With doors opening for Business Travel Show tomorrow, we present a round up of some of the launches and news to watch out for
Air Canada – B710 + B220AC
Air Canada is set to exhibit a virtual reality experience. The VR headset simulates the enhanced experience of flying onboard its Boeing 787 Dreamliner at ground-level.
Air India – B220AI
Effective 20 February, Air India will introduce twice weekly flights from Birmingham to Amritsar, home to the Golden Temple, on its new generation Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft. The national Indian carrier also operates nonstop flights from London Heathrow to Ahmedabad, four times a week. Air India is the only airline from the UK to operate nonstop services on these routes.
ALTOUR – B2110
ALTOUR has been working closely with its GDS partners, as well as testing and gradually implementing technology called ALTOURConnect that not only protects its customers from any impacts of NDC, but also creates a measurable plan to benefit its customers.
Avis – B340
Head over to stand B340 where, for the first time, Zipcar will be sharing the stand with parent company Avis Budget Group.
ATPI – B440
Direct ATPI Global Travel will be exhibiting at BTS for the first time. Visitors will have the opportunity to meet the team and learn more about the firm’s fresh approach to global travel at stand B440.
Arbitrip - Booth LP6
Arbitrip is launching its online booking tool to the UK market.
Blacklane – B306
The company will preview Blacklane PASS, its new global airport concierge services. These include curbside and gateside meet-and-greet, fast-track security lines, expedited customs and immigration, connecting flight assistance, and airport lounge service.
Cellars in the Sky – B462
BBT's sister publication Business Traveller will present the winners of its Cellars in the Sky 2017 awards, which recognises the best wines served in Business and First class on airlines from around the world. There will be four tastings throughout the two-day show.
China Airlines – B510
Since returning to the UK and launching nonstop flights between London & Taipei, China Airlines is exhibiting its Premium Economy class seats on stand B510. Starting 27 March, China Airlines will also increase its operation from Gatwick to five times weekly, which includes Tuesday flights to complement the already established Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday services.
Clarity – B520
A show exclusive, Clarity will demonstrate the innovative approaches it is taking to revolutionise how companies measure the true cost of a trip.
Corporate Travel Management – B620
Global TMC CTM will launch Lightning Lite, designed to revolutionise the way SMEs manage travel.
Corporate Traveller – B30
Launching its new travel technology platform ‘YOUR.CT’, which gives its SME spend clients single-point access to pre-trip approval, booking options, profile management, traveller tracking, travel alerts, reports, invoice data and travel policy. Corporate Traveller has also teamed up with the show to run two workshops for travel bookers, PAs and office managers on the topic “Creating the Building Blocks for a Better Travel Programme”.
Crystal – B282
Crystal will be launching online booking tool Vibe at the show and this will be offered to all customers.
CWT – B230
The TMC will be launching myCWT. A single global platform for all travel-related services. The website integrates multiple systems, providing convenient, single sign-on (SSO) access to a suite of essential online traveller tools and resources.
Diamond Air – B1106
Set to smooth out the online booking process, head to Diamond Air to learn more about its new client web portal booking system, allowing clients greater visibility and ease of booking in real-time.
Diners Club International – B914
The new Diners Club Card programme will be launched at the show and is specifically designed to remove the pain of business expense claim management for travellers and administrators alike.
Drum Cussac – B550
Drum Cussac will be introducing its new travel security app and service aimed at families, called CloseCircle. It is also offering registered journalists a year’s free membership to CloseCircle (worth £195) if they attend the Drum Cussac stand to claim.
FCM Travel Solutions – B130
FCM will be unveiling its powerful new online booking solution, Seeqa, which gives travellers and bookers access to unparalleled travel options and functionality as it aggregates GDS, non-GDS and FCM proprietary content within one business travel eco-system. The TMC will also announce a travel manager version of its AI-based chatbot Sam, ‘Smart Assistant for Mobile’.
Fello Travel – B6202
Following the merger of Sandy Row Travel and World Club Travel, the brand new firm Fello Travel will make its debut at Business Travel Show at stand B6202.
IHG – B664
IHG’s Staybridge Suites brand is giving visitors a sneak peek of the highly-anticipated Staybridge Suites Manchester – Oxford Road. IHG is set to open more than 1,500 new hotels globally over the next three to five years. Find out more about the expansion at stand B664.
Kings Ferry Connections – B165
Kings Ferry Connections is unveiling a brand new look at this year’s Business Travel Show and celebrating with free cocktails, a magician and a chance to win a Mac Book Pro.
mdtravel – B1300
mdtravel launches dérive, an online booking solution to simplify corporate travel management for the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries. dérive centralises and streamlines the booking process, offering travellers 24/7 access to flights, trains, transfers and accommodation at discounted rates.
Magic Stay – B384
MagicStay presents its new version of the Weezard® apartment booking tool.
Omega World Travel – B350
Omega World Travel is giving away two tickets to New York.
Click Travel – B650
Introducing travel.cloud, the free-of-charge self-serve online travel management portal allows you to manage and amend your travel entirely online, without needing to call an agent. Click Travel will also be providing a guide to getting more from your travel management company, and how the latest technology can help cut the cost and complexity of your business travel.
Philippine Airlines – B517
Philippine Airlines has been certified as a ‘Four-Star Airline’ by Skytrax, the international air transport-rating organisation. PAL joins 40 other well-renowned airlines in this prestigious category and is the first and only airline in the Philippines to have a four-star rating.
QATAR – B150QR
Qatar Airways will announce the launch of its direct daily flights to Cardiff on 1 May 2018. Alongside 84 weekly non-stop flights to and from London Heathrow, Qatar Airways currently serves Manchester, Birmingham and Edinburgh, with Cardiff to be the airline's fifth destination in the UK.
Roomex – B3300
Be the first to hear about Expensify and Roomex’s new partnership as they launch a direct integration that enables companies booking hotel accommodation to auto-expense their hotel bills.
Roaming Expert – B2204
Want to save between 20-50% on your company’s mobile roaming rates? Visit Roaming Expert at their stand B2204 to learn more.
South African Airways – B220
SAA announced plans to introduce the new A330-300 on the London route from March 2018.
Spendesk – B1300
Spendesk will be launching its new payment solution for businesses which enables travel managers and employees to easily book trips online, abolish expense reports and has the potential to help users save up to three hours per month.
Travel and Transport Statesman – B160
Launching a number of fully-proprietary new products to the UK and European market – Dash Mobile, the all-in-one business travel app that knows about delays and cancellations faster than dedicated airline apps, Dash Portal and BARTT – the Booking Agent Reservation Technology Toolbox.
Traveldoo – B619
Traveldoo will be unveiling the results of a travel buyer survey. The survey focuses on all the aspects of customer service and how important it is to buyers, looking at a range of supplier segments and the service they offer. Don’t miss it.
We Know Group
We Know Group will be the first car company to offer an electric car service when it receives a large fleet of fully electric Jaguar I-PACE vehicles in July 2018, providing services to corporate clients and also from via service desks located at all Heathrow Airport terminals.
Wings Travel Management – B410
Wings is continuing to expand its portfolio of travel risk management resources with the introduction of a specialist disaster and crisis response service that includes traveller evacuation planning and coordination, search and rescue logistics and emergency medical assistance. The global TMC is also launching a dedicated consular assistance service which provides in-country diplomatic advice to resolve incidents from lost passports and visa issues to serious scenarios such as crime incidents, missing persons or abduction.
Register to attend the Business Travel Show at businesstravelshow.com/register