Travelocity

Travelocity is an American online travel agency whose roots lie in the computer-reservation systems developed for American Airlines and travel agencies. Its technological ancestry reaches back to 1978, when American Airlines began making its Sabre electronic reservation system available to travel agencies. During the 1980s and early 1990s, consumer-facing versions of the system appeared through online services including CompuServe, GEnie, Prodigy, and America Online. These services allowed users to search travel information and, increasingly, arrange travel without relying on a traditional travel agent. The Travelocity brand was formally created in 1995 through a joint venture between Worldview Systems Corporation and Sabre Corporation. Worldview had developed an online travel database and distribution concept, while Sabre supplied a large reservation and distribution platform. The resulting service was launched during 1995–1996 and became one of the early prominent websites through which consumers could purchase travel directly online. The business helped popularize the disintermediation of travel booking: customers could compare and buy travel products through a website rather than dealing with an agent in person or by telephone. Travelocity expanded its reach through distribution and media partnerships. A significant partnership with AOL in 1999 increased consumer awareness, and in 2000 Sabre combined Travelocity with Preview Travel. The resulting company was publicly traded on Nasdaq, with Sabre retaining a controlling interest. Sabre later reacquired the outstanding shares in 2002, returning Travelocity to wholly controlled brand status. That year it also acquired Site59.com, a last-minute travel specialist whose founder and chief executive Michelle Peluso joined Travelocity and later became its chief executive. During the 2000s, Travelocity broadened its portfolio through marketing and acquisitions. Its recognizable Roaming Gnome mascot became central to the 2004 “Where Is My Gnome?” campaign. In 2005, Sabre acquired European online travel company lastminute.com, adding related travel properties and strengthening Travelocity’s international presence. Travelocity subsequently managed or operated a range of travel businesses, but later divested several of them as the online travel industry consolidated. The company sold Zuji to Webjet in 2012, Travelocity Business to BCD Travel in 2013, and lastminute.com to Bravofly Rumbo in 2014. It also ended the IgoUgo website in 2013. In parallel, Expedia began powering Travelocity’s United States and Canadian websites under a 2013 commercial agreement. Sabre ultimately sold Travelocity to Expedia for $280 million in January 2015. Since then, Travelocity has operated as an Expedia Group brand rather than as an independent publicly traded company. Travelocity’s consumer offer includes flights, accommodations, car rentals, cruises, and vacation packages. Its positioning has historically combined online convenience with service assurances, promotional pricing, and a friendly mascot-led identity. The “Customer 1st Guarantee” and later “Wander Wisely” platform emphasized confidence and assistance during the booking journey. Travelocity also maintained a social-impact orientation through the Travel for Good program, which supported volunteer travel. The brand has sponsored The Amazing Race for many seasons and continues to be associated with the Roaming Gnome. Its current market role is as a consumer travel-booking brand within Expedia Group’s broader portfolio.

