Fareportal Garners Multiple Accolades at Prestigious Travel Industry Awards

CheapOair Mobile App and Website Receive Recognition for ‘Best in Travel’ features at Travel Weekly Magellan Awards

Fareportal, the travel technology company powering CheapOair and OneTravel, and the winner of 17 Travel Weekly Magellan Awards over the past six years, today announced they have earned two additional Magellan Awards for their advancements in 2017.

This year, Fareportal received a Gold Award for the CheapOair Mobile App and a Silver Award for the CheapOair Website. In 2017, both mobile and web saw significant technological improvements furthering the integration across platforms and devices and therefore improving the overall customer experience.

“It is an honor to have Fareportal’s work recognized by such an esteemed travel industry organization as Travel Weekly,” said Sam S. Jain, founder and CEO of Fareportal. “I am incredibly proud of the dedication and effort our in-house Mobile and Web Development teams have put into not only improving our existing systems, but also into bringing new and exciting features to our valued customers.”

The Magellan Awards were launched in 2008 by Travel Weekly to acknowledge the “best in travel” each year. They honor outstanding design, marketing and services in a broad range of industry segments including Hospitality, Travel Destinations, Cruise Lines, Online Travel Services, Airlines and Airports, Travel Agents and Agencies, Tour Operators and Ground Transportation.

“This year’s winners represent the most talented and creative people in not just the travel industry but of any industry,” said Arnie Weissmann, editor in chief of Travel Weekly. “They continue to raise the bar, to inspire travel and enhance the travel experience. Their work leaves a lasting impression on our expert judges and readers.”

About Fareportal

Fareportal is a travel technology company powering a next generation travel concierge service. Utilizing its innovative technology and company owned and operated global contact centers, Fareportal has built strong industry partnerships providing customers access to over 450 airlines, 1 million hotels, and hundreds of car rental companies around the globe. With a portfolio of consumer travel brands including CheapOair and OneTravel, Fareportal enables consumers to book online, on mobile apps for iOS and Android, by phone, or live chat. Fareportal provides its airline partners with access to a broad customer base that books high-yielding international travel and add-on ancillaries.

 

Fareportal appoints Michael Schmeltzer as Senior Vice President of Merchandising and Attachments

Former President of American Airlines Vacations Adds Extensive Travel Industry Experience to OTA

Fareportal, the travel technology company powering CheapOair and OneTravel, today announced the appointment of Michael Schmeltzer to the newly created position of Senior Vice President of Merchandising and Attachments, based in their New York City headquarters. In this role, Schmeltzer will drive growth of the online travel agency’s ancillary business which includes paid airline seats, pre-paid baggage, hotels, and rental cars.

Prior to joining Fareportal, Schmeltzer led the merger of US Airways Vacations and American Airlines Vacations. As president of the new entity, he aligned all facets of the business with the common goal of achieving accelerated growth and higher margins. His extensive background in the travel industry, specifically within supplier relations, will be instrumental to Fareportal’s growth in the attachments business, a significant revenue opportunity for the online travel agency.

“Fareportal has been very successful in integrating paid seats and pre-paid checked baggage into their purchase path,” said Schmeltzer. “This integration was not an easy task, but Fareportal developed the technology and found a way to monetize it. Now, I believe there is a great opportunity to utilize our innovative resources to grow the company’s hotel and car attachment business.”

“We are pleased to welcome Michael Schmeltzer to our Senior Management team” said Sam S. Jain, Founder and CEO of Fareportal. “His proven success in the travel agency business is sure to give us a new focus on the growth of our ancillary business. I am confident that his background and experience with add-on products will help us to maximize our potential in this area of business.

In addition to his previous role at American Airlines Vacations, Mr. Schmeltzer brings a wide range of experience from Honda Motors, Rosenbluth International, American Express, Carlson Wagonlit Travel, and US Airways. He has an MBA from Georgetown University and a BA in History from the University of Michigan.

About Fareportal

Fareportal is a travel technology company powering a next generation travel concierge service. Utilizing its innovative technology and company owned and operated global contact centers, Fareportal has built strong industry partnerships providing customers access to over 450 airlines, 1 million hotels, and hundreds of car rental companies around the globe. With a portfolio of consumer travel brands including CheapOair and OneTravel, Fareportal enables consumers to book online, on mobile apps for iOS and Android, by phone, or live chat. Fareportal provides its airline partners with access to a broad customer base that books high-yielding international travel and add-on ancillaries.

CheapOair Offers Tips to Help Travelers Navigate Hurricane Season

Leading Online Travel Agency Provides Resources for Travelers ahead of Hurricane Irma

With 2017’s second large hurricane approaching the United States this weekend, many travelers are left wondering what to do about their disrupted travel plans.  CheapOair, a leading flight-focused online travel agency, has issued some tips for traveling to destinations prone to natural disasters.

