easyJet and Deutsche Bahn have joined forces with Dohop to provide intermodal connections between air and rail in Germany and beyond. 

The new intermodal platform will allow passengers to book journeys across air and rail in one booking process, making the user experience more practical and comfortable. By connecting two different modes of travel, the connection enables new travel opportunities, as well as greater flexibility and customisation in the booking process. 

This initiative is in line with some of the latest developments across Europe: Many countries have ambitious plans to expand their railway infrastructure, which is further backed by the European Union. 

The connections which are part of Worldwide by easyJet – a platform developed in collaboration with Dohop, launched in 2017 with the purpose of connecting easyJet flights with those of partner airlines – will now allow passengers to book tickets that combine flights and trains. Travellers will enjoy new travel opportunities as well as greater flexibility for an efficient and thus sustainable journey.

“The launch of the easyJet – Deutsche Bahn air to rail connections is a big step for Dohop. We have been collaborating with the two leaders in sustainability practices in the airline industry for the last months to make this partnership happen and the technology that resulted will be one of Dohop’s biggest innovations yet. We believe that the ability to book across different modes of travel will shape the way we travel in the future and we are honoured to be a part of the positive change that this will lead to.”

The new collaboration between easyJet, Deutsche Bahn marks the beginning of Dohop’s intermodal offering as part of its already established virtual interline ecosystem.

easyJet and Deutsche Bahn launch new air to rail connections, powered by Dohop

Technology is increasingly powering travel, ushering in more innovation in aviation, and changing the game with new connections 

As demand for sustainable travel continues to grow, new opportunities are expected for air-to-ground connections

Through technological innovation and a finely attuned company culture, Dohop empowers airlines and ground transportation operators, like rail companies, to simplify partnerships within the travel industry so that new destinations, travel combinations and services are available and more accessible to travellers.

A Moment With: David Gunnarsson, CEO Dohop

Today, more than ever, it’s vital that technology empowers travel retailers and suppliers to grow and optimise their networks, tap into new pools of customer demand, and realise new retailing opportunities with more travel options. 

To harness just this, Dohop facilitates partnerships across airlines and ground transportation providers, including rail companies, so that new destinations, travel combinations, and services are available to travellers. Dohop’s technology helps airlines provide more travel and service choices to passengers. As an early disruptor, it has brought a lot of agility with its airline partnerships, helping them sell and service more connected journeys.

Dohop’s technology allows airlines to expand their network and make worldwide destinations available without committing to often cumbersome interline agreements that may or may not be profitable. Partner airlines can make simpler connections via Dohop’s technology and have protection from delays or cancellations, which may result in missed connecting flights. 

"Travel is a complex business. There’s always information asymmetry, so when passengers book a trip, they don’t always have all the information they need at their fingertips. That’s where Dohop comes in."

Dohop makes connections that will surprise air travellers

Some of the opportunities Dohop can create can surprise, too. For example, does easyJet serve New York? No. However, via a Dohop-facilitated connection with low-fare, long-haul airline Norse Atlantic Airways, also operating at London’s Gatwick Airport, such an itinerary is available to book.

Testament to Dohop’s success today is a global network of over 75 airline partners and a growing team in several international locations, complementing its HQ in Reykjavik.

In this CBS News interview, David also shares his management style, the importance of adapting to airline cultures globally, and how he’s excited to expand the business through widened itineraries – beyond air to rail, boats and ferries, even buses - as passengers look for more comprehensive and inclusive offers that better cover their travel needs.

He talks about the importance of understanding airline cultures and how Dohop adapts its sales approach accordingly. 

"Every airline is individual, which makes our work very interesting," he says. "Whether they are seven or 70 years old, they can be very different creatures, so we have to learn and adapt in every case. As a CEO in a fast-moving business, it’s important to constantly evaluate how I can provide the most value at any given time.” 

He describes his leadership style as fairly hands-off. “I step back and try to empower people, give them the opportunity to make their own decisions. Sometimes, it takes more time, but the ultimate benefit is significantly more. It’s a fine line, but giving people the freedom to operate means we hire people who want to come to work, share our values, culture, and the business itself, so you end up with something magical."

The buoyant tech start-up scene in Iceland has highly educated people and a supportive government. David counts himself lucky to be supported by an experienced Chair, John Nicholson (formerly chair of Skyscanner and numerous other businesses).

Are there plans to broaden the Dohop service offering?

"I expect we will be a different business in five years time. We started our journey by connecting only two flights, air-to-air, then we added air-to-rail, and now we’re exploring connecting airlines with other modes of transport, which will become significant. We see increasing demand worldwide for more sustainable travel as we all seek to reduce our carbon footprint. That said, we are not interested in the last mile - our focus will remain firmly on the scheduled transport portion of the journey."

