BOOKIT

Not to be confused with BookIt.com.
For the Pizza Hut reading program, see Pizza Hut.
BOOKIT Reservations System

Shopping cart based booking window for ferry services
Developer(s) Hogia Ferry Systems
Stable release 1.1
Operating system Windows
Type Reservations system
Website bookit.hogia.fi

BOOKIT is a reservations system for the ferry industry. It is provided by Hogia Ferry Systems, a part of the Hogia group. Hogia Ferry Systems have its premises and the whole software development team in the municipality of Vaasa in Finland.

History

The first version of the BOOKIT system was originally developed in 1987 for the AW Line operation between Mariehamn on the Åland Islands in Finland and Norrtälje in Sverige. This operation was a project by the Aland businessman Anders Wiklöf and was only sailing for two years. The next year Eckerö Linjen acquired the system and the saga started.[1]

With some help from the travel technology giant Amadeus IT Group BOOKIT is today in use also by several customers in North Africa and in the Mediterranean Sea.[2]

BOOKIT is now also expanding on the important British market by signing contract with the Isle of Wight operator Red Funnel as well as the Scottish operator NorthLink Ferries operating between mainland Scotland and the islands of Shetland and Orkney.,[3][4]

Functionality

The reservations system has grown after that to cover all types of services that are offered together with ferry traffic as stated by Philip Dawson, a freelance writer in the ferry industry: "BOOKIT is a complete reservation system for transport and travel, allowing the user to combine passenger, vehicle and cargo reservations for their ships with booking arrangements for onboard services, accommodations tourism and onward travel ashore, both at the point of origin and destination." [5]

BOOKIT is equipped with online reservations user interfaces both for B2B and B2C access. The user interfaces are developed in Microsoft.NET technology and also includes functionality for embarkation control to follow the ISPS (International Ship and Port Security) Code regulations.[6]

As reported by the industry magazine Ferry Technology the application can also provide check in over the internet so that passengers can print their boarding cards at home.[7]

In 1999 a web based booking interface was added. This software runs on all web browsers.

Current customers

There are at the moment 15 customers using the BOOKIT system for ferry reservation. Many of the companies operate in the Baltic Sea cruiseferry market. Among others the below companies:[8]

External links

References

  1. ↑ Sjöström, P-H, Hogia provides booking systems worldwide, "Finnish Maritime Index 04-05", 184-186, ISBN 91-974379-8-0
  2. ↑ Söderlund, A J, Hogia Ferry Systems in North Africa, "Finnish Maritime Index 06-07", 212-213, ISBN 91-975200-0-4
  3. ↑ Red Funnel goes for BOOKIT, "Cruise business Review 2/2007", 92, ISSN 1235-4678
  4. ↑ Northlink siktar på tillväxt med BOOKIT, "www.boarding.no", (in Norwegian)
  5. ↑ Dawson, Philip, Please be Seated: The airline seat's ascendency over the traditional ship's berth, "ShipPax GUIDE 04", 96-102, ISSN 0282-8898
  6. ↑ Couse, Charlotte, Passengers and agents embrace the Internet, "Cruise & Ferry Info" September 2006 No. 9, 12-15, ISSN 1102-934X
  7. ↑ Online check-in introduced by Hurtigruten, "Ferry Technology" June 2006, 46, ISSN 1746-1111
  8. ↑ Hogia Ferry Systems web site, References
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