You may have heard of Amadeus or Sabre, but there’s another GDS system that’s critical to many travel agents – Worldspan GDS, which is more than just a booking platform – it’s a critical backend that allows travel agents to quickly connect to global airline, hotel, and car rental resources. If you’re running or planning to start a travel agency, this is your guide to Worldspan GDS.
More GDS Reservation Systems：Abacus｜Amadeus｜Galileo
Where Did Worldspan Come From?
Worldspan was founded in 1990 when Delta, Northwest, and TWA merged their reservation systems, and was later acquired by Travelport in 2007, making it one of their top three GDS systems. Simply put, if you’ve ever used a travel agent or travel website to buy an air ticket or book a room, it’s likely that you’ve done so through a Worldspan GDS.
What Is Worldspan GDS?
Worldspan GDS is a global distribution system owned by Travelport (Travelport is also the parent company of Galileo and Apollo, which is one of the three largest GDS providers in the world along with Sabre and Amadeus). The main function of this system is to integrate information from different suppliers such as airlines, hotels, car rental companies, cruises, etc., so that travel agents or OTAs (Online Travel Agents) can inquire, compare prices and make reservations in real time.
Worldspan GDS System Features and Benefits:
- ✅ Ultra-complete content: access to over 400 airlines, 200+ lodging brands, 30 car rental companies, and 40+ travel and cruise brands, covering virtually the entire travel industry chain.
- ✅ Superior processing power: Its systems can handle an average of nearly 40 million passenger orders (PNR) simultaneously and tens of thousands of transactions per second.
- ✅ Stability: The back-end technology is located in a large data center in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.A., where stability and scalability have been tested.
- ✅ Data Interoperability: Travelport’s other systems, such as Galileo GDS, are also interoperable with Worldspan GDS, providing greater operational flexibility and integration.
- ✅ Integration with systems such as Trawex: can help travel platforms to build their own brands and booking systems.
How Do I Request a Worldspan GDS System Account?
Want to use the Worldspan GDS system to check, book and issue tickets, but don’t know how to apply for an account? Actually, the process of applying for a Worldspan GDS system is not complicated, but if it is your first time, you may not know what to do. Below is a brief explanation of the Worldspan GDS application process:
- ✅ Licensed travel agent (IATA/TIDS/ARC)
- ✅ Register for a Travelport platform account
- ✅ User rights and logins set by administrators
- ✅ Pass the system audit and activate your account before you can officially check and operate your tickets.
But – there are still a lot of details to be filled in, documents to be submitted and account permissions to be set up, so it’s easy to get stuck if you’re not familiar with the process.
💡 Here’s a Quicker Way to Get an Account: Look for TravelConnect!
We are familiar with the entire Worldspan GDS application process and can help you get started faster and with fewer errors. Whether you’re a newly established travel agency or have an existing travel agency license but haven’t opened a GDS, we can take care of the application in one step, so you can focus on running your business without worrying about the technical details.
📩 Whether you want to open a Worldspan GDS account, apply for/renew a travel agent license, or need to implement an ERP system to optimize your management processes, TravelConnect can provide professional support! 👉 Welcome to contact us to solve your travel agency operation problems once and for all!
Frequently Asked Questions About Worldspan GDS
Worldspan GDS is a global reservation system for travel agents. Simply put, it is a backend for travel agents/ticketing companies to check, issue tickets, book rooms and rent cars, and it can help you to link up travel resources all over the world.
As long as you are a legitimate travel agency with a license and basic business needs, you can basically apply.
If you want to apply for a Worldspan GDS account, you can go directly to Travelport, but you need to fill out a bunch of forms, procedures are cumbersome, need to wait for approval for a longer period of time, if you are not careful, you will make mistakes; to be fast, you can find us TravelConnect to help you do it, we are familiar with the way, the processing will be faster.
