Rail introduced to eDreams Odigeo Prime subscription service

OTA eDreams Odigeo (eDO) is entering the rail arena following a trial period.

Rail services in Spain and Italy are being introduced to the 7.7 million members of the firm’s Prime subscription service alongside flights, hotels, holiday packages and car rental.   

Market testing over the past year confirmed that the company’s new monthly and quarterly payment options for the annual Prime subscription are a catalyst for capturing higher-frequency, lower-basket value travel. 

“By lowering the upfront cost of subscription, this model removes barriers to entry and makes Prime instantly accessible to a wider audience of rail travellers and enables eDO to leverage its market leadership to aggregate this fragmented sector,” the online travel firm said.

It sees the European rail market as representing a "strong growth opportunity” for the subscription model, with a total market estimated at more than €40 billion. 

“The sector is currently undergoing a structural transformation driven by deregulation and a marked shift in consumer behaviour,” eDO added.

More than 330 million annual high-speed passengers are estimated across main European markets.

Rail now accounts for about 90% of travel on the Paris-Bordeaux route and 72% on Madrid-Barcelona as high-speed trains gain market share

The company plans to extend its rail offering into other key European markets in the future. 

Chief executive Dana Dunne said: "The scaling of our rail offering is a natural evolution of our strategy to build the world’s most comprehensive travel platform. 

“By introducing flexible monthly and quarterly payment instalments for the annual membership, we have unlocked this massive €40 billion market. 

“By leveraging our AI technology, we are solving the fragmentation of the rail market for our members, offering them a seamless booking experience across different transport modes. 

“The early success we are seeing in Spain and Italy validates that our subscription model is uniquely placed to succeed in this vertical. 

“We look forward to bringing this unparalleled convenience to more of our members across the rest of Europe very soon."