A travel agency can move its booking systems to hosted desktops without disruption by planning the migration carefully, building and testing the new environment alongside the old one, migrating in phases, training staff, and cutting over out of hours with a clear fallback. Done properly, the desk barely notices, and for most agencies the whole thing is part of managed IT at about £45 to £100 per user per month once live.
Moving to hosted desktops is one of the best upgrades a growing travel agency can make, but the desk runs around the clock and cannot afford a botched cutover. The key is a methodical, tested approach. Here is how a good migration works.
Plan around how the desk works
A migration starts by understanding the systems the desk relies on, Amadeus, Navitas, fares tools, TRAMS, email, and how and when people work, including overseas teams. That picture lets you plan a migration that fits the business’s rhythm and avoids disrupting peak booking periods or different time zones.
Build and test alongside the old setup
The new hosted environment should be built and thoroughly tested before anyone relies on it, with the booking applications installed, configured and proven to work, while the existing setup keeps running. Testing with real users and real workflows beforehand is what catches problems in a safe space rather than on go-live day.
Migrate in phases
Rather than moving everyone at once, a phased approach, a pilot group, then teams or offices in turn, lets you prove the new environment, fix any issues early, and keep the rest of the desk working normally throughout. Each phase builds confidence and reduces risk.
Train people before they switch
Hosted desktops change how staff log in and reach their tools, so a little training and clear guidance before each group moves means people are productive immediately rather than confused on day one. Good communication is half of a smooth migration.
Cut over carefully with a fallback
Final cutovers should happen out of hours where possible, with support on hand and a clear way back if something unexpected appears. A travel desk that runs 24/7 needs that safety net, so a migration step never leaves consultants unable to book.
Support closely afterwards
For the first days after each group moves, close support and monitoring catch and fix the small issues that always follow a change, so confidence stays high and the new environment quickly becomes second nature. Done this way, the move to hosted desktops is an upgrade the desk feels the benefit of, not an event it dreads.
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?
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.
The bottom line
When a travel agency’s IT is right, the business simply runs: people in every office and time zone reach the same fast systems, work hands smoothly between regions, payments go where they should, and travellers get answers whatever the hour. The technology fades into the background and the team gets on with looking after clients and crew.
That dependability comes from a setup designed, secured and actively managed for how travel actually works, not a generic contract. For a business that runs long hours, handles money and depends on a few specialist systems, a predictable per-user cost for that reliability is far cheaper than the downtime, fraud or data loss an ad-hoc setup eventually invites.
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 travel systems modern, fast and reliable? Book a free IT and cyber security review with First Stop IT.