Travel agencies handle multiple bookings, itinerary customization, campaign deployment, and client management. For this reason, having customer relationship management (CRM) software becomes imperative for travel agents, as it cuts the work in half while boosting productivity and efficiency. The best CRM for a travel agency has tools for online booking, schedule planning, quote generation, marketing, and data management.
We tested and reviewed a dozen solutions and came up with the six best travel CRMs:
- Best CRM for travel agencies overall: EngageBay CRM
- Solid travel agency CRM with robust marketing tools: HubSpot CRM
- Best option for contact management: Freshsales
- Top choice for building custom itineraries: Pipedrive
- Excellent customizable CRM for travel agencies: Salesforce Essentials
- Best travel agent CRM for workflow automation: Zoho CRM
- Best CRM for Travel Agency Compared
- EngageBay CRM: All-in-one Travel CRM Software
- HubSpot CRM: Best for Expanded Marketing
- Freshsales: Best Contact Management CRM
- Pipedrive: Best for Creating Custom Itineraries
- Salesforce Essentials: Best Customizable CRM for Travel Agents
- Zoho CRM: Best for Workflow Automation
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
- Bottom Line
Best CRM for Travel Agency Compared
| Provider | Starting Monthly PriceBased on annual billing. Monthly billing is also available for slightly higher rates. | Free Plan? | Our CRM Rating Out of 5 |
|---|---|---|---|
 | $11.95 | ✓15 users | 4.66 |
| Visit EngageBay | |||
 | $15 per user, monthly | ✓Five users | 4.44 |
| Visit HubSpot CRM | |||
 | $15 per user | ✓3 users | 4.38 |
| Visit Freshsales | |||
 | $14 per user | ✕ | 4.38 |
| Visit Pipedrive | |||
 | $25 | ✕ | 4.34 |
| Visit Salesforce Essentials | |||
 | $14 per user | ✓3 users | 4.33 |
| Visit Zoho CRM | |||
EngageBay CRM: All-in-one Travel CRM Software
EngageBay Pricing Plan & Overview*
Cost:
- $0 for 15 users
Key Features:
- Up to 250 contacts and company records with a 360-degree view
- Email management with 1,000 branded emails monthly, tracking, and email templates
- Appointment scheduling and up to five embed forms
- Tags, deals, and tasks management
- One landing page and social media suite that includes Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram
- Reports dashboard
- Live chat integration
- Email and chat support
- Predictive lead scoring
- Integration with Gmail, Outlook, and Office 365
*Pricing is based on annual billing on a monthly breakdown. Monthly billing is also available for a higher cost, and two-year billing for a lower cost. We update pricing information regularly but encourage readers to check current pricing here.
EngageBay’s 360-view of the contact list (Source: EngageBay)
Our Expert Opinion
EngageBay is a one-stop shop CRM for travel agencies in that its complete set of features, with scalable plans to match, allow travel agents and touring businesses to operate their sales processes without breaking the bank. The multichannel engagement tools and the drag-and-drop landing page caught our attention as travel agents can leverage these features for lead generation and marketing efforts.
HubSpot CRM: Best for Expanded Marketing
HubSpot CRM Pricing Plan & Overview*
Cost:
- $0 for 5 users
Key Features:
- Email integrations for direct and mass email marketing, email templates, and automated message deployment
- 1 million contact and company records with activity tracking
- Appointment scheduling page
- Custom quote generation
- Third-party integrations via app marketplace
- Mobile CRM app
- Deal tracking and service ticketing on one sales pipeline
- Documents storage and sharing
- Dashboard and reporting tools
- Live chat and custom web forms
- Website and landing page design tools
- Prospecting tools
- One blog with access to search engine optimization (SEO) and artificial intelligence (AI) tools for blog post structuring
*Pricing is based on annual billing on a per-month breakdown of the plans for individuals and small teams. Monthly billing is available for a higher cost. While we update pricing information regularly, we encourage our readers to check current pricing here.
