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Travelport’s roots in Southern Africa run deeper than any other GDS. From the Safari terminals of the early 1990s to Galileo — operated by South African Airways for nearly two decades — to Smartpoint and now Travelport+, this platform has been the backbone of the region’s travel trade for over thirty years.
Travelport Southern Africa launched on 1 February 2026 with a single mission: make Travelport the easiest, most rewarding, and most technologically advanced GDS for agencies of every size.
What sets us apart is what we put around the platform. A dedicated helpdesk and training team that knows the trade by name. Named account managers who understand your business. A curated technology ecosystem anchored in South African-built tools
Travelport+ gives our agencies access to the richest content pool in Southern Africa — NDC and traditional airline fares side by side, over three million hotel properties, 42 car rental brands, and 35 rail operators — all from a single screen. Travelport was the first GDS to achieve IATA’s highest level of NDC certification, and over 30 major carriers now deliver NDC content through our platform.
We don’t lock agencies into proprietary systems. We give them freedom of choice, modern tools, and a clear path to grow — with a local partner who’s been here since the beginning.
Travelport. Powering Southern African travel since the days of Safari.
Now, through Travelport Southern Africa, powering its future.
Across the global travel technology landscape, Travelport is not just keeping pace — it is setting the pace. While the industry talks about the future of travel retailing, Travelport is already building it. Backed by a significant $570 million equity investment and a leadership transition that brings fresh, transformative energy to the business, Travelport is making bold moves that are reshaping how travel is searched, sold, and serviced worldwide.
Travelport’s Content Curation Layer (CCL) is an industry-first: an AI and machine-learning engine that sifts through billions of trip options across traditional fares, NDC content, low-cost carriers, hotels, car hire and rail — and returns the most relevant, de-duplicated, retail-ready results in an average response time of just over one second. On top of this, the Content Optimizer gives agencies the power to apply their own business rules to control what content appears and where, driving both revenue and customer satisfaction. No other GDS offers this level of intelligent, multi-source content curation.
While competitors are still integrating NDC piecemeal, Travelport has built a growing ecosystem of NDC-enabled airlines — from global majors like Air Canada, United Airlines, British Airways and LATAM, to next-generation carriers like Riyadh Air and Akasa Air. Travelport was the first GDS to launch a full end-to-end NDC solution and continues to expand its network of third-party technology partners with access to NDC content through modern, JSON-based APIs. This means agents on Travelport+ can shop, compare and book NDC and traditional content side by side — something no other platform delivers as seamlessly.
Travelport’s landmark strategic partnership with United Airlines represents a fundamental shift in how airlines and distributors work together. Rather than building technology in silos and attempting to integrate later, United and Travelport are co-developing NDC retailing features and merchandising capabilities for Travelport+ and the Deem corporate booking tool. This includes innovations like pooled unused travel credits, direct loyalty enrolment within the booking workflow, and new ancillary payment methods — capabilities that are rolling out through 2026. This is the future of airline distribution, and Travelport is defining it.
In April 2026, John Mangelaars takes the helm as Travelport’s new CEO, succeeding Greg Webb after seven years of transformative leadership. Mangelaars brings over 30 years of global technology and travel experience, including leading Skyscanner to become the world’s largest metasearch platform by web traffic. His mandate is clear: deliver the scale, reliability and innovation that agencies and suppliers need to thrive. Combined with a new Chief Product and Technology Officer driving AI-first development and agent-centric workflows, Travelport’s leadership team signals a company that is investing aggressively in the future.
Bryan Rufener works closely with travel agencies and partners across Southern Africa, helping them navigate the evolving travel technology landscape and connect to the tools that power modern travel retailing. Over the course of his career he has built strong relationships across the regional travel trade, working with agencies, travel groups, and partners to help them access the content, systems, and support they need to grow their businesses. At Travelport, Bryan focuses on ensuring agencies across the region can practically apply global travel technology in their day-to-day operations – from accessing airline content to improving servicing workflows and operational efficiency. With the introduction of the new Travelport operator model in Southern Africa, Bryan continues to work closely with the travel trade to strengthen partnerships and ensure agencies are well positioned for the next phase of digital travel retailing.
South African entrepreneur and a technologist who has spent his career building platforms that enable businesses to grow. Darren’s roots lie in open-source technology, engineering discipline, and regional innovation. His philosophy has always been simple: Technology should empower people. That philosophy now meets the future of travel retailing.
Backed by Traveloport globally, empowered by modern booking tools that transform the agent and therefore traveller’s experience, Travelport Southern Africa combines global technology, local entrepreneurial energy, a strong team, and deep regional travel expertise and relationships geared to create a new kind of travel distribution partner for the region.
One, powered by modern retailing systems, built on future-focused travel tech innovation. TravelportSA is first and foremost an agent-first business and we are commitment to building trust in every agent touchpoint.
Contact our sales team to find out more
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