Sabre launches in Turkey

Sabre, which has long worked with Turkish Airlines to market and sell its fares around the world, is now opening its doors to travel agencies with a new office in Istanbul complete with an experienced team of travel and technology consultants. The company has already won new customers including leading corporate travel agency, Viking Turizm. 

Harald Eisenaecher, senior vice president, Sabre Travel Network, Europe, Middle East and Africa, said: “The Turkish travel industry has grown significantly over the past decade and is the country every technology company is watching, particularly because of its young, technology-savvy population. This represents a great opportunity for travel management companies and agencies to innovate through technology and keep pace with new traveller expectations.” 

“Along with global reach and expertise, we bring local knowledge, the very latest technology solutions, and an incredibly passionate team who want to help the local travel industry drive sales and transform travellers experiences using new technology such as our Mobile Red Workspace iPad app which lets agents search, book and manage travel anywhere a WIFI signal is available.” 

Sabre’s new office will be headed up by Altug Bekdemir, who brings more than 25 years of experience from the aviation, tourism and hospitality industries. Prior to joining Sabre, he served as general manager for airline sales and marketing company Aviareps in Turkey, where he gained valuable expertise working with Austrian Airlines and United Airlines. 

Altug Bekdemir said: “More and more Turkish people want to see the world, and Sabre technology is well positioned to support travel agencies in that move. I believe we have a very strong local technology offering that will help agents inspire their travellers in their world discovery.”