Welcome to the June edition of our monthly product update for WP Travel Engine!
As always, we are happy to bring you the latest news and developments regarding our plugin.
In this edition, we will highlight the significant changes, updates, and improvements that have occurred over the past month. From new versions and exciting new features to stunning themes and useful addons, we have worked hard to enhance your travel website experience.
Let’s dive right in!
WP Travel Engine v5.7.1
In the WP Travel Engine version 5.7.1, we have introduced several important updates:
- Enhanced Trip Fixed Starting Dates add-on with improved conditional trip visibility.
- Compatibility with popular third-party form plugins like WPForms, Gravity Forms, and Ninja Forms.
- Added the ability to have multiple admin email recipients for enquiry notifications.
- Introduced WebP format image support for improved website performance.
- And more
To look at these features closely and see how they can improve your travel business, learn about them here.
WP Travel Engine v5.7.2
Soon after, we released version 5.7.2. Let’s learn more about this version:
1. Full payment support in Partial Payment add-on
The Partial Payment addon now supports a full payment feature.
With this update, you can let your customers pay for their whole trip at once. This makes booking easier, especially for people who like to pay all at once.
To enable or disable the Full Payment option, follow these steps:
- Go to WP Travel Engine > Settings > Extensions > Partial payment.
- Enable the Full Payment option from Settings.
- Once enabled, the Full Payment option will appear on the Individual trip.
- You can enable or disable the Full Payment option to show on the Individual Trip Checkout page.
2. Create and update customer data manually
You can now manually create and update customers’ information directly from the admin dashboard.
This means you have more control over managing customer data, such as their details, preferences, and booking history.
3. Resolved Currency Converter issue in the Trip Search widget
Previously, there was an issue with the Currency Converter in the Trip Search widget, where it failed to convert the displayed prices.
We’re happy to announce that this issue has now been fixed.
4. Resolved Custom Enquiry Form issues
We have made two improvements to the Custom Enquiry Form functionality.
Firstly, there was an issue where email entries from third-party forms weren’t being recorded. WP Travel Engine now ensures the correct collection of data submitted through the form.
Secondly, we have addressed the user experience issue where clicking on the “Send Us a Message” button now smoothly scrolls down to the form section.
5. Fixed Enquiry Form shortcode placement issue
We have addressed a bug where placing the Enquiry Form shortcode in the sidebar caused the form to move down.
With the fix implemented in WP Travel Engine version 5.7.2, the Enquiry Form shortcode now retains its proper placement within the sidebar.
WP Travel Engine v5.7.4
This is the latest version, 5.7.4, packed with various enhancements and bug fixes.
1. Mandatory Extra Services
This feature lets travel businesses make extra services a must