Free email marketing tools on HubSpot CRM (Source: HubSpot)
Our Expert Opinion
HubSpot CRM’s native marketing tools make lead generation and client nurturing easier for travel agencies. Even in the Free plan, you can access features commonly found under its competitors’ pricing plans, like automated email deployment, appointment management, and website design tools. In addition, HubSpot is an ideal gateway for CRM novices since its user interface provides smooth and straightforward navigation.
Freshsales: Best Contact Management CRM
Freshsales Pricing Plan & Overview*
Cost:
- $0 per user
Key Features:
- Contact and account management with activity timelines and lifecycle tracking
- Appointment scheduling
- Built-in telephone system
- Custom data fields
- Email template storage
- Google Maps and Uber integration for direct booking
- Mobile app available with voice notes
- Artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots with canned responses
- Live chat embedded on the website for customer engagement
*Pricing is based on annual billing on a per-user monthly breakdown. Monthly billing is available for a higher cost. Freshsales offers a 21-day free trial and optional paid add-ons for additional workflow automations and phone credits starting at $5. Pricing reflects pricing info available at the time of publishing. While we update pricing information regularly, we encourage our readers to check current pricing here.
Freshsales’ contact management with a 360-degree view (Source: Freshsales)
Our Expert Opinion
Freshsales is the best CRM for travel agency when managing contact and company records from clients and partner companies. The multichannel communication tools help maximize marketing efforts and keep track of conversations and other engagement activities. We also like that its mobile CRM has direct access to Uber booking and Google Maps, plus the additional app integrations in the paid plans.
Pipedrive: Best for Creating Custom Itineraries
Pipedrive Pricing Plan & Overview*
Cost:
- $14 per user
Key Features:
- Custom data fields and sales pipeline stages
- Lead and contact management with document storage, proposal generation, and activity reporting
- Deal management with rotting indicator and progress reporting
- Service and product catalog
- Third-party integrations through the app marketplace
- Sales goals tracking
- AI sales assistant for sales forecast, performance-enhancement tips, and automated task updates
*Pricing is based on annual billing on a per user monthly breakdown. Monthly billing is available for a higher cost. Paid plans include a 14-day free trial. Pricing reflects pricing info available at the time of publishing. While we update pricing information regularly, we encourage our readers to check current pricing here.
Pipedrive’s data fields that you can customize for specific templates (Source: Pipedrive Developers)
Our Expert Opinion
Pipedrive is undoubtedly at the forefront when it comes to CRMs with an excellent lead management system. While this feat applies to multiple industries, the adaptable features Pipedrive offers make it a solid industry-specific CRM for travel agencies. For example, the custom itinerary templates, in particular, stand out as a great approach to personalizing customer experience.
Salesforce Essentials: Best Customizable CRM for Travel Agents
Salesforce Essentials Pricing Plan & Overview*
Only a single plan for up to 10 users is available under Salesforce Essentials. You can sign up for its 14-day free trial to test the CRM features and decide if you wish to subscribe completely.
Salesforce Essentials Feature Inclusions
Cost:
- $25 per user
Key Features:
- Lightning App Builder
- Account, contact, lead, and opportunity management
- Mobile app with full offline functionality
- Lead assignment and sales agent routing
- Task management and activity tracking
- Mass email, campaign management, and email template storage
- Customizable sales process
- Web-to-lead capture
- Gmail and Outlook integrations
- Google apps integration
- Customizable reports and dashboards
- Case management
- Read-only knowledge base
- Third-party integration through AppExchange
- Automatic touchpoint logging using Premium Activity Capture
*Pricing is based on annual billing on a per-user, monthly breakdown. Monthly billing is also available at a higher cost. We update pricing information regularly but encourage readers to check current pricing here.
Salesforce’s service console for case management (Source: Salesforce)
Our Expert Opinion
Salesforce Essentials provides another layer of customization through its Lightning App Builder that allows you to tailor tools and pages to your sales and marketing activities. On top of that, you have access to its pool of helpful guides and tutorials regarding how to leverage its features. Plus, there are also third-party integrations that enhance your sales process and productivity.