Do Your Research

When planning any vacation, research if the destination is susceptible to natural disasters and when the high season is. In the event that the destination is high-risk and your travel is non-essential, consider selecting another destination or scheduling your visit for another time of year. “As we move out of the peak summer period, travelers love to take advantage of the cheaper airfares and hotel rates,” said Tom Spagnola, SVP of Supplier Relations at CheapOair. “But, when planning travel during the autumn months, travelers need to be aware that top destinations such as Florida, Mexico, and the Caribbean are prime targets for tropical storms and hurricanes.”

Consider Purchasing Travel Insurance

Travelers should highly consider purchasing a comprehensive travel insurance plan. For most policies, travel insurance can be purchased as late as the day before travel, but keep in mind that when it comes to hurricanes, the plan must be purchased before the storm is named in order to provide coverage for an expenses incurred from that storm. Depending on the plan, you may be eligible for reimbursement of incidental expenses in addition to your original travel costs.

Contact Your Travel Providers to Discuss Options

In the event of a natural disaster, changing your travel plans may be easier than you think. Airlines and hotels want to keep their customers out of harm’s way and often waive change or cancellation fees. Check with your respective travel providers for details specific to your travel itinerary. “CheapOair’s customer care agents are on standby to assist customers impacted by Hurricane Irma with any changes or cancellations,” said Ruben Bello, VP of Operations at CheapOair. “Our 24-hour call center with over 3,000 trained travel agents allows us to accommodate large call volumes at all hours of the day.”

About CheapOair

CheapOair is a flight-focused, hybrid travel agency that enables consumers to book online, on mobile apps for iOS and Android, by phone or live chat. CheapOair (https://www.cheapoair.com, 1-646-738-4820) bridges the gap between an online and traditional travel agency with certified travel agents available to help find deals and offers to destinations worldwide on over 450 airlines, 1 million hotels, and 100s of car rental companies. Partner airlines benefit from access to CheapOair’s broad customer base that books high yield international travel and add-on ancillaries at above the industry average. Follow CheapOair on Facebook and Twitter to learn how to travel the world for less.

Fareportal and WayBlazer Announce Strategic Partnership to Use Artificial Intelligence for Online Travel Agency

WayBlazer, an artificial intelligence company developing enterprise solutions for personalized online travel shopping and Fareportal, the travel technology company powering CheapOair and OneTravel, announced today the launch of their strategic partnership.

After a successful pilot, Fareportal will be expanding its use of WayBlazer’s comprehensive AI platform to drive more contextually relevant search results for website visitors across CheapOair.com and OneTravel.com.

“We are extremely pleased with the results we’ve seen using WayBlazer’s technology,” said Fareportal Founder and CEO, Sam S. Jain, “Using their artificial intelligence product to optimize our hotel offerings, we’ve seen significant improvements in engagement on our website and an average conversion lift of 10% for hotel bookings.”

As a leader in travel concierge services, Fareportal is committed to continually improving its digital experience. The move is timely as major online travel agencies are seeing artificial intelligence as the key to unlocking various opportunities with big data and personalization to create a more relevant travel searching and planning experience.

Noreen Henry, CEO of WayBlazer commented, “With companies like Fareportal leading these efforts, travel is going through a paradigm shift with how brands are treating their digital experience. There’s a massive opportunity to improve search relevancy by delivering a personalized experience – and brands who are investing in this area are seeing a direct impact on their visitor engagement metrics and revenue.”

Together Fareportal and WayBlazer are co-innovating to address the increasing demand for a relevant and engaging online travel booking experience.

About Fareportal 

Fareportal is a travel technology company powering a next generation travel concierge service. Utilizing its innovative technology and company owned and operated global contact centers, Fareportal has built strong industry partnerships providing customers access to over 450 airlines, 1 million hotels, and hundreds of car rental companies around the globe. With a portfolio of consumer travel brands including CheapOair and OneTravel, Fareportal enables consumers to book online, on mobile apps for iOS and Android, by phone, or live chat. Fareportal provides its airline partners with access to a broad customer base that books high-yielding international travel and add-on ancillaries.

 

About WayBlazer

WayBlazer is a B2B company that builds artificial intelligence technology for the travel industry. The company’s platform enables travel brands to deliver contextually relevant, personalized product and destination recommendations as well as dialogue-driven search experiences to increase online engagement and conversion. From discovery to booking, WayBlazer creates a next-generation digital experience.

WayBlazer is founded by travel and tech entrepreneurs Terry Jones, Founder of Travelocity/Founding Chairman of Kayak.com and Manoj Saxena, former GM of IBM Watson.