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 23 September 2011.
- Lastminute.com has developed a Facebook app that enables fans on its page to search and book hotels, holidays and entertainment. Using a "book now" tab on the left hand side of the page, consumers tell the system when and where they want to travel and whether they want flights or flights with hotels. The app then opens up a Lastminute.com page to display the results.
- Expedia Inc says more than 1.5 million people booked travel to Mexico on the more than 100 Expedia- and Hotels.com-branded websites around the world. In the second quarter of 2011, bookings to Mexico increased more than 30%, Expedia says. Expedia's hotel portfolio in Mexico includes more than 1,800 properties, and tourism boards in Cancun, Riviera Maya, Puerto Vallarta and Mazatlan have marketing partnerships with Expedia, the company says.
- UK-based metasearch Directflights added package holidays to its portfolio of channels. Holidays in the system include those from tour operators such as Thomas Cook, Airtours, Manos, Neilson and Sunset. Users can search by destination, budget, accommodation type, destination or operator. [NB: TLabs Showcase - Directflights]