Travel Tech is the layer comprising software, APIs, connectivity infrastructure, distribution systems and data services that enables the search, booking, distribution and management of travel products. Underpinning this technological layer is a travel booking ecosystem worth 1.6 trillion dollars, but the technology market itself is much smaller: it stands at between 14,000 and 18,000 million dollars, with a working range of 15,000–17,000 million, implying a take ratetake rateof just 0.9–1.1 per cent.
The report featured in this article, compiled by our advisers specialising in the sale and acquisition of companies in the technology sector and updated to June 2026, expressly excludes consumer OTAs, offline agencies and the airlines themselves as its main focus, treating them as distinct adjacent markets. The focus is on the B2B infrastructure that underpins the entire travel value chain.
What falls within and outside the Travel Tech market
The Travel Tech market comprises four technological categories: global distribution systems (GDS) and their API-first alternatives, property management systems (PMS) and revenue management systems (RMS), payment platforms and biometric technologies embedded within the travel experience, and the data and analytics layers that underpin dynamic pricing.
Each of these sectors is being reshaped by a combination of regulatory pressure, the move to the cloud and the accelerated adoption of artificial intelligence. For a buyer or investor, understanding which sector an asset operates in is the first step before embarking on any M&A process.
Trends that are revolutionising the travel technology market
GDS disintermediation and the adoption of NDC
The transition to the New Distribution Capability (NDC) standard is reshaping air travel distribution. Sabre had accumulated 38 live NDC integrations in the first quarter of 2025, and Amadeus had implemented 31 of the 70 agreements already signed IATA forecasts that by 2026 around 65 per cent of indirect bookings will be NDC, compared with less than 15 per cent in 2022. Even so, GDSs are maintaining their volume whilst conceding on the price per transaction, a common pattern during the intermediate stages of technological disruption.
API-first deployment
Platforms such as Duffel and Verteil are establishing the API as a viable economic model, attracting SME travel agencies and low-cost airlines that were previously excluded from the traditional GDS economy. These solutions operate with quote latencies of less than 200 milliseconds, a standard that now sets the benchmark for technical expectations in any technological due diligence within the sector.
Migration of PMS and RMS to the cloud
The market penetration of cloud-based PMS stood at around 25 per cent in 2024. Oracle reported a 31 per cent year-on-year increase in properties on OPERA Cloud, including the migration of more than 1,000 Hyatt hotels, whilst Mews, Cloudbeds and Apaleo are scaling up their operations to cater for the long tail of independent hotels that still operate on on-premises systems.
Platform bundling
Amadeus has integrated PMS, RMS, distribution and payments into a single hotel technology stack, with its hospitality division growing by 12% in 2024. SAP Concur, for its part, combines travel and expense (T&E) management with ERP for some 85 million users. This bundling reduces the cost of customer acquisition and raises switching costs – two factors that strategic buyers particularly value.
AI, dynamic pricing and agent-based booking
FLYR raised $295 million in August 2024, with a valuation of $800 million and ARR growth of 290 per cent, bringing AI-powered revenue management to airlines such as Avianca, JetBlue and Virgin Atlantic. Mews, for its part, acquired Atomize to strengthen its revenue management capabilities. AI applied to dynamic pricing has become the main driver of growth in the sector.
Embedded travel and biometrics
The integration of payments, digital identity and booking within fintechs and super-apps is progressing rapidly. Brex launched BrexPay for Navan in October 2024, with more than $1,000 million in transaction volume processed across more than 50 currencies.
Investments in the travel tech sector: deals and valuations
M&A activity in the travel tech sector falls into five recurring categories: large-scale consolidation, niche bolt-ons , platforms built by private equity firms, growth equity and strategic minority stakes.
Between 2023 and 2025, the key driver has been the acquisition of technological capabilities in AI, NDC, biometrics and payments. Amadeus carried out five technological capability acquisitions in 24 months, including Vision-Box, Voxel, ForwardKeys and the announced acquisition of IDEMIA Public Security, amongst others. Other notable transactions during this period include:
- The Amex GBT/CWT merger, valued at $540 million and due to be completed in September 2025.
- The sale of SynXis by Sabre to TPG for $1.1 billion.
- Apax’s investment in IBS Software is around 450 million dollars.
- General Atlantic’s majority stake in Plusgrade, at a valuation of over $2 billion.
