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RateHawk, an online B2B platform for booking hotels, air tickets, and transfers, has earned recognition at the inaugural TDM Travel Trade Excellence Awards 2024 – Middle East. The platform was named the Online Travel Agency (OTA) of the Year – United Arab Emirates category for improvements and innovations in the B2B booking technology sector.
RateHawk offers one of the most extensive hotel inventories in the market, consisting of more than 2.6 million accommodations worldwide, consolidated from over 260 suppliers, OTAs, and destination management companies, as well as over 100,000 directly contracted properties. The platform provides a full range of travel services, including flights from over 400 airlines, transfers in 150 countries, car rentals, and other travel-related services.
The TDM Travel Trade Excellence Awards 2024 – Middle East selected RateHawk as a winner for its extensive hotel supply, user-friendly interface, and seamless user experience, which have driven record-breaking sales and rapid scalability.
“In the past year, RateHawk has experienced significant growth of 32% in its accommodation supply and a 60% year-on-year increase in the number of partners, bringing the total to over 80,000 in 120 countries. The platform is very well received in the Middle East and is used by over 5,600 partners in the GCC region. Our net booking value also doubled, whilst the number of bookings increased by 85%. We have ambitious plans and aim to further develop our presence in the MENA region to provide local travel professionals with advanced technological tools,” commented Regional Director, Middle East, Serkan Ozbay.
Amongst the new solutions introduced by the company within the last year is the upgraded Selection Tool, which allows agents to save time in compiling comprehensive hotel selections for clients. It features a dedicated template that simplifies the process of adding a range of hotel rooms and rates directly from the hotel’s website, greatly assisting travel professionals in organising their work. Nearly 60% of RateHawk’s agents use this tool regularly.
The company offers various payment options, including bank transfers, debit or credit cards, credit lines, or digital payments via a payment link sent to clients. In response to customer feedback, RateHawk introduced new tech-driven payment methods in 2024—Open Banking and PayPal, including their BNPL tool—all of which have simplified and accelerated the payment process.
To help travel agents make more informed hotel recommendations to their clients, RateHawk has introduced neurolinguistic generative artificial intelligence tools to enable the translation of the extensive collection of reviews into all languages supported by the platform. This gives travel agents access to a huge base of shared experiences, overcoming language barriers.
Another key service highly regarded by travel professionals, including those in the MENA region, is Pre-Check, which verifies each accommodation booking with the hotel in advance, giving travel agents greater control over their reservations. This proactive approach helps minimise the risk of incidents at check-in, reducing stress for travel agents.
“We are honoured to be chosen as the Online Travel Agency of the Year in our domestic region. This recognition motivates us to continue helping travel agencies adapt to digital transformation and increase the efficiency of their businesses,” added Serkan Ozbay.
The prestigious TDM Travel Trade Excellence Awards 2024 – Middle East puts a spotlight on leading companies in the travel sector that have paved the way for unique experiences, with a renewed focus on safety and sustainability amidst the rapidly changing industry.
About RateHawk
RateHawk is an innovative B2B booking platform developed by the Dubai-based company Emerging Travel Group, offering hotels, flight tickets, transfers, car rentals, and other travel-related services.
RateHawk provides its partners with the best prices for any type of travel service in any location.
RateHawk offers its clients 2.6 million hotels and other accommodation types from over 100,000 properties contracted directly and 260 wholesalers, flight tickets from over 400 airlines, and transfers in over 150 countries.
The TDM Travel Trade Excellence Awards 2024 – Middle East is presented by Travel Daily Media. To view the full list of winners, click here. For more details, please contact Jane Patiag at +(65) 3158 1386 ext. 217 or awards@traveldailymedia.com.
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