Grab launches new travel features for SEA visitors

Photo credit: Lens Hitam / Shutterstock

Southeast Asian super app Grab has announced new features and partnerships focused on improving the travel experience on its platform as the region rebounds from the pandemic.

The new features will help travelers plan and experience their destination like a local. It includes Traveler Homepage – available in 33 cities – which allows overseas travelers to explore a location within the Grab app. Additionally, the app is now available in Chinese, Korean, and Japanese, catering to key markets for international tourists visiting Southeast Asia.

Grab is also working on translating merchant menus in cities across Indonesia, Vietnam, and Thailand into English. To serve the wave of returning Chinese travelers, the company will also provide Chinese menu transitions for establishments in certain Indonesian cities.

“We’re optimistic that the continued tourism recovery and reopening of China will be positive on the Southeast Asia economy overall, and we believe we have a strong value proposition to benefit from these trends as the regional super app in Southeast Asia,” said Russell Cohen, group managing director of operations at Grab.

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The company has also teamed up with other apps that lets travelers access its services through platforms they are more familiar with such as WeChat, Alipay, Ctrip, Kakao T, and Booking.com.

In addition, Grab is offering discounted rates for rides to and from airports. These rates apply to 89 airports across Southeast Asia.

The firm has seen a steady rebound in traveler numbers, with rides to and from airports growing 3x between January 2022 and December 2022.