Dohop is a European market leader for alternative interline solutions, based in Reykjavik, Iceland. Through facilitating simple and profitable air-to-air and air-to-ground interline partnerships, Dohop empowers airlines and their intermodal partners to unlock unlimited connections and tap into new demand through new partnership opportunities.

Founded in 2004, Dohop’s team of 100 passionate travel technology experts has enabled new opportunities for connecting journeys for the company’s ever-growing network of 75 airlines and travel providers, including easyJet, Transavia, Air France, Vueling, and Air Transat.

Filmed and produced by Acumen Media as part of 'The Forum Interviews' series. For more information please visit: AcumenStories

CBS News "A Moment With..." features David Gunnarsson, CEO Dohop, to talk technology and innovation as a guiding force in travel

Technology provider Dohop will empower Norse Atlantic Airways and Thai Vietjet to offer connected journeys to travellers through alternative interlining.

With Dohop’s API-based solution, Norse customers flying to Bangkok can now access Thai Vietjet’s wide range of domestic destinations across Thailand, through a unified booking process.

New collaboration enables Norse and Thai Vietjet to tap into new demand, expand their networks and increase revenue, without the constraints of traditional interline or codeshare agreements.

Dohop, the European market leader for alternative interline solutions, has today announced it will now enable Norse Atlantic Airways and Thai Vietjet to offer seamless and connected journeys to their travellers.

The move follows the launch of Norse’s twice-weekly service to Bangkok from Oslo, and will enable Norse customers to simply and conveniently connect to a wide range of popular domestic destinations across Thailand, including Phuket, Krabi, and Chiang Mai.

The new partnership between Norse Atlantic Airways and Thai Vietjet relies on Dohop’s technology, which automatically generates the best flight options and fares for customers through a unified booking process, based on their departure and arrival airports.

Dohop manages the connection and offers prompt assistance in the event of flight cancellations or delays, ensuring travellers reach their desired destinations as quickly and conveniently as possible.

Head of Commercial Partnerships at Norse Atlantic Airways

We are very pleased to further expand our connectivity offering to our passengers. Combined with our previously announced airline partners we will be able to provide even greater choice and convenience for passengers wishing to travel across the Atlantic.

We are thrilled to announce our partnership with Norse. With the collaboration between both parties,  Thai Vietjet will be able to provide our passengers with a more convenient connection to numerous destinations around the world via our Bangkok Suvarnabhumi base, as we are expanding more flight connections to various destinations across the Asia-pacific region.

This collaboration between Norse and Thai Vietjet is the perfect example of how alternative interlining can help airlines tap into new pools of demand and serve more customers. Both airlines will be well positioned to unlock new commercial opportunities together and offer even more choice to their travellers – all without the constraints of traditional interline or codeshare agreements.

“We’re excited to be empowering two forward-thinking carriers to explore the benefits of a new way to partner and look forward to seeing more Norse customers explore the beauty of Thailand’s regional destinations with Thai Vietjet.” 

Dohop’s technology empowers airlines like Thai Vietjet and Norse Atlantic Airways to expand their network by giving their travellers access to destinations they do not serve directly. By leveraging the power of alternative interlining, they can increase revenue through simple and profitable airline partnership, all while retaining ownership of their customers.

Norse Atlantic Airways is an airline that offers affordable fares on long-haul flights, primarily between Europe and the United States. The company was founded by CEO and major shareholder Bjørn Tore Larsen in March 2021. Norse has a fleet of 15 modern, fuel-efficient and more environmentally friendly Boeing 787 Dreamliners that serve destinations including New York, Los Angeles, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Washington, San Francisco, Boston, Miami, Jamaica, Barbados, Oslo, London, Berlin, Rome and Paris. The company's first flight took off from Oslo to New York on June 14, 2022.

Established in 2014, Thai Vietjet has been cooperating with Vietjet to extend its flight network and provide more opportunities for travellers to discover Thailand and many other countries with its hospitable and enjoyable service. With a focus on cost management ability, effective operations and performance, the airline offers flying opportunities with cost-saving and flexible fares as well as diversified services to meet customers’ demands.

Currently, Thai Vietjet operates 10 Thailand domestic routes, including flights from Bangkok (Suvarnabhumi) to Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Phuket, Krabi, Udon Thani, Hat Yai, Khon Kaen, Ubon Ratchathani, and Surat Thani, cross-regional flights including from Phuket to Chiang Mai. The airline is also actively expanding its international flight network to many destinations across Asia-pacific, connecting Thailand with Vietnam, Singapore, Phnom Penh, Japan, Taipei and other top destinations in the region.

