How SAP Travel Accelerator Became the First One Order-Certified Platform and Expanded Beyond Airlines

SAP SE is a global leader in enterprise application software, serving customers in over 180 countries. Its SAP Commerce platform supports industry-specific digital transformation. Portaltech Reply, a long-standing SAP partner, has been the trusted technical partner and key product development contributor for the Travel Accelerator for over 9 years, leading its innovation roadmap and ensuring alignment with industry standards.

Across the travel and hospitality industry—airlines, ferries, coaches, transport companies, and hotels—digital transformation is hindered by:

• Legacy systems and rigid operational processes (e.g., ticketing, scheduling, reservations, and inventory management)

• High costs and vendor lock-in from a limited number of dominant IT providers

• Difficulty in implementing upsell, cross-sell, and personalized retail experiences

• Lack of agility to respond to fluctuating demand, pricing, or customer expectations

While airlines face additional complexity from interline and codeshare agreements, similar inflexibility and integration challenges exist for ferries, coaches, and hotels. This created a clear need for a flexible, retail-grade commerce solution capable of serving multiple travel and hospitality sectors while aligning with evolving industry standards.

SAP, with Portaltech Reply as its strategic innovation partner, built and continuously enhanced the SAP Commerce Travel Accelerator—a modular, extensible platform enabling travel and hospitality businesses to sell, manage, and distribute services across channels.

Key Solution Highlights:

• 9-Year Partnership – PTR has been SAP’s trusted technical partner for the Travel Accelerator since its inception, collaborating on roadmap design and development.

• Cross-Vertical Relevance – Initially developed for airlines, the platform has been successfully adapted for ferries, coach operators, transport companies, and hotels.

• Platform Development – Six major releases since 2015, latest version 2302.6.

• IATA Collaboration – Active role in defining NDC and One Order standards for airlines, while applying similar commerce principles to other travel verticals.

• Certifications – Achieved both NDC and One Order certifications by embedding pilot use cases into the core platform.

Strong Points:

• Well-Designed Data Model – Supports complex travel and hospitality use cases.

• Well-Organized Modules – Internal architecture is modular, robust, and maintainable.

• Ideal for Budget Operators – Perfect fit for budget airlines, small hotels, and motels.

• Fast Time-to-Market – Businesses can deploy quickly and start generating value sooner.

Project Phases:

1. Discovery & Design – Identified pain points across travel and hospitality verticals and aligned with IATA’s vision for airlines.

2. Pilot Implementation – Delivered the first One Order pilot for airlines, including Departure Control System integration.

3. Hardening & Expansion – Incorporated pilot learnings into the Travel Accelerator and adapted features for ferries, coaches, transport companies, and hotels.

4. Ongoing Releases – Continuous enhancements to serve diverse business models in travel and hospitality.

The collaboration between SAP and PTR has delivered measurable results:

First One Order-Certified Platform – SAP Commerce Travel Accelerator leads the airline sector while maintaining adaptability for other travel and hospitality industries.

Proven Multi-Vertical Deployment – Successfully implemented for ferries, coach services, transport companies, and hotels.

Enhanced Commercial Capabilities – Enabled upselling, cross-selling, and personalized offers across multiple travel modes and accommodation services.

Reduced Vendor Lock-In – Lower operational costs and greater control over sales and distribution.

Long-Term Trust – Over 9 years, PTR has consistently delivered technical excellence, aligning product evolution with SAP’s strategic goals.