If you want to be one of the few facing the travel industry in 2024, consider investing in top-tier cloud travel solutions that provide you with the features and turnkey integration to build and manage your travel agency business smoothly. To narrow your pick, we’ve assembled the top ten best cloud travel solutions using parameters like the best travel and booking APIs, hotel management solutions, CRM tools, and security.
Read on!
Before you undermine the importance of cloud solutions to the travel industry, remember that digitization is now the order of business. Imagine the catastrophe if traditional servers are suddenly overwhelmed by unexpected traffic. It gets worse for travel agencies without the proper back-end infrastructure to manage this demand. But here’s the kicker — with cloud solutions, you can contain any traffic, integration, or technology to grow your travel business without worrying about latency and downtime anymore. In turn, this allows you to focus on other aspects of your business, such as marketing and user experience.
To understand the importance of cloud solutions to the travel industry better, let’s see some of their benefits:
Accessibility is all about removing limitations that prevent people of all cultures, abilities, disabilities, or walks of life from using and engaging in your travel business, anywhere and anytime. If you’re still undecided on why you need cloud travel solutions, remember that cloud infrastructures empower businesses to reach more customers. Plus, it provides businesses with the infrastructure to offer uninterrupted digital experiences.
Many cloud computing solutions for travel agencies provide turnkey solutions that minimize costs and maximize efficiency. With turnkey solutions, you can integrate services that directly serve your customers at no extra cost — just a simple API integration, and you’re set! Additionally, using cloud solutions allows you to scale at no extra cost.
Cloud services are renowned for providing industry-grade data security to combat growing cybersecurity concerns facing today’s businesses. In fact, the GDPR enforces that you prioritize implementing appropriate security measures that oversee data protection and movement. You could achieve this, save time, and prevent complications by using a cloud solution.
With a cloud-based software solution for travel agencies, you do not lose business data easily. Even so, you can recover lost data seamlessly because cloud solutions back them up automatically. Aside from data backup, they often retain deleted data in recycle bins for possible reuse.
Cloud-based travel agency software provides the infrastructure to streamline team activities and facilitate collaboration at all levels. For instance, most cloud software makes it easier for your team members to create, access, review, and edit a document or project in real time.
Now that you’re clear on why you need cloud solutions this year, here are our best cloud solutions for travel agencies.
This cloud-based solution from Montreal boasts a range of features for travel agencies, including back-office, CRM, and accounting tools, ideal for inventory and customer management. However, the array of features leads to complex pricing, which might be a bit overwhelming for those new to cloud systems. However, you can start with a demo or contact their team for more information about its pricing.
Travefy is a cloud-based travel software and CRM tool that allows you to manage all your clients' needs and itineraries in one place. Unlike TravelWorks, Travefy has a comprehensive pricing model from $35 to $39 per month, depending on your subscription plan. Although this pricing seems fair, Travefy might charge you an extra $25 per user should you exceed the limit for its standard plan. For those considering alternatives, WeTravel or Roomex could be viable options.
Lemax is a tour operator software that prides itself as a one-stop shop for Destination Management Companies (DMCs) and travel agencies. The platform offers solutions that help you automate your business workflow and increase sales.
Notable features:
Also on our list of top cloud-based IT solutions for the travel industry is Tourwriter, a tour operator software that provides you with the front-end and back-office toolkit to design and manage your travel business operations. After reviewing Tourwriter, we found out that clients love it for its easy-to-use integrations and implementations that let you create as many itineraries in a day as possible. Also, its interesting pricing strategy includes a 1% success fee on sales, aligning their success with yours.
TravelPerk claims to be pioneering the future of the travel business with its one-size-fits-all cloud-based solution for travel agencies. Its services extend to flight, accommodation, and car rentals. The good side of TravelPerk is its broad range of offerings and customization toolkits available with a free trial. It’s particularly beginner-friendly, with a clear fee structure. Hence, you may want to use it if you're starting as a travel agent or tour operator.
Ideal for budget-conscious travel and tour operators, WeTravel offers an affordable and intuitive software toolkit. Features include instant payment processing, efficient booking management, and global fund transfer capabilities. WeTravel’s pro plan starts from $79 per month — the cheapest pro plan of all the other cloud application development services listed in this guide.
Rezdy offers transparent data privacy and security services and has a broad range of cloud features and distribution channels to elevate your travel business in 2024. One fantastic thing about Rezdy is that it has about 30+ payment and invoicing options that let you perform instant transactions globally.
TravelShift doesn’t just provide a hotel management solution and infrastructure for travel and tours; it includes connectivity and community power to help you grow faster. Small and medium-scale travel agencies can collaborate and pull resources to support one another to glory using TravelShift. The platform enhances user experience and leverages AI for creating detailed travel itineraries.
