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Travel · head to head

Travelport Smartpoint vs TripAdvisor

Travelport Smartpoint logo

Travelport Smartpoint

Travel

Travelport GDS booking desktop for travel agents, now on version 12

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
TripAdvisor logo

TripAdvisor

Travel

Travel reviews and booking app whose revenue comes from advertising and referral commissions to hotels and OTAs

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only TripAdvisor has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Travelport Smartpoint travelport retires older Smartpoint versions on its own schedule, and agencies that do not track release notes can lose sign-on access to Travelport+ or Apollo with little warning.; TripAdvisor review authenticity is an ongoing, not fully solved, problem; both businesses soliciting or buying positive reviews and competitors planting negative ones have been documented issues on the platform.
  • They diverge on capability: Travelport Smartpoint covers Graphical and cryptic modes, TripAdvisor covers Reviews and ratings.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Travelport Smartpoint and TripAdvisor actually diverge.

Attributes where Travelport Smartpoint and TripAdvisor differ
AttributeTravelport SmartpointTripAdvisor
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelquoteFree to browse, revenue from advertising and referral commissions
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWindows, WebiOS, Android, Web

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Travel).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Travelport Smartpoint

  • Graphical and cryptic modes
  • Multi-GDS content
  • Smartpoint Cloud
  • Automation scripting
  • Marketplace distribution
  • Queue and PNR management

Only in TripAdvisor

  • Reviews and ratings
  • Price comparison
  • Viator tours and activities
  • Traveller forums
  • Travellers' Choice awards
  • Trip planning

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Travelport Smartpoint

  • A retail agency already on a Travelport segment agreement needing the current supported desktop versionnot TripAdvisor
  • A TMC running mixed cryptic and graphical booking teams on one workspacenot TripAdvisor
  • An agency migrating from an older Smartpoint build after Travelport retired 8.1 to 9.1not TripAdvisor
  • A consolidator wanting Apollo, Galileo or Worldspan content behind a single agent interfacenot TripAdvisor

TripAdvisor

  • Researching hotel or restaurant reviews before booking a tripnot Travelport Smartpoint
  • Comparing aggregated hotel prices across multiple booking sites in one placenot Travelport Smartpoint
  • Booking a tour or activity ticket directly through Viator while researching a destinationnot Travelport Smartpoint
  • Reading traveller forum advice for a specific destination before travellingnot Travelport Smartpoint

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Travelport Smartpoint

  • Travelport retires older Smartpoint versions on its own schedule, and agencies that do not track release notes can lose sign-on access to Travelport+ or Apollo with little warning.
  • Pricing is never published and is folded into a segment incentive agreement, so two agencies of similar size can be paying materially different effective rates with no way to compare.
  • Cryptic command knowledge is still needed for a meaningful share of servicing tasks, so a newly hired agent takes months to reach full productivity.
  • It is a Windows-weighted desktop product, and agencies wanting fully remote or Mac-based teams need Smartpoint Cloud or virtual desktop infrastructure to compensate.
  • Switching to Sabre or Amadeus means retraining staff on a different command language and renegotiating a separate incentive deal, which locks agencies into their existing GDS relationship longer than pure product quality would justify.

TripAdvisor

  • Review authenticity is an ongoing, not fully solved, problem; both businesses soliciting or buying positive reviews and competitors planting negative ones have been documented issues on the platform.
  • Listing prominence and hotel ranking can be influenced by paid advertising and sponsored placement, so a top result is not necessarily the best-reviewed or cheapest option.
  • The actual hotel booking usually completes on a third party OTA or hotel site, so cancellation, refund and customer service issues are handled by that separate company, not TripAdvisor.
  • Restaurant and attraction data can be outdated in smaller or less-visited destinations, with permanently closed businesses sometimes still listed.
  • As a review aggregator whose revenue depends partly on the businesses being reviewed, the same structural tension applies here as with other review-and-advertising platforms.

Pricing, plan by plan

Travelport Smartpoint

On request
  • Travelport Smartpoint$undefined/year
    • Usually bundled into a GDS segment agreement
    • Distribution and version entitlement managed per country via the Marketplace
    • Segment incentive payments to the agency

TripAdvisor

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Unlimited browsing, reviews and price comparison

Which should you pick?

Choose Travelport Smartpoint if

  • You need graphical and cryptic modes.
  • You work on Windows, Web.
  • You also want multi-gds content.
Travelport Smartpoint review

Choose TripAdvisor if

  • You need reviews and ratings.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on iOS, Android, Web.
  • You also want price comparison.
TripAdvisor review

Questions people ask

Is Travelport Smartpoint or TripAdvisor better?
Neither clearly leads. Travelport Smartpoint starts at On request and TripAdvisor at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Travelport Smartpoint or TripAdvisor?
TripAdvisor has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Travelport Smartpoint and Free for TripAdvisor.
Does Travelport Smartpoint or TripAdvisor run on more platforms?
Travelport Smartpoint runs on Windows, Web. TripAdvisor runs on iOS, Android, Web.
Can I use TripAdvisor for free?
Yes. TripAdvisor has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Travelport Smartpoint starts at On request.
What is Travelport Smartpoint best used for?
Travelport Smartpoint is most often used for a retail agency already on a travelport segment agreement needing the current supported desktop version, a tmc running mixed cryptic and graphical booking teams on one workspace, an agency migrating from an older smartpoint build after travelport retired 8.1 to 9.1, a consolidator wanting apollo, galileo or worldspan content behind a single agent interface. Of those, a retail agency already on a travelport segment agreement needing the current supported desktop version and a tmc running mixed cryptic and graphical booking teams on one workspace are not what TripAdvisor is typically brought in for.
What can Travelport Smartpoint do that TripAdvisor cannot?
Travelport Smartpoint covers Graphical and cryptic modes, Multi-GDS content, Smartpoint Cloud, Automation scripting. TripAdvisor covers Reviews and ratings, Price comparison, Viator tours and activities, Traveller forums.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Travelport Smartpoint: Do we pay a separate licence fee for Smartpoint?

Usually not directly. It is typically bundled into a GDS segment agreement in which Travelport pays incentives per booked segment.

TripAdvisor: Are TripAdvisor reviews verified?

No, they are user-submitted and not independently verified, though TripAdvisor runs fraud detection systems to catch some fake or paid reviews.

Travelport Smartpoint: What happened to older Smartpoint versions?

Travelport retired versions 8.1 through 9.1 as of 30 April 2026; agencies must be on Smartpoint 12.0 to keep signing on to Travelport+ or Apollo.

TripAdvisor: Does TripAdvisor charge for bookings?

Browsing and reviews are free; TripAdvisor earns money through advertising and referral commissions when users book through linked OTA or hotel sites, or directly through its own Viator tours.

Travelport Smartpoint: Is there a browser version?

Yes, Smartpoint Cloud runs in a browser for agents without a managed Windows desktop.

TripAdvisor: Is ranking purely based on review quality?

No, sponsored placement and paid advertising can affect prominence in results alongside review-based ranking.

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