importantly, slept in the bed.

"With Travelocity TotalTrip technology, consumers now can literally plan their trip start-to-finish from the flight and hotel that meet their needs, right down to their seat on the plane and their hotel room type," Gilliland said. "As this evolution continues, Travelocity will be at the forefront, building upon our reputation as a leader and innovator in giving consumers the power to stretch their travel dollars."

Additional information about Travelocity can be found on the Web at http://www.travelocity.com.

Source: Travelocity