An easier road with Expedia

The ultra-convenient online travel agency Expedia has made a safe and welcome landing in Thailand, extending its reach across the region. Now you no longer have to spend hours browsing various websites to track down the lowest airfare and best hotel deal. 

Though linked with AirAsia, the US firm’s new Thai website has great deals with all the airlines. With guides to the best hotels, car rentals and sightseeing tours thrown in, it actually pays to book online. You have complete freedom to choose what you like, book when you want and plan your entire itinerary to fit your own liking rather than the agent’s preferences. 

A few clicks at Expedia.co.th and you’re on your way, everything packed up and ready except for your suitcase.

“Asia is really changing,” says Kathleen Tan, chief executive at AirAsia Expedia. “And these days Generation Y does everything on the Internet – and usually via their smartphones. Lots of people now shun the offline travel agencies in favour of the speed and convenience of booking online.

“Thanks to the Internet and social media, we can enjoy the ‘anywhere, anytime’ way of life, where everything is readily available, in the palm of our hands, including vacations,” Tan tells The Nation at the firm’s headquarters in Singapore.

Expedia offers deals from more than 400 airlines and 200,000 hotels around the world, but the main draw is the “bundles” – combined deals on flights and accommodations for both local and international destinations. There are currently more than 1,000 bundles up for grabs and the list is updated daily, so it’s a good idea to monitor the site for terrific last-minute additions that boast irresistible prices. 

“Thailand is our top priority right now because it has so much potential in tourism,” Tan says. “I don’t just want people going to Thailand – I want to see Thais travelling more and getting more exposed to the world so they can experience how things are done differently elsewhere. 

“Or just go somewhere new in your own country! This year in Thailand alone we plan to include 3,000 new hotels on Expedia and the company’s affiliated websites.” 

The affiliates include Hotels.com, Trivago, Hotwire, Local Expert, Egencia and Venere.

Expedia is an American firm that’s been operating since 1997, primarily in the US, Europe and Australia. It’s the world’s largest online travel company, grossing $35 billion in bookings each year, and currently has localised websites in 29 countries.

Expedia debuted in Japan and India in 2008, venturing into Taiwan, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand in the past couple of years. 

“And, to be honest, Asia is not easy,” Tan says.  “There’s a lot of complexity and a lot of different policies concerning travel agencies and regulations for e-commerce. In many Asian countries the law has not yet changed to accommodate online travel agencies. 

“And let’s not forget there are a lot of diverse cultures and language barriers. Not a lot of countries in Asia accept credit cards. It’s a big challenge to localise the brand so it works in every single Asian market. This is when I come in, as a bridge to my American colleagues, educating them about Asia.” Tan previously served as commercial chief at AirAsia for nine years. 

Expedia, though, is not just selling flights and rooms. It professes to arrange complete “travel experiences” rather than mere transportation and accommodation.

“We’re an online company and we’re very big on the social media,” Tan says. She has two Facebook accounts of her own and connects on the other networks as well. 

“We encourage our customers to engage in the social media and post comments, report problems or just share their experiences. That helps us improve our service. We send the feedback to all the hotels on our list for them to consider. More importantly, it benefits other travellers. People talk about where to find the best local food, what to do and so on. A lot of people end up benefiting from these comments and having the trips of their lives.” 

Anyone who lives and breathes social media can synch Expedia to their Facebook accounts. When your plane has landed, or when you’ve just checked into a hotel, Expedia will make sure it’s posted on your wall. And you can link to your Outlook account too to get e-mail notifications about details of the airport terminals and other updating information.

Unlike most online travel agencies that use outsourced platforms, Expedia created and runs its own system. It spent $600 million building its own platform and has in-house computer wizards monitoring the operation, running tests daily to find ways to improve it. 

Former Apple designers built the sleek, user-friendly Expedia mobile application, which is compatible with all smartphone platforms. A tablet application will debut later this year. 

At present, due to shortage of staff and its own quality-control policy, Expedia lists only hotels of at least three-star level. “To include more hotels and cover one- and two-star hotels you need an army of people,” Tan says. “We’re growing really fast right now and we need to prioritise. 

“Also it’s a matter of technical limitations. Normally, smaller hotels and guesthouses don’t have the technology to link to our system. And, to connect with them, sometimes you have to go via a third party, so we can’t really screen them for quality. Bigger hotels with capacity can just send the deals to users directly, sometimes at the last minute, so we get very fast, real-time communication. For sure, in the future, we’ll expand to cover all the stars, because Expedia is a travel agency for everyone.”

 

On the Web:

www.Expedia.co.th.