Travelocity developed from the intersection of airline reservation technology, online information services, and consumer e-commerce. American Airlines began opening its Sabre reservation system to travel agencies in 1978. In the 1980s, consumer versions were offered under the eAAsySabre name through services such as CompuServe and GEnie. Related versions later appeared on Prodigy and America Online, helping establish the idea that people could research and arrange travel through an electronic service. Worldview Systems Corporation conceived the direct-to-consumer travel concept that became Travelocity in 1994. Worldview had distributed an online travel database through Sabre and other digital platforms. In 1995, Worldview and Sabre formed a 50–50 joint venture to develop and launch Travelocity. The service went live during 1995–1996 and became an early major online travel agency. In 1996, Worldview investors Advance Publications and Ameritech sold their interest to Sabre, leaving Sabre as the controlling owner. Terry Jones, a longtime Sabre information-technology executive, led the business. A 1999 partnership with AOL accelerated Travelocity's consumer visibility. In 2000, Sabre merged Travelocity with Preview Travel, creating a Nasdaq-listed company in which Sabre held approximately 70 percent. Sabre reacquired the remaining publicly held shares through a tender offer in March 2002. Jones departed soon afterward. Travelocity also acquired Site59.com in 2002, adding last-minute travel expertise. Site59 founder Michelle Peluso became a senior executive, then chief operating officer, and in December 2003 became president and chief executive officer. The following period combined brand building with international expansion. Travelocity introduced the “Where Is My Gnome?” campaign in 2004, making the Roaming Gnome a prominent consumer symbol. In 2005, it acquired lastminute.com for £577 million. The transaction included associated properties such as allhotels.com and helped expand Travelocity's European and international operations. The company went through several portfolio and leadership changes after the global financial crisis. Michelle Peluso resigned in January 2009 and Hugh Jones succeeded her. Jones moved to another Sabre role in 2011, when Carl Sparks became president and chief executive officer. Travelocity sold Zuji to Webjet in 2012, sold its corporate-travel unit Travelocity Business to BCD Travel in 2013, and discontinued IgoUgo in the same year. It also entered an agreement under which Expedia powered its United States and Canadian sites. Sparks left in 2014; Roshan Mendis managed the Americas operation while Matthew Crummack managed Europe. Travelocity sold lastminute.com to Bravofly Rumbo in December 2014 for £76 million. In January 2015, Sabre sold Travelocity to Expedia for $280 million. The acquisition ended Travelocity's existence as an independent Sabre-controlled company and placed it within Expedia's multi-brand online travel group. Travelocity continued to market flights, lodging, rental cars, cruises, and vacation packages to consumers. In 2015, it also relaunched Travel for Good, a program connected with volunteer-travel opportunities and nonprofit organizations. In 2016, the brand introduced Wander Wisely and continued using the Roaming Gnome and Customer 1st Guarantee in its marketing. Travelocity was also a long-running sponsor of The Amazing Race, before sponsorship shifted to Expedia, its parent company, in the show's thirty-fourth season.

• 2016

  Wander Wisely introduced

  [1]Travelocityen.wikipedia.org

  Travelocity launched the Wander Wisely advertising platform and updated its consumer-facing tagline.

• 2015

  Expedia acquisition

  [1]Travelocityen.wikipedia.org

  Expedia acquired Travelocity from Sabre for $280 million.

• 2005

  Acquisition of lastminute.com

  [1]Travelocityen.wikipedia.org

  Travelocity acquired lastminute.com, along with associated online travel properties.

• 2002

  Sabre reacquires public shares and buys Site59

  [1]Travelocityen.wikipedia.org

  Sabre reacquired all outstanding shares and Travelocity acquired last-minute travel specialist Site59.com.

• 2000

  Merger with Preview Travel

  [1]Travelocityen.wikipedia.org

  Sabre combined Travelocity with Preview Travel; the resulting company was listed on Nasdaq.

• 1999

  AOL partnership expands consumer reach

  [1]Travelocityen.wikipedia.org

  A partnership with AOL helped Travelocity gain broader consumer exposure.

• 1996

  Sabre takes full control

  [1]Travelocityen.wikipedia.org

  Worldview's investors sold their interest in Travelocity to Sabre.

• 1995

  Travelocity joint venture created

  [1]Travelocityen.wikipedia.org

  Worldview Systems Corporation and Sabre Corporation formed the joint venture that created the Travelocity brand.

• 1978

  Sabre becomes available to travel agencies

  [1]Travelocityen.wikipedia.org

  American Airlines began offering travel agencies access to its Sabre electronic reservation system, creating the technological foundation for later consumer online travel services.

A consumer-focused online travel agency built around convenient self-service booking, broad travel comparison, promotional offers, and reassurance through customer-service guarantees.

• Air travel booking · 1995

  Travelocity flights

  The core flight-booking service lets consumers search and purchase airfares through Travelocity's online interface. Its early importance came from enabling direct consumer purchase of travel tickets without assistance from a person, although the service later operated within Expedia Group's broader technology and supply ecosystem.

• Accommodation booking

  Travelocity hotels

  Travelocity offers online search and reservation for hotel rooms and other lodging products. Hotel booking became an important complement to its original airfare proposition and supports standalone reservations as well as bundled vacation purchases.

