AmEx, Condado Travel partner to serve corporate travel market

American Express and travel agency partner Condado Travel have entered into an agreement to benefit the island’s business sector with an improved and expanded corporate travel-planning program for Puerto Rico.
The agreement strengthens AmEx’s travel service offering through the Guaynabo-based agency.
“Our commitment with the Puerto Rican market is strengthened as we continue to grow with products and direct services to benefit the customers. This new effort, aimed to meet the travel needs of the local corporate market, reaffirms that commitment,” said Olga Fernández, director of the AmEx Travel Partner Network in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The alliance will allow Condado Travel, founded in 1969, to “further strengthen our portfolio of services and expand our market to meet the requirements of local companies, as well as outside Puerto Rico”, said company President José Targa.
The travel agency’s staff will now work directly with the American Express group to strength their knowledge on the tools and services of the travel network that reaches more than 140 countries through more than 1,700 offices around the world. In turn, Condado Travel staff will be able to coordinate corporate trips more “diligently and quickly,” company officials said.
“Travel nowadays more than ever represents a competitive advantage for companies because if the company and its employees do not visit clients or meet prospects, their competition will,” Fernández said, noting that the business travel market, and rates, have increased across the board.
Puerto Rico and the U.S. have seen an increase of 8 percent in airline ticket sales for domestic flights, while hotel reservations increased by 3 percent. For international flights, the average rate increased 9 percent and 11 percent for hotels.