Travolution

📱 In September 2025, Rakuten Travel launched a booking feature on Rakuten AI, its conversational agent, extending its capabilities beyond hotel recommendations. Available on its smartphone site and app, the tool enables natural-language searches and booking completion in one interface. Logged-in members benefit from discounts and Rakuten Points. The update aims to streamline the booking process, boosting conversions and retention. Rakuten, with over 70 businesses and 2 billion members globally, continues to enhance AI personalization.

🚀 Uber will launch Uber Boat in June 2026 across Croatia, Spain, France, Italy, and Portugal, with 50,000 vessels via Click&Boat. In the U.S., Uber will offer over 700,000 hotel bookings with Expedia and Vrbo rentals by late 2026. Uber One members get 20% off select hotels and 10% back in credits. A partnership with Accor allows earning points in Europe and the Middle East. The Travel Mode concierge will debut in the U.S., Canada, UK, Mexico, and Australia.

🛸 12Go launched a ChatGPT app to search Asia's transport routes using natural language. The app lets users find buses, ferries, and trains from local providers, completing bookings on 12Go's site or app. Travelier CEO Noam Toister highlights its potential to enhance Asian travel accessibility. 12Go reports selling over 8.7 million tickets in 2025, covering 730,000+ routes and 20,000 operators in 140+ markets, streamlining trip planning and reducing friction.

🗺️ In 2024, Travelgate joined Travelsoft, announced live during ConX. ConX 2026 will be on June 2-3 at Poble Espanyol, Majorca, featuring Uri Levine, Waze's founder. The 2025 edition was in a stadium, while the last ConX hosted 1,000 professionals, 460 travel companies, and 1,500+ meetings. AfterX, created in 2022, encourages informal networking at Nikki Beach, Magaluf. The 2026 event will focus on exclusivity and local identity, emphasizing "Otherness" as its theme.

🛫 Launched in London, TravelComparison.site offers a comprehensive starting point for trip planning, comparing prices from flights to cruises. The platform, by Quick on the Net Limited, aggregates comparison providers to streamline choices. Founder Karl Drury highlights its mobile-first, ad-free design, emphasizing the best booking times. Citing Expedia Group, users often check over 140 pages before booking. TravelComparison.site aims to simplify this, considering fluctuating prices during peak periods like school holidays.

🛳️ Virgin Voyages unveiled Rovey, an AI assistant created with Google Cloud, on April 22, 2026, in Las Vegas. Designed to aid in cruise bookings, Rovey is part of Project Ruby, providing tailored guidance through Virgin Voyages' complex offerings. It will launch by summer 2026 on VirginVoyages.com. Built on Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform, Rovey aims to enhance user experience and conversion rates. Seven more Project Ruby innovations are planned, with Google Cloud supporting the AI infrastructure.

🚀 ITA Airways is implementing SITA OptiFlight, an AI tool, across its fleet, aiming to save over 7,100 tonnes of fuel and 22,100 tonnes of CO₂ in 2025-2026. Since January 2025, the airline is 59% state-owned and 41% by Deutsche Lufthansa AG. The tool optimizes climb profiles using predictive analytics, machine learning, and weather data. ITA Airways prioritizes reducing emissions and fuel costs, emphasizing data-driven, AI-powered efficiency without compromising safety or schedules.

📈 In the travel industry, B2B distribution requires strategic channel choice and product structuring for immediate conversion, not just visibility. Multi-day tour products often fail due to lack of alignment with B2B needs, such as appropriate pricing and configurations. Fragmentation persists due to siloed systems lacking interconnectivity, complicating inventory management. Success hinges on correctly aligned distribution and technology, emphasizing the importance of product structure, pricing, and positioning for effective B2B engagement. Visibility alone doesn't ensure conversion.