Skift Take
Etihad Airways has entered the stable of airlines offering packaged vacations to North Americans under a leisure brand. But will its luxury offerings catch on with U.S. travelers?
Etihad Airways has brought its leisure travel brand Etihad Holidays to the U.S. and Canada under the moniker Etihad Vacations, in a move to capture more of the leisure travel market for those visiting the Middle East.
Etihad curates the content for the vacation packages, which can include hotel, air, ground transportation, and add-ons like stopovers, tours, and activities. Etihad Holidays has been an active brand internationally since 2004.
Travelers can currently booking branded vacations in 140 destinations across 45 countries using the service. Hotel reviews on the Etihad Vacations site are provided by TripAdvisor.
“Etihad Vacations works exclusively with the world’s leading hotel brands, car rental partners and tour operators, which are personally selected by our team of experts,” said Martin Drew, Etihad Airways’ senior vice president of the Americas. “We are confident that our guests will enjoy the seamless, convenient and personalized booking experience that Etihad Vacations offers. Our U.S. and Canadian Etihad Guest members also earn Guest Miles for the value of an entire package, as well as additional miles for air travel flown.”
It’s common for North American airlines to push vacation products through leisure travel brands like United Vacations, Delta Vacations, American Airlines Vacations, and Southwest Vacations. International carriers with luxury offerings like British Airways also offer packaged vacations.
Trisept Solutions’ booking and merchandising technology power both the consumer and travel agent-facing portions of the North American site. It had powered the expansion of Etihad’s leisure vacation operation in the UK, UAE, and Germany.
Etihad Airways has been ramping up its presence in U.S. airports ambitiously, as well. It opened new luxury lounges in New York’s JFK Airport and Los Angeles International Airport in the last 12 months. The airline also announced plans to fly two direct flights a day between New York and Abu Dhabi in 2017.
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Tags: Etihad Airways
Photo credit: Etihad Airways is attempting to capture a piece of the packaged vacation market in North America. Its new Etihad Vacations booking site is pictured here.