This is the regular Tnooz roundup of product news from around the travel, tourism and hospitality industry, all with a technology, online and digital twist - Friday 21 October 2011.
- HipGeo added a Trips feature to its free iPhone app, enabling users to take photos and share their trips and destinations on an animated map and through slideshows. There's also a HipGeo player, available for embedding purposes on websites and blogs, the company says.
- The Madeira Promotion Bureau has unveiled a blog with hints and tips on where to go and what to see in the destination as well as videos. The yourmadeira service, which includes links to social media such as Madeira's Facebook page, Twitter, Flickr and YouTube will be regularly updated with tips, blog posts and additional imagery.
- Tours and experiences specialist Isango has unveiled a theatre breaks offering for London. The justlondontheatrebreaks site marks a departure for Isango, taking the company beyond just standalone experiences and enables consumers to package up hotels and shows. Isango claims to only offer premium seats and centrally located hotels and says it may incorporate justlondontheatre breaks into the main site going forward.
- Frommer's has produced a series of e-books taking chapters from its most popular guidebooks and combining them with detailed maps and links to hotels, tour operators and transport so consumers only pay for what they need. So far 50 Frommer's ShortCuts are available to download for a charge.
- American Airlines customers who use online check-in -- and those who don't -- will now be able to take advantage of curbside check-in for international flights, including for destinations requiring a visa. This makes "American the only airline to provide a convenient service of this kind," the carrier claims. American has been expanding the curbside check-in service to 28 airports in the US which already handle check-ins for domestic service.