Zoho CRM: Best for Workflow Automation
Zoho CRM Pricing Plan & Overview*
Cost:
- $0 for three users
Key Features:
- Automated workflow with basic rule setting plus tasks and email notifications
- 10 custom email templates
- Three organization emails with attachments of 3MB max
- 10MB data storage for 5,000 records
- 1GB total file storage per organization with document library
- Lead, account, contact, deal, and activity management with web forms
- Marketing campaign automation
- Standard CRM reporting
*Pricing is based on annual billing on a per-month breakdown of the plans for individuals and small teams. Monthly billing is available for a higher cost. While we update pricing information regularly, we encourage our readers to check current pricing here.
An example of an automated workflow in Zoho (Source: Zoho)
Our Expert Opinion
Workflow automation is Zoho CRM’s turf due to its free yet robust task, contact, and deal management features that reduce manual input. These can help travel agencies establish a smooth CRM process, which in turn drives more revenue. We also can’t miss its free marketing campaign automation and highly scalable plans, making it a great CRM for work and sales activity tracking.
How We Evaluated the Best CRM for Travel Agency
When identifying the best CRM software for the travel industry, we assessed the general and specific features that are most valuable for travel agencies and tour operators. For example, we evaluated capabilities, including social media integration, booking system, and client management, based on type, accessibility, and comprehensiveness. We also looked closely at the pricing plans, ease of use, customer support, and our overall experience when using the software. The tabs below offer insight into our screening process for the best CRM for travel agencies:
We compared the features expected from a robust CRM, such as contact data storage and management, sales pipeline, reporting and analytics, mobile app, and integrations with native and/or third-party tools. We also checked for marketing capabilities, like email scheduling, landing page building, and SMS notifications, which are useful for confirming travel bookings.
Each provider in our list has undergone screening in terms of whether it offers affordable plans within the typical budget range of a small travel and tour business. We evaluated the overall value of the paid plans and their flexibility in terms of payment options, considering greatly the presence of monthly and annual billing. We also checked for freemium plans and free trial periods.
We considered features specific to travel agencies and how the providers have considered them. For example, we looked for tools essential to itinerary and booking customization, workflow automation, and client management with targeting features.
As travel agents stay closely connected with their customers throughout the sales process, reliable support from the CRM solution provided is non-negotiable. In this criterion, we evaluated the type and number of support channels available, such as email, live chat, phone, and knowledge base resources. We also checked the customer service hours and availability for cases and inquiries.
We tested each platform firsthand to evaluate the strengths of the features. Aside from that, we also checked what other users think of each product, particularly those working in travel agencies and the hospitality industry in general. We looked closely at what they say about the platforms’ value, ease of use, and interface navigability.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
CRM software for travel agents helps manage customer relations by streamlining sales and marketing activities, such as email campaigns, lead generation, client nurturing, and travel customization. This tool also gathers, organizes, and stores business data in one system, automating analytics and sales reports.
Travel agencies and businesses in the hospitality industry benefit from customer relationship management (CRM) in that it simplifies data management and helps in providing tailored customer experience. For example, travel agents can form personalized itineraries, arrange destination bookings based on preferences, and review travel histories from a single database.
EngageBay is our top-ranking CRM for travel agencies for its comprehensive CRM features and multichannel marketing tools. However, other options may be best suited for your business needs. HubSpot, for example, offers free marketing capabilities and an intuitive interface. On the other hand, Pipedrive is a solid choice if you want to impress your clients with automated, customizable itineraries.
Bottom Line
The best travel CRM software provides features to centralize contact data, create prospecting and marketing strategies, add online booking, and facilitate workflow automation. While EngageBay snatched the top rank in our list for its all-in-one CRM design, other options stand tall in specific use cases. That said, assess your needs, budget, and priorities when choosing a travel agency CRM.