Further information at www.vietjetair.com

Founded in 2004, Dohop’s team of 100 passionate travel technology experts have enabled new opportunities for connecting journeys for the company’s ever-growing network of 75 airlines and travel providers, including easyJet, Transavia, Air France, Vueling, and Air Transat.

Dohop empowers Norse Atlantic Airways and Thai Vietjet to offer connected journeys

Deutsche Bahn, Germany’s national railroad operator is in a unique position as a state-owned national rail company actively supporting Germany’s climate goals.

Their primary objectives have long focused on sustainability and environmentally friendly travel. As one of the largest users of green electricity, Deutsche Bahn has been operating electrically powered ICE and IC/EC trains with 100% green electricity since 2018. 

Due to the increased focus on sustainability in Germany, Deutsche Bahn is one of the world’s front-runners in air-to-rail passenger transportation.

As a result of climate change objectives and the high taxation of domestic flights within Germany, airlines have been urged to reevaluate their short-haul and sustainability strategies, making intermodal collaboration more advantageous.

Airlines can maintain their competitiveness and support an environmentally friendly strategy while also reducing the carbon footprint of their passengers by working with Deutsche Bahn.

Head of Intermodal Cooperations at Deutsche Bahn

“Intermodal connections are very important to us. We want to enable joint offers with our partners to provide passengers with a seamless and hassle-free experience when combining modes of transport, in our case especially the air-to-rail or rail-to-air mode. A carbon neutral journey to and from the airport is our general aim for the customer, and for that we need to give the travellers an alternative offer to shorthaul domestic flights within Germany.”

A NEW WAY OF INTERMODAL TICKETING, POWERED BY DOHOP

In 2021, Deutsche Bahn and easyJet joined forces to offer air-to-rail connectivity. With the help of Dohop’s API-based solution, Deutsche Bahn can sell combined air and rail services, including scheduled services, seat maps, ancillaries, and more in a single booking process, to and from all 5.600 German railway stations.

“We started this innovative partnership between ourselves, easyJet and Dohop 2 years ago, right in the pandemic. This is the newest intermodal cooperation model we have in place. It’s fully dynamic, it’s scaleable, it’s theoretically available from all our 5600 railway stations, so it’s a state of the art solution, no GDS involved which makes the cost side very interesting especially for low-cost carriers. We are very happy with the solution and we are looking forward to continue to offer it to passengers.”

The Dohop-powered solution differs from the traditional interline agreements that have been powering a similar partnership between Deutsche Bahn and Lufthansa for years.

It is PSS agnostic which means that any airline, including legacy and low-cost carriers, can be connected without the need for an interline or codesharing agreement, with the added convenience of a streamlined booking process and increased accessibility to locations throughout Germany for the benefit of passengers. 

The benefits for airlines are also significant. In addition to giving their customers more flexibility and a more personalized travel experience, airlines benefit from expanding their reach in catchment areas near airports.

So, two of Dohop’s most forward-thinking airline partners have started intermodal partnerships with the German rail operator: easyJet and Spanish low-cost carrier Vueling.

“There is strong demand for intermodal and that’s why we are creating more and more offers for our partners and international airlines to enlarge their catchment areas and to fill up their flights with passengers from all over Germany, and of course we are looking for new target groups and new customers who are considering continuing their journey by train.”

Deutsche Bahn has noted several benefits from operating the intermodal solution offered by Dohop. Dohop’s solution makes use of the Deutsche Bahn API, making it viable, affordable, and easy to integrate.

Using already-existing sales logic from Deutsche Bahn and easyJet, the partnership was facilitated without the need for new standards. Additionally, the scalability can accommodate all stations, connections, upsells, and intricate multi-stop connections. No additional resources are needed from Deutsche Bahn or easyJet as the mandatory Dohop connection service handles all irregular cases in the event of delays and cancellations.

The collaboration was made possible without the need for lengthy traditional interlining or codesharing agreements.

The vision for the future is clear and flexibility is a big part of it.

“I believe we will see fully dynamic intermodal offers in the future, with more than two modes of transport, especially the first or last mile, available on all existing and new sales channels, and of course the passenger must be aware of it through a digital solution.”

Intermodal into the future. Spearheading intermodal passenger transport, Deutsche Bahn leverages new technology to offer carbon-neutral, seamless experiences.

easyJet and Deutsche Bahn launch new air to rail connections, powered by Dohop

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Dohop empowers Norse Atlantic Airways and Thai Vietjet to offer connected journeys

Intermodal into the future. Spearheading intermodal passenger transport, Deutsche Bahn leverages new technology to offer carbon-neutral, seamless experiences.