Scheduled to open in the coming months, the Sabre Red App Centre will be the first online marketplace to connect travel buyers, including travel agencies, travel management companies and leisure operators, with third party developers.

Sabre Travel Network is a global travel technology company delivering innovative solutions which make it easy for travel buyers to shop, book and manage travel and allow travel suppliers to effectively reach buyers through Sabre’s global distribution system (GDS). 

“The Sabre Red App Centre will open up a new world of possibilities for the travel industry and bring endless opportunities for creative and original applications to be brought to the market quickly,” said Daniel Naoumovitch, CEO, STNME. “Our agency customers across the Middle East region will be able to improve their business and deliver enhanced services for travellers by tapping into the collective creativity of Red App developers from all over the world.”

The centre will include Sabre-certified Red apps built by third party developers, travel buyers and Sabre. The facility will connect to the Sabre Red Workspace, launched last year for travel agents to book and manage business and leisure travel.

As a result, travel buyers will be able to easily shop for a wide range of applications that best meet their needs and then quickly deploy those applications down to the individual user.

The centre provides current Sabre-authorised developers a marketplace to promote and sell their certified Red apps to Sabre-connected agencies globally, while at the same time providing a platform and business model to attract new developers to the industry.

In addition to developing new Red apps, developers will realise new sales opportunities by converting existing applications to Red apps that will plug seamlessly into the Red Workspace. At launch, developers will be able to tap into more than 155,000 Sabre Red Workspace users in more than 116 countries.

“Every year, Sabre invests hundreds of millions of dollars and works closely with more than 130 authorised developers to research and develop new products that help our customers compete and win in a complex industry,” said Naoumovitch. “Creating an online B2B marketplace will spur a whole new level of innovation for the benefit of Sabre-connected agencies globally.”

The Green Globe app and Green Globe solution centre will be showcased at the new signature event for the incentive travel, meetings and events industry being held for the first time in Las Vegas, US.

The app for Apple devices allows meeting planners to quickly locate and book meeting venues which are certified as sustainable businesses. It includes meeting venues from destinations across the globe that have rigorously proven their sustainability credentials and have been independently reviewed with on-site audits.

The solution centre takes sustainability certification to a new level, for the first time providing a community of experts contributing advice, practical examples and other solutions which assist meeting planners and venues to ensure the sustainability credentials of their events.

Green Globe Certification CEO, Guido Bauer said: “Green Globe Certification has been a regular attendee at Imex Frankfurt and expects a huge response to its new tools at this new signature event in the US.”

Green Globe is dedicated to the incentive travel, meetings and events industry, with global partners including the German Convention Bureau (GCB), German Event Organisers Association (VDVO) and the European Association of Event Centres (EVVC).

“In destinations around the world, Green Globe has certified hundreds of hotels and convention and congress centers.  These excellent venues will be available directly via the Green Globe app. In addition the invaluable knowledge that comes from certifying these members will be available via the Green Globe solution centre,” added Bauer.

This proprietary device is designed as a complement to the hotel e-check-in strategies properties are implementing through Ariane’s award-winning Allegro web-mobile-kiosk check-in/out solution, which was introduced last year.

The KeyStation, comprised of a nine-inch digital touch screen, a 2D barcode reader and a keycard encoder/stacker, offers many important benefits for both hoteliers and guests, including:

•  Compatible with both magstripe   and RFID keycards, as well as lo-  yalty cards;

•  Interfaced with 18 different key  card manufacturers;

•  Easily portable for use as a coun-  tertop unit or free-standing  pedestal;

•  Simplifies the check-in exper-  ience for today’s web-savvy   guests;

•  Provides added convenience and   saves guests valuable time;

•  Optimises front desk operations;

•  Complements and supports e-check-in strategies;

•  Creates strong differentiating   factor recognised as a main dri-  ver of loyalty and

•  Integrates consistent user inter  face and branding.

The Ariane KeyStation allows guests who have pre-checked in online to retrieve their guestroom keycard in a matter of seconds without assistance from front desk staff. The addition of this unique hardware component allows hotels to offer a 100-per-cent self-service option.

Once guests have finalised the web check-in process, using Ariane’s Allegro web check-in solution, they automatically receive an email and/or SMS text message with a barcode on the day of arrival. The barcode can be printed out or used directly from the screen of any web-enabled device, such as mobile phone or tablet computer.

Upon arrival at the hotel, the guest places the barcode under the 2D barcode reader on the KeyStation, which searches in the database for and retrieves the guest’s reservation details. The guest then simply selects the number of keycards desired and the KeyStation automatically encodes and dispenses them. The entire process takes less than 12 seconds to complete.

Hotels or chains with a guest loyalty programme may choose to allow members to use their existing loyalty cards as their room key, as an added convenience and programme benefit. Instead of using a barcode, loyalty members simply insert their magstripe or RFID-enabled loyalty card into the encoder and the card is automatically encoded by the KeyStation for use as the room key.

“After enlarging the scope of hotel self-service solutions to web and mobile check-in capabilities with the Allegro platform, it soon became clear to us that we needed to ‘rethink’ and re-engineer the entire guest check-in experience to extend convenient self-service options all the way through guestroom access. By deploying our technology, hotels will make the guest experience easier and the hotel more efficient,” said Laurent Cardot, CEO for Ariane Systems. “Since most hotels will continue using physical keys, such as magnetic and/or RFID keycards for the immediate future, we set out to design a simple and convenient way for guests to retrieve these keycards without staff assistance by leveraging the use of a barcode. The KeyStation is the answer to that challenge, providing our clients with an ideal complement to an e-check-in strategy.”

The super-slick look balances new imagery and on-line features which make researching, planning and booking accommodation easy, engaging and educational. The Gulf Hotel recently unveiled the redesigned website as part of its ecommerce strategy to increase business through the most cost-effective channel and raise the profile of the property internationally.

“The roll out is another significant step forward in our effort to become more transparent and accessible,” said Dee McGuinness, director of business development and strategy. “It provides a new standard in usability as well as a larger canvas to view the Gulf Hotel’s extensive product portfolio.

“www.gulfhotel.com offers a ‘lowest rate guarantee’ ensuring that customers get the best rate available when booking their rooms.

“And, as well as featuring information regarding accommodation, prices, wedding opportunities, up-and-coming events and special offers, it also provides information about things to do in Bahrain and an interesting insight into the history of the hotel itself.

“We are also pleased to announce that the fourth quarter will see the launch of our mobile version together with the introduction of Arabic content.”

The independent Bahraini-owned hotel features 357 elegant guest rooms and 97 deluxe apartment suites at the exclusive Gulf Executive Residence.

Whether visitors are travelling for business or pleasure, for one night or several weeks, the Gulf Hotel promises quality Bahraini hospitality and unrivalled facilities. The property is a member of Worldhotels, which is an extensive collection of the most unique and independent hotels around the world.