Following its recent foray into the Middle East, lowcostbeds has entered into strategic agreements with some of the leading travel agencies in the region.

(TRAVPR.COM) UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - May 6th, 2013 - Following its recent foray into the Middle East, lowcostbeds has entered into strategic agreements with some of the leading travel agencies in the region. Prominent among these are Al Futtaim Travel, DNATA, Al Naboodah Travel, Rezlive, Total Holidays, Barakat Travel and Sadaf Holidays & Travels.

Making the announcement at the Arabian Travel Market (ATM), Mr Alex Gisbert, Chief Marketing Officer, Low Cost Travel Group, said “We are absolutely delighted to see this enthusiastic response from the local travel trade. This certainly demonstrates the strength of our product and the fantastic opportunity it presents to travel agents. As a trade only brand, lowcostbeds is rated among the top 10 independent bed banks globally and boasts an excellent portfolio of hotels across Europe, the Far East and USA, besides other regions that Middle East outbound travellers traditionally like.”

Targeting the lucrative inbound and outbound markets from the region, the company has officially appointed Discover the World Marketing as their exclusive representative in the region that has been aggressively enlisting the support of prominent regional and international travel agents. Ms Sarah Marron, Sales Director, Discover the World Marketing, said, “We are glad to partner with lowcostbeds at this pivotal moment of the company’s growth. Our strategy with lowcostbeds is to work with the network of regional travel players in order for them to offer to their clients our excellent range of hotels, from leisure resorts to city breaks and from budget to 5-star luxury”.

Mr Biju Antony, Manager – Planning & Projects, Al-Futtaim Travel, Dubai, said, “With more than 30 years expertise in providing corporate & retail travel solutions, Al-Futtaim Travel is one of the leading and most forward thinking IATA travel management companies in the Arabian Gulf. Our comprehensive range of carefully selected travel products are designed to satisfy the most discerning traveller with the most complicated and demanding schedule. We are glad to partner with lowcostbeds and are confident this relationship will enable us to bring greater value to our customers.”

Mr Hossam Andraous, Managing Director, Total Holidays, said, “We are pleased to have access to the vast and varied global inventory of lowcostbeds via a high speed direct XML connection. Real time availability at competitive rates makes lowcostbeds the ideal partner for us”.

Equally optimistic was Mr Nathan Adams, Head of Non Air, DNATA who said, “DNATA is one-stop shop for hotels, flights and holiday packages. We cater to all budgets, from shoestring to extravagant. So whatever destination you have in mind, we’ll help you reach it. We have taken selective bed stock from lowcostbeds & are doing an API feed, which would enable a better spread of hotels”.

Top executives from lowcostbeds are present at the ATM and have a hectic schedule with several strategic agreements under negotiation. Ms Marron stressed, “ATM the leading travel and tourism exhibition and gives us the perfect opportunity to introduce and position lowcostbeds. We are meeting a number of key local and international agents to  explore and work out new opportunities.

Offering a global inventory of 150,000 hotels in over 4000 resorts and cities, lowcostbeds is the ideal partner for travel agencies. Mr Gisbert said, “Travel agents are always looking for good rates and, more and more relevant hotel inventory. At the moment we are working with over 20,000 travel agencies and local buyers worldwide and our objective is to grow that considerably.”

The Middle East is one of the fastest growing regions in terms of tourism with outbound travel quadrupling in the last 20 years. The World Tourism Organisation estimates that an additional two million Arabs will travel abroad within the next twenty years, taking its total of outbound tourists to 37 million, spending an estimated $20 billion and accounting for 2.2% of global outbound travel, a rise of 0.7%.

About Lowcostbeds.com:

lowcostbeds.com is part of the lowcosttravelgroup, founded in the UK in 2004. We are a global, independent, trade only bed bank with offices in 10 countries. Our website is now available in 45 countries and translated into 12 languages.

We provide quality accommodation from around the world, available through an agents log-in to our website, or via a high speed direct XML connection.   From five star luxury to two star simplicity, all our hotels are offered at competitive rates and real-time availability.

We offer over 150,000 hotels, from beach, city and long haul hotels. In 2012 our group turnover was $600m USD, with over 2,500,000 passengers staying in one of our hotels.

For media contact:

Hina Bakht
Vice President
MPJ (Marketing Pro-Junction)
Mob: +971 50 6975146
Email: h.bakht@mpj-pr.com
http://www.mpj-pr.com

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