In full: Global Distribution System, a computerized marketplace for conducting automated reservations and purchases of travel-related services such as airline seats, rental cars, or hotel rooms. Major systems include Amadeus, Galileo, Sabre, and Worldspan.
A Global Distribution System, or GDS, is a computerized marketplace for conducting automated reservations and purchases of travel-related services such as airline seats, rental cars, or hotel rooms. They connect travel agencies and corporate booking systems with airline and hotel reservation systems.
Due to the cost of subscribing to GDS access, consumers almost never interact directly with a GDS to make a reservation. They may go through the vendor directly, i.e. contacting an airline or hotel, or through a travel agent, whether a person working as such or through a consumer portal such as Travelocity (owned by Sabre) or Orbitz (owned by Travelport, which operates Worldspan and Galileo).
The major GDS services (Amadeus, Galileo, Sabre, and Worldspan) grew out of airline reservation systems developed from the 1960s onward. Newer systems, which are dubbed GNEs (GDS New Entrants) in the industry, have been developed to make use of newer technology.
