For online travel agencies, having a flight booking API is a must. Over the years, the process of booking and tracking flights has become a lot easier, thanks to GDS service. The reason it has become easier is because the airlines and travel agencies allow third parties to leverage on their infrastructure via Application Programming Interface (API).
Being one of the most important components for any travel booking system, Flight APIs not only connect you with the world’s leading airlines, it also provides real-time data, such as availability, airfare, duration, number of layovers, and beyond. In this blog, we will talk about what is a flight booking API, and who are the top providers in the market.
What is Flight Booking API?
It is a tool that you need to integrate into your travel portal, website or application. When you integrate the API into your system, it allows you to aggregate real-time data of hundreds of airlines worldwide. It is one of the most effective worldwide distribution systems that allow travel portals to offer all flight-related services at a single place. It integrates all the flight services in a single platform and helps travelers find the most convenient deals.
Top Flight Booking API Providers
If you are considering the integration of flight booking API into your portal, you need to connect with GDS or flight APIs to access the airline inventory. However, before you visit a provider, it is important to know whether you are an IATA or a non-IATA agent. IATA agents connect with GDS directly and get their API from Amadeus, Galileo, and Sabre. For LCC, contact an LCC API provider. However, a Non-IATA agent has to get the API from a third-party API provider.
Here are the top Flight Booking API Provider :
1. Kiwi.com
Kiwi.com not just offers affordable flight fares, it empowers OTAs and travel agents with its robust flight API. Headquartered in the Czech Republic, Kiwi.com powers over two billion flight checks per day. Travel agents, who want to receive live flight data from its database then consider integrating Kiwi.com’s API.
Its API allows travel agents to search location by query, radius, airport code, and other parameters. Moreover, travel agents can easily access the vast content of airlines, popular destinations, flight fares, and even filter the results by city, date, low fares, and beyond.
Advantages
- Book airline tickets directly.
- Search for one-way or round way flights.
- Search for the flights by city or airport name.
- Instant reservation and cancellation of flights.
- Filter flight search results by price, flight duration, air carrier, and number of changes.
- Search for reservation by ticket no, passenger name, flight no, and PNR.
- Search and get results by arrival / departure time, class, number of layovers. Direct flights.
2. Expedia
Expedia.com, owned by Expedia Group, is an online travel booking agency. It is primarily used as a travel fare aggregator and metasearch engine. It also provides API service to OTAs and tour operators. Developers can integrate advanced functionalities into their system with Expedia API, enabling users to view and access airline inventory. It provides an API key authentication model.
It is a single-purpose API with a RESTful architecture and supports XML response format and JSONP, URI Query String / CRUD request format.
Advantages
- Effective airline booking engine implementation and support.
- A modern, intuitive, and mobile-friendly interface.
- One-way round trip, multi-city flight search.
- Real-time availability of promotions and deals.
- Multi-currency and multi-language support.
- Integration with a secure payment gateway.
3. Travel Portal Solution
Travel Portal Solution is a reputable and trusted flight booking API provider. It integrates the API into your new or existing portal and helps you decode real-time search data. The API further sends the requirement to the service provider and the airline in response, providing the best flight data available at the moment.
Whether you are looking for Amadeus API integration or Galileo API integration for your flight booking system, Travel Portal Solution connects you with the right API. With its API, you can search for flights by route, one-way or return trip flights, and even detailed information, such as departure or arrival time, air carrier, search results by price, flight duration, number of stopovers, direct / nonstop flights, and beyond.
Advantages
- Displays global airlines inventory.
- Single window interface.
- Quick and easy connectivity.
- Easy management of revenues and commission.
- Fast and error-free online reservation system.
- The custom design solution lets OTAs customize their inventory.
- Provides a filter option and displays one-way, round ticket, multi-city, airfare calendar, live ticketing and cancellation, SMS / Email, ticket generation, boarding pass, web-check-in, travel date reminder, and beyond.
4. Tripjack
Tripjack is one of the most aspiring endeavors of Atlas Travel Group, a IATA-approved travel agency. Tripjack’s flight booking API supports both larger corporate and small and medium enterprises. Tripjack travel agents have access to Trijack login on its portal. When you integrate its flight API, you get connected with the largest network of global airlines from 40+ countries.
Additionally, its multi-source aggregated content broadens your offerings, eventually enhancing revenues and commissions. It aggregates real-time airline inventory from low cost carriers, GDS, NDC fares, private fares, and global SOTO fares. Tripjack seamlessly integrates its API into your portal and takes just one to two weeks to go live.
Advantages
- Multi-source aggregated content.
- Inventory from GDS, Consolidators, and direct airlines.
- Private and special contracted fares.
- Fast response.
- Real-time booking, confirmation.
- Robust, reliable, and flexible integration.
- Displays real-time price feed.
- Custom-designed solutions.
- User-friendly interface.
5. PKFARE
PKFAR is a travel trade marketplace that offers flight tickets, hospitality, and destination products. It empowers global travel agencies with smart integrated solutions, including real-time inventory data, seamless multilingual customer service, and best buy rate. Integrating its flight booking API allows you to access real-time inventory from over 600 airlines, covering over 100 countries.
If you’re looking to offer your customers more choices without creating your own booking system, PKFARE is an excellent choice.
Advantages
- Robust, reliable, and secure.
- Offers flexibility in integration based on the demands of the business.
- Real-time tracking.
- Airport parking API integration.
- AI-powered dynamic pricing algorithm.
6. Travel Boutique Online
Travel Boutique Online or TBO is India’s largest B2B travel portal with a growing global presence. Although it offers a wide range of travel services, its clients highly rave about its Flight API. Its API solution allows small and medium-sized travel agents to manage all flight booking processes, reduce operational costs, and increase revenues. It further enables you to sell vast flight inventory from hundreds of airlines directly to your customers. Its flight API enables you to search domestic and international flights, real-time booking, ticket cancellation, reissuance real-time cancellation of LCCs.
The implementation of the API by TBO is easy and provides a round-the-clock integration support whenever required. You can host a web booking engine that requests real-time information from TBO and quickly displays the results. It is customizable and you can also secure a payment gateway if needed.
Advantages
- TBO’s flight API integration provides access to an extensive network of airlines worldwide.
- Real-time availability checks for reservations.
- Instant booking confirmation for efficient and timely transactions.
- Centralized access to detailed information about flights, schedules, fares, and seat availability.
- Booking management system that allows easy modification, cancellation, and retrieval of booking details.
- Support for multiple currencies and languages.
- Multi-channel distribution system
7. Mystifly
Mystifly is an airfare distribution marketplace platform that allows travel businesses to source airfare from the GDS, airlines, and other airfare suppliers. When you connect with Mystifly to integrate its API, it provides you with the flexibility and convenience to integrate flight booking software into any website or app.
It gives you real-time data of more than 700+ airlines. Its features include easy check-in, multi-platform support, fast response times, customizable pricing, multiple payment options. With its API, it is easier to manage your global air travel retailing business.
Advantages
- Mystifly flight API provides access to 750 airlines and 180 LCCs.
- Supports multi-GDS, multi currencies, and multi languages.
- Reduces the airline booking and transaction cost.
- Provides last-minute modifications, cancellations, and easy reservations as per supplier policy.
- Simplification of the procurement process.
8. Amadeus
Amadeus is a leading flight booking engine that offers agile Flight API integration that connects your website or app with the flight booking and flight search. When you connect to Amadeus REST/JSON flight booking APIs and build your booking engine with the same data, it makes it easier for you to enter online flight booking of $300 billion.
It offers a search API that provides deals from over 500 airlines along with baggage allowance, departure terminal, and beyond. It also lets you see prices for ancillary services. Your customers can add extra bags and legroom and reserve the booking instantly.
9. Sabre
Saber Corporation, based in Southlake, Texas, is a leading travel technology company. It holds the top position as the largest provider of Global Distribution Systems for air appointments. Their flight booking API software, also known as airline tagging software, integrates with GDS Third Party XML APIs such as Amadeus, Galileo, and TBO to consolidate all airlines’ information. When a travel agency considers integrating Sabre’s flight booking API, it provides users with real-time access to flight search options, such as alternate dates and airports, basic fares, rules, and other essential travel-related information.
Additionally, the API grants you access to a multitude of significant features like flight booking, ticketing, payments, pricing, reservation management (covering itineraries and PNRs), seat maps, reporting, and data analytics. It effectively manages flight itineraries and you can add or remove segments and make date changes among other functionalities.
10. Galileo GDS
Galileo is one of the leading Global Distribution Systems, owned by TravelPort. It provides distribution services for the travel industry with advanced computer reservation software (CRS). With Galileo flight API integration, you can access inventory of low cost carriers and multi-source content via a single API. It further helps you in airline inventory management solutions and airline consolidation for international airlines.
Travel agents can seamlessly integrate Galileo’s flight booking API and source vast content of airline data. It further helps you get multiple programming interfaces. When you integrate Galileo API, you get a top-line travel system, web services XMLs, and desktop solutions that are linked to the primary database.
Bottom Line
Integration of flight API into your travel website and application increases revenue, while automating processing and reducing time and effort required for booking airline tickets. A robust and reliable flight API not only transforms your traditional travel agency into a modern OTA, it also allows you to access vast airline inventory. This way, you can enhance your business and offer the best customer service.