The current landscape reflects a buyer’s market for legacy assets and a seller’s market for SaaS at scale. Growth platforms such as Mews ($300 million, Series D), Lighthouse ($370 million, Series C led by KKR), TravelPerk and Engine have raised capital at multiples of 10 to 14 times revenue or ARR, with fierce competition amongst financial backers, whilst legacy assets are trading at multiples of 8 to 10 times.
The resumption of IPOs confirms this interpretation: HBX made its debut in Madrid in February 2025 with a valuation of 2,840 million euros, and Navan was listed on the Nasdaq in October 2025. The public market rewards scale and profitability, but not growth at any price.
Spain and Iberia as a corridor for consolidation
Spain and the Iberian Peninsula stand out as one of the most attractive consolidation corridors in Europe within the travel tech sector. The southern part of the continent combines a large base of independent hotels, low penetration of cloud-based PMS systems and the absence of a dominant regional consolidator – three conditions that typically precede intensive ‘buy-and-build’ processes.
With HBX Group and Amadeus based in Madrid, TravelPerk in Barcelona and Mabrian in Palma de Mallorca, the ecosystem already boasts some leading players. A private equity platform based in Spain with €200–400 million in capital could build a portfolio worth over €1 billion within 36 months, according to estimates set out in the report. For founders of tech companies in the travel sector who are considering selling to a strategic or financial investor , this context of active consolidation significantly improves the terms of negotiation.
Travel Tech market growth forecast
The story of the sector’s growth is no longer one of post-pandemic recovery – which came to an end in mid-2024 when the market exceeded its previous levels by 23 per cent – but rather one of sustained structural digitalisation underpinned by growth in the acquisition rate. Projections vary significantly depending on the time horizon and segment:
- Global Travel Tech sector (2024–2026): combined revenue growth of 7–9 per cent, with Amadeus forecasting an increase of 9–13 per cent.
- NDC aggregators (2024–2034): CAGR of 13–15 per cent, supported by $2.3 billion in cumulative funding between 2022 and 2025.
- Travel data and analytics: mid-to-high single-digit growth, driven by AI use cases and demand for data licences for model training.
- Legacy GDS online distribution: the slowest segment, growing at 5–7 per cent a year.
The underlying ecosystem of gross reserves is projected to grow from $1.6 trillion in 2024 to $1.8 trillion in 2027, representing a CAGR of 5.2 per cent. If the adoption rate expands to 3–5 per cent of software spending, it could add around $6,000 million in incremental technology revenue, approximately one-tenth of the current market.
Travel Tech combines a moderately sized market (15,000–17,000 million dollars) with a disproportionately high level of M&A activity, driven by the adoption of NDC, the migration to the cloud and the use of AI for dynamic pricing. For founders and investors, understanding which technology segment each asset competes in and at what multiple that segment is trading is the starting point before considering a sale, a growth round or a ‘buy-and-build’ strategy in Spain.
If you are considering a purchase, sale or search for investors in the Travel Tech sector, our technology M&A team can help you position your company within this market context.
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Frequently Asked Questions about the Travel Technology Sector in Spain
Travel Tech is the B2B infrastructure layer (APIs, distribution, PMS, RMS, payments and data) that enables users to search for, book and manage travel products. Consumer OTAs, high-street travel agencies and airlines are customers or users of this infrastructure; they are not part of the technology market itself and are treated as distinct adjacent segments.
NDC (New Distribution Capability) is the standard that is gradually replacing the traditional GDS model in air travel distribution. IATA forecasts that by 2026 it will account for around 65 per cent of indirect bookings. Its adoption accounts for a significant proportion of the technology acquisitions made by players such as Amadeus and Sabre.
Growth-stage SaaS platforms have been recapitalised at multiples of 10 to 14 times revenue or ARR, whilst legacy technology assets are trading at multiples of 8 to 10 times. This difference reflects a seller’s market in SaaS at scale and a buyer’s market in legacy infrastructure.
Spain combines a large base of independent hotels, low penetration of cloud-based PMS systems and the absence of a dominant regional consolidator. These conditions, together with the presence of players such as HBX Group, Amadeus, TravelPerk and Mabrian, facilitate buy & build strategies backed by private equity capital.
The gross travel bookings ecosystem is projected to grow from 1.6 to 1.8 trillion dollars between 2024 and 2027 (CAGR of 5.2 per cent). If, in addition, the rate of technology adoption expands to 3–5 per cent of software standards, the market could generate an additional 6,000 million dollars in technology revenue.