• Ground transportation booking

  Travelocity rental cars

  The rental-car service allows travelers to compare and reserve cars alongside flights, hotels, or vacation packages. It forms part of Travelocity's broader trip-planning proposition rather than a separately branded vehicle-rental business.

• Leisure travel booking

  Travelocity cruises and vacation packages

  Travelocity also sells cruises and packaged vacations, extending the brand from individual travel components into assembled leisure itineraries. These offerings are intended for customers seeking a more consolidated booking experience.

• Social-impact travel program · 2015

  Travel for Good

  Travel for Good is a Travelocity program supporting volunteer travel and nonprofit-linked experiences. The program was relaunched in 2015 and included opportunities connected with organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, Globe Aware, and the American Hiking Society.

• 2012

  Incomplete disclosure of airfare surcharges

  The United States Department of Transportation found that Travelocity's flexible-date airfare tool did not always include carrier-imposed fuel surcharges in advertised international fares. The agency also found that a paper-ticket delivery fee could be revealed only near the end of the purchase process. Travelocity was fined $180,000.

  Source

• 2012

  Cancellation of bookings using a restricted promotional code

  A discount code intended for National Federation of the Blind conference attendees was redistributed publicly after an erroneous retweet. Travelocity cancelled bookings made by ineligible users, prompting widespread complaints from affected customers and travel commentators.

  Source

Read more

• 2016Wander Wisely

  United States

  The campaign paired the Roaming Gnome with the Customer 1st Guarantee and replaced the earlier “Go and Smell the Roses” tagline with “Wander Wisely.”

  Outcome. Updated Travelocity's positioning around confident and supported travel planning.

  Source
• 2015Travel for Good relaunch

  United States

  Travelocity relaunched its social-impact program to support selected volunteer-travel participation, including a $5,000 grant opportunity connected with nonprofit organizations.

  Outcome. Reinforced a purpose-led dimension of the brand.

  Source
• 2004Where Is My Gnome?

  United States

  Travelocity used the Roaming Gnome as the central character in a campaign built around the question of where the mascot was traveling. The campaign strengthened the brand's distinctive, playful identity in a crowded online travel market.

  Outcome. Established the Roaming Gnome as a central Travelocity brand asset.

  Source
• The Amazing Race sponsorship

  United States

  Travelocity was a long-running sponsor of the American reality television program The Amazing Race, continuing from the first season through season 34 before parent company Expedia replaced the brand.

  Outcome. Provided sustained television visibility and associated Travelocity with international travel and adventure.

  Source

• 2015

  Sell Travelocity to ExpediaM&A

  Background

  Sabre divested its consumer online travel brand after Travelocity's North American websites had already begun using Expedia's technology.

  Action taken

  Expedia acquired Travelocity for $280 million.

  Aftermath

  Travelocity became an Expedia Group brand and continued operating as a consumer-facing online travel agency.

  Acquisition price. $280 million (January 2015)

  Source

• 2013

  Outsource United States and Canadian website technology to ExpediaStrategy

  Background

  Online travel competition increasingly favored large technology platforms with extensive inventory, marketing capabilities, and scale.

  Action taken

  Travelocity agreed for Expedia to power its United States and Canadian websites.

  Aftermath

  The arrangement preceded Expedia's acquisition of Travelocity in 2015.

  Source

• 2005

  Acquire lastminute.comM&A

  Background

  Travelocity pursued international scale and additional last-minute travel capability.

  Action taken

  Travelocity acquired lastminute.com and related travel properties.

  Aftermath

  The European business was later sold to Bravofly Rumbo in 2014.

  Acquisition price. £577 million (2005)

  Source

• 2000

  Merge Travelocity with Preview TravelM&A

  Background

  Sabre sought to consolidate online travel operations and combine Travelocity with another established internet travel service.

  Action taken

  Travelocity and Preview Travel were combined into a Nasdaq-listed company controlled by Sabre.

  Aftermath

  Sabre later reacquired the outstanding shares and returned Travelocity to wholly controlled status.

  Source

1. 1Travelocityen.wikipedia.org