airasia partners with 12Go to enable intercity train, bus, ferry, and private transfer bookings in its Super App

With the launch of ‘Transport’ in the airasia Super App, the company offers its 10.6m monthly users a seamless booking experience for the entire trip, covering flights, hotels and now also ground transport and sea transport. Thanks to the 12Go partnership, airasia becomes the world’s first super app able to offer a complete journey experience, alongside other non-travel products like food and financial services, at scale.  

Super app users from anywhere in the world can now easily compare, choose and book intercity buses, trains, private transfers, and ferries from 12Go’s inventory of more than 4,000 operators, covering nearly 50,000 routes across 26 Asian countries. To book ground transport users simply navigate to airasia Transport within the Super App, with post-booking servicing handled directly by the local operator.

This partnership is key to achieving 12Go’s mission to revolutionize the traveler experience by making ground transportation as easy to book as a hotel or flight. airasia’s Super App has 10.6m monthly active users, up 236% year-over-year, resulting in a growth in transactions of 524% compared to a year ago. By integrating 12Go’s technology, airasia accesses 12Go.asia’s entire inventory of ground and sea transport options, delivering on an urgent traveler need for a more complete booking experience, just in time for Asia’s busy holiday season, which begins in October and is expected to surpass pre-COVID levels of bookings. 

Alexey Abolmasov, CEO 12Go explains, “Ground transport is the glue that makes international travel possible. Our mission is to improve the experience of travel by making the ground and sea elements of a trip simple to plan and book. We intend to partner with the tech and travel ecosystems to put ground transport options in front of travelers wherever they choose to shop, by making our simple to deploy API available at scale.”

Demand for travel is already sharply rebounding, following the lifting of travel restrictions with the UNWTO’s Tourism Recovery Tracker showing that demand for ground transport is outpacing air in the majority of the world. However, only 10% of bus, ferry, and train tickets are booked digitally today, meaning that despite the ease with which they can book airline, hotel, and destination experiences, travelers are still forced to organize ground transport in person at a kiosk or self-service machine.

Amanda Woo, CEO of airasia Super App commented: “Being able to easily get to the airport, or move between locations after your flight has landed can make or break a trip. That’s why we’re adding Asia’s most comprehensive bus, train and ferry options from 12Go to our Super App, so travelers can organize every aspect of their trip in one place. When it comes to the journey itself, ground transport is the final piece of the jigsaw for our users.”  

Abolmasov added: “We’ve organized the world’s bus, train and ferry information by working closely with thousands of local operators to bring them online. This is our largest deal to date where we open up our inventory to a third party, and I’m delighted these hardworking local transport businesses are now part of one of the world’s largest and fastest growing digital lifestyle providers. This just wouldn’t have been possible even a year ago, and we hope this type of deal helps a greater number of travelers to plan more connected and comfortable journeys.”

This unique agreement is the first example of a super app investing to make such a broad range of ground transport options available to travelers, highlighting the significant value passengers attach to the ground transport leg of their journeys.