Ctrip joins hands with Merlin Entertainment to upgrade online booking experience

Chinese online travel platform Ctrip has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with the world's second largest theme entertainment company, Merlin Entertainment Group. Under the agreement, both parties will cooperate on several aspects including system integration, innovative marketing and product diversification, aiming to provide more choices and better service for consumers.The agreement will cover Merlin’s three major tourism and entertainment brands, including Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum in Beijing, Shanghai, Wuhan and Chongqing; Ocean Discovery Center and the LEGO Exploration Center, focusing on creating the best online ticket booking process through system integration.Starting from January 2017, the two parties will also launch a series of integrated marketing campaigns for both online and offline products to further enrich the product content and enhance the user experience with more innovative approaches.Hongfeng Fang, general manager of Ctrip ticketing, said Merlin’s major events including new product launches and new wax unveilings will be carried out in close cooperation with Ctrip, leveraging Ctrip’s membership system to appeal more users. In addition, Madame Tussaud's fans activities, Ocean Discovery Center sleepover activities, annual passes, underwater dinner and other experience products will also be sold on the online platform.Ctrip Travel Network co-founder, executive chairman of the Board Jianzhang Liang said, “Internationalisation is a new point of growth for future development. Ctrip hopes to be the first “go out” service brand, allowing more tourists to experience the quality of Ctrip services. Ctrip will be more focused on the international development and establish more global partnerships.”Putnam Shin, Merlin Entertainment Group Asia Pacific managing director, said that with the continuous development of mobile booking, the group will focus on expanding the tourism market through online channels.