In an era of global instability, travel plans can change suddenly, so the help of travel agents is needed more than ever. Therefore, travel agents must be well equipped with a variety of tools to help clients seamlessly. A new tool is available for South African travel professionals – RateHawk, an all-in-one B2B booking platform, offering agents access to hotels, flights, transfers, car rentals, and other essential travel services. Launched in 2016 by UAE-based Emerging Travel Group, today the platform is trusted by more than 110 000 travel professionals in over 120 countries.
Multi-product tool
RateHawk provides access to 3,2 million accommodation options, making its inventory one of the largest in the market. By aggregating supply from over 350 wholesalers and thousands of direct hotel contracts, the platform processes more than 10 billion hotel rates daily and provides its partners with the widest choice and competitive prices.
Janine Salame, Head of Business Development Africa, says: “The South African travel market is showing remarkable resilience and growth, with increasing interest from both domestic and international travellers. We’re seeing a strong demand for flexible, technology-driven solutions as agencies and travellers seek greater convenience and value. Our accommodation supply covers not only the most popular destinations but also a range of off-the-beaten paths. Thus, travel agents can craft unique and exciting routes for even the most experienced travellers.”
Partners can choose accommodations from well-known hotel chains, boutique hotels, and apartments, all easily filtered to meet specific client needs.
Beyond hotels, RateHawk offers air tickets from over 450 airlines, including 150 low-cost carriers, as well as transfers in more than 150 countries. This all-in-one platform saves our partners valuable time, as they can book all key travel services in a single system without the need to search across multiple platforms.
Flexible payment terms and commission
At RateHawk, all services are available for booking without a deposit. For travel professionals, several payment options are available, and they can choose the most suitable one: by bank transfer, debit or credit card, or digitally, sending their clients a payment link.
RateHawk enables its partners to seamlessly add their commission to the nett price and to set the desired amount of commission themselves.
Pre-check service and local team
To give travel agents more confidence and control over the bookings, RateHawk offers a Pre-Check Service for each accommodation booking and verifies reservation details with the hotel before the guests check in. This proactive approach minimises the risk of unwelcome surprises, reducing travel agents’ stress.
Salame says: “RateHawk has a dedicated local commercial team of 16 managers for Africa with a team of eight dedicated to South Africa who support partners and provide all the necessary guidance. Each registered partner is assigned an account manager whose responsibility is to help the partner with the system onboarding, adjust the contract settings, provide advice and assist with financial matters.”
Moreover, the company has a dedicated multi-language support line during business hours and a 24/7 emergency line, catering to the agent’s needs and delivering high-quality partner care.
A loyalty programme
By registering at RateHawk, travel professionals who are part of agency chains will automatically enter the loyalty programme, which enables them to get back up to 4% of the cost of bookings in points. The points can then be spent on future reservations. One collected point is equal to 1 contract currency; points can be used to pay for the booking fully or partially.
If you also want to supercharge your travel business this year, start using RateHawk today – visit www.ratehawk.com to register free.
