KUCHING: The hub of travel reservations, Asia Tourism Alliance (ATA) is expected to introduce more than a million tour packages in 2013, from 125,000 currently.
TRAVEL OPTIONS: Assistant minister of tourism Sarawak Datuk Talib Zulpilip (centre) officiates the launching of ATA at Damai Beach Resort yesterday. Watching on is (from left) ATA executive chairman George Yee, Sarawak Economic Development Corporation tourism and leisure deputy director Azri Harith, ATA executive vice chairman and chief operating officer Jamilah Shukri and Kho.
Its president and chief executive officer Kho Sze Min told The Borneo Post that it could be done through regional collaborations with other partners from different countries
“Our ultimate goal is to establish ourselves as a distinctive brand in Asia and beyond the border, further providing our customers with ‘One-Stop-Solution’ to all their travel reservation needs giving them great value with just a simple click.
“Through ATA, travellers will be able to tailor-make their own holidays and experience the seamless transaction from reservation-to-destination with instant confirmation and availability, anytime anywhere,” he said during the official launching of www.AsiaTourismAlliance.com yesterday.
He reckoned that ATA would evolve into a supermarket for the tourism sector offering a wide range of services at very attractive rates that would be difficult to compete with.
ATA executive vice chairman and chief operating officer Jamilah Shukri further commented that the birth of Internet and electronic commerce had caused the change of how travel agents focused on their online sales channel.
“One has to be able to compare fares and products of different alliances, offering customers the options that provide the best combination of price, comfort, convenience, best upgrade opportunities and the effective use of elite benefits.
“When one realises just how easy it is to use the Internet for travel arrangements, it is hard to justify using a traditional agency,” she added.
Riding on the co-brand strategic partnership with AsiaTravel.com, ATA not only provides access to more than 100,000 hotels worldwide but to flights operated by over 200 international carriers.
She further said, “It is also our hope that this platform will play a humble role in promoting Sarawak to the world as well as bridging regional tourism stakeholders together for multi-destination promotional activities to garner greater international tourist arrivals particularly to Sarawak and Southeast Asia countries.”
Moving forward, ATA was expected to see more than 30,000 transactions of hotel and flight bookings through its online tourism platform for the year 2013.
“Tourism around the world, and especially in Asia, is growing in line with the increasing level of prosperity in the region. The greater amounts of disposable income now available to people means they will be going on a lot more holidays.
“What we are doing is we are bridging the in-between tourism gap with the latest technology to serve you better. Together with SEDC Tourism, we hope this platform will bring the tourism sector a step higher,” Shukri concluded.