Travel agencies keep Amadeus, Navitas and their GDS running reliably by delivering them over a properly managed, monitored hosted-desktop environment, keeping the underlying systems and browsers patched and configured, ensuring resilient connectivity, and using a provider who knows these applications and responds fast when something goes wrong. For most agencies this is part of managed IT at about £45 to £100 per user per month, and reliable booking tools are the difference between a smooth desk and a stalled one.
When the GDS is slow or down, the whole desk stops, and in travel that means lost bookings and frustrated travellers. Keeping these systems dependable is mostly about the environment around them. Here is what makes the difference.
A well-managed hosting environment
Amadeus and Navitas are only as reliable as the platform they run on. A properly sized, maintained and monitored hosted-desktop environment, with enough resources and no neglected, ageing servers, keeps the booking tools fast and available. Cutting corners on the platform is where unreliability creeps in.
Patching and browser configuration
Modern GDS access often runs through a browser on the session hosts, and these tools can be particular about browser versions, settings and certificates. Keeping the operating system, browsers and configuration consistent and up to date, and testing changes before they roll out, stops a routine update from suddenly breaking access for the whole office.
Resilient connectivity
Because hosted desktops are reached over the internet, the connection is critical. Resilient business internet at each office, ideally with automatic failover, and dependable links for remote and overseas staff, keep consultants connected to the GDS even when a line has a problem, which matters when a booking cannot wait.
Proactive monitoring
Monitoring the servers, sessions and connections around the clock means problems, a server running low on resources, a failing component, a dropped line, are caught and dealt with before they stop the desk. Catching issues early is what turns potential outages into non-events the team never even notices.
People who know the applications
When a GDS issue does arise, you need support that understands travel systems and can quickly tell whether the problem is your environment or the provider’s, rather than starting from scratch. That expertise gets consultants working again fast instead of leaving them stuck mid-booking.
Plan changes carefully
Upgrades to the booking software, the hosted environment or Office should be planned and tested rather than dropped on a live desk. A change that is rolled out carefully, with a way back if needed, keeps the GDS reliable through the updates that are a normal part of running these systems.
What to ask a provider
A specialist for travel agencies should be able to answer:
- Have you supported travel agencies, hosted desktops and systems like Amadeus, Navitas, FareXpert or TRAMS before?
- How do you give office, remote and overseas staff secure, reliable access in any time zone?
- How do you protect us from invoice, supplier and crew payment fraud, and help with PCI DSS?
- What is your response time when a booking or payment is at risk, out of hours?
- Is the price clear and per user, with security included rather than charged separately?
What good IT means for a travel agency
For a travel agency, good IT is mostly invisible. Consultants reach their booking systems quickly and securely from any office or country, the specialist software they rely on stays fast and available, payments go where they should, and travellers get answers whatever the hour. The desk keeps running and the technology stops being something anyone has to think about.
That reliability is the result of a setup built and maintained for how a travel business actually works, rather than a generic contract. For an operation that runs long hours, handles money and depends on a few specialist systems, a predictable per-user cost for that dependability is far cheaper than the downtime, fraud or lost productivity that a patched-together setup eventually causes.
Where to start
If you are not sure where your agency stands, a short review is the quickest way to find out: confirm multi-factor authentication is on for every account including overseas machines, check that booking systems and backups are managed and test-restored, confirm a strict bank-detail verification process is followed every time, and make sure only approved software can run. Those few steps remove most of the risk and show where a travel-aware managed setup pays off.
Why travel agencies choose First Stop IT
First Stop IT has supported businesses since 2002, including travel agencies and travel management companies, and we understand the systems a travel desk runs on: Amadeus, Navitas, FareXpert and TRAMS, delivered securely over hosted desktops, alongside Microsoft 365. We support travel businesses based in Essex, Hertfordshire and London with teams working worldwide. Our credentials include:
- Cyber Essentials Certified
- IASME Cyber Assurance (Gold)
- NCSC Assured Service Provider (Cyber Advisor for Cyber Essentials)
- Microsoft Partner
- Crown Commercial Service Supplier (G-Cloud)
- Quality Principles Certified
We look after more than 2,000 endpoints across 50 companies, we have been named a Top 50 UK MSP for three years running, and we support organisations with 10 to 100 employees across Essex, Hertfordshire and London, including teams working internationally.
Book a free IT and cyber security review
Want your booking systems running fast and reliably for the whole team? Book a free IT and cyber security review with First Stop IT.