Though initially complex in pricing, Toogo offers a free trial for the first three months. It offers a wide array of tools for managing both the front-end and back-end, complete with APIs and templates. This setup encompasses everything from travel logistics to sales and marketing, ensuring all bases are covered efficiently.
With tools like RoomexAnalytics, this service helps track client activities and manage CRM data. Its RoomexPay system is notable for combining various payment gateways. While its premium features are free, the service charges start from 3% per booking, a competitive rate in the cloud solution market.
With so many travel agency cloud management software, you may find it overwhelming to settle for the right one. In that case, considering these factors will guide you when choosing the right cloud system for your travel business:
CRM or cloud software services are notable for their complex prices. This is why you must consider cost when buying cloud products or services. The price of the cloud package you buy for your travel agency or business must complement your business needs and goals. Since most of these solutions are scalable, you need to consider how much you’d need to pay now and when you decide to upgrade.
Usually, cloud services display their respective package prices on their websites. For enterprise-level packages, you can request a custom quote from the company’s sales department. A general rule of thumb is choosing packages that offer you the quality services you need relative to the price presented. Finally, before settling on a price, compare the prices of other brands for similar packages to determine a fair market value.
Cloud services, including turnkey solutions, usually target various industries and businesses. Cloud services must be compatible with your services to help you achieve or fulfill your business needs and goals. So you need to choose travel agency cloud management services that best suit your business needs.
For example, if you need to improve your business accounting and financial management, it will be unwise to purchase a collaboration solution. Even if you may need it, it’s not your priority and will grossly affect your budget and business plans. Moreover, you won’t address your business’s more pressing concerns. Instead, go directly for an accounting tool and see your business grow.
Features are another thing worthy of note. Sometimes, cloud services include essential and unnecessary features to make their packages appear quality and pricey. Importantly, refrain from concerning yourself with this strategy. Instead, compare other cloud services to know which ones offer the necessary features your business needs at a fair market value.
Above anything else, choose cloud service with a positive history. Remember that your business rests on the shoulders of your chosen cloud service. This is because cloud systems form the back end of your online travel agency business. At this stage, reliability and security are a priority. A good rule of thumb is to ask your colleagues for recommendations.
Besides their suggestions, research properly before finalizing the cloud solution to use. Another way is to examine the cloud system’s social proof and clientele. This will give you insight into the type of brands that trust them and why you may need to trust them, too.
The more storage space you buy, the higher the price. It’s even higher if you run enterprise-level cloud systems. So, you must know how big or small your project is before choosing the cloud system features you need. Also, if you have long-term plans for your travel agency, consider that when finalizing your project size. Nevertheless, you could start with smaller cloud packages or software and go higher later.
Before you choose a cloud system for your travel agency, you want to know how your business data moves, who secures this data, and who truly controls it. You want to ensure that the data security and privacy terms are clearly stated and that you understand them before signing an agreement. Additionally, ensure you're clear on their cookie policies and other legal terms that bind you to their services to avoid future complications should you quit using their cloud services.
Migrating business data from an on-premises location to the cloud or from one cloud service to another can be overwhelming, especially if you need help understanding the nitty-gritty of cloud systems. It’s the duty of your cloud service to ensure this process is seamless. Before choosing a cloud system for your travel agency, inquire about their data migration support. So that when you want to change or upgrade your cloud needs, it is easier to transfer or migrate your container or services to another cloud system.
A cloud system should be your go-to option to boost your travel agency business in 2024. However, it doesn’t end with selecting the best solution for your business — you may need something specific that is different from what they have to offer.
This is where COAX Software comes in. We offer travel software development services tailored to help you build custom advanced software solutions for your business. Whether you need custom software or not, we will work closely with you to advise, manage, and integrate suitable cloud systems that effectively solve your travel agency business challenges.
Our experience in back-end, front-end, CRM integrations, and other turnkey solutions has proven successful with our travel and tourism clients and businesses worldwide. You can explore our case studies to learn how we’ve achieved impressive success with other clients over the years and how we can help you achieve yours.
Travel agents use different software or turnkey solutions that meet their business needs or goals. Some top cloud-based solutions for travel agencies include TravelWorks, Travefy, Lemax, Tourwriter, TravelPerk, WeTravel, Rezdy, and even COAX Software’s CRM solutions, among others mentioned in this guide.
Key features cloud-based software provides travel agencies include back-office tools (for accounting and financial reporting, project management, billing, etc.), reservation management, strategic management tools, tour management, online bookings, CRM Tools, turnkey solutions, etc.
Above all things, cloud systems help the travel industry and its agents improve the customer experience, reduce operating costs, and oversee their operations seamlessly. This is because of the substantial decrease in labor and maintenance. Recall that cloud systems are online. This removes the need for on-premises infrastructures and hardware components and, thus, extra labor and management staff.
