Travel giant Orbitz has come out with an iPad app to enable GPS-powered mobile research and hotel bookings. Orbitz claims to be the only one which has released such an app.
The app is free to download and offers travelers a fast and user-friendly interface to find, compare and book hotels even while on the go. One can select from a wide range of Orbitz hotels in just three easy steps.
Barney Harford, CEO, Orbitz Worldwide said, “The Orbitz Hotels App is designed from the ground up to take advantage of iPad's format and interface.”
Besides booking the hotel, the app helps you find the location of nearby hotels using iPad’s GPS capabilities which also serves same day booking requirements. You can search hotels by city, address, zip code or landmark and can filter and sort hotels by price and star rating.
An interactive map is used to compare hotels and prices. The search results though this map show summarized hotel information which can be expanded to show photographs, guest reviews by verified customers, special offers, amenities and detailed hotel/room descriptions.
The app also delivers Automatic Hotel Price Assurance refunds where a customer will get the price different (through cheque) in case another Orbitz customer books the same prepaid hotel room for a lesser amount. One major advantage of using this app is that no fee is charged on hotel cancellations or changes.
While creating the app, the company took into consideration a survey which showed that more than half of the 1,000 people questioned said their mobile device was the most helpful for planning activities once they reached their destination. Only 15 percent said that their mobile device was most helpful for booking trips.
Reviewers have especially liked the app for its accurate search results, clarity, and functionality.
