Member Article

New online booking system for NE tourism

An online booking system to help smaller tourism businesses in the North East compete with large chains has been launched by One NorthEast. Desti.ne aims to provide attractions, event organisers and accommodation providers with affordable access to the online marketplace through its central booking facilities.

Barbara Davison, who runs the Hope and Anchor in Alnmouth which was one of the first businesses to sign up, said: “It’s good for business, the main point is that more people are booking online so that’s where we’re picking up more customers. My message to people would be to get online as fast as possible “I was very nervous about using the system at first as I’m computer illiterate - the only thing I used to do on the computer was play solitaire. Since it was set up it has been pretty plain sailing. I now know my way round the system so well that I have no problems training my staff on it and if I can do it anyone can.”

One NorthEast said that the business-testing phase of Desti.ne Frontdesk generated bookings of almost £25,000 pounds from across Europe and the United States of America in a space of weeks.

Desti.ne is managed by Tourism Network NorthEast, an emerging network involving One NorthEast and four Area Tourism Partnerships – one for each sub-regional area: Northumberland, Tyne & Wear, Durham, and Tees Valley. To find out more about the system, visit the website.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .