FLAG CARRIER Philippine Airlines (PAL) announced on Monday a partnership with online travel company Expedia Group, Inc. to launch PAL Holidays, its all-in-one travel platform.
The one-stop booking platform “simplifies and enhances the travel planning process for our passengers,” PAL Vice-President for Sales Salvador Britanico said in an e-mailed statement.
PAL’s tie-up with Expedia Group, which owns and operates travel fare aggregators and travel metasearch engines, including Expedia.com, Hotels.com, Ebookers, CarRentals.com, and more, will allow the company to reach more travelers.
For the April-to-June period, PAL Holdings, Inc., the airline’s parent company, recorded an attributable net income of P6.23 billion, more than double the P2.47 billion in the same period last year, driven by higher revenue for the period, the company’s financial report showed.
The company’s gross revenue for the second quarter expanded by 34.1% to P45.24 billion from P33.74 billion in the same period last year.
Its attributable net income for the January-to-June period rose to P10.89 billion, more than threefold the P3.56 billion in the same period last year.
Also for the first half, the company saw its gross revenues increase to P87.45 billion, up by 52.4% from P57.37 billion a year ago.
Its passenger revenues, representing the majority of its combined revenues, saw a 73.3% increase to P78.24 billion for the first semester from P45.15 billion previously.
“By partnering with Expedia, we are confident that our customers will enjoy unparalleled access to a superior range of great offers for hotels, experiences, and transport that can go together with the Philippine Airlines flights that they book,” Mr. Britanico said.
“PAL Holidays reflects our dedication to providing exceptional travel experiences, and we look forward to serving our customers in a more convenient and efficient way,” he added.
The platform, backed by Expedia’s White Label Template technology, is designed to allow passengers to have a one-stop shop for flights, hotel accommodation, and transportation bookings, PAL said. — Ashley Erika O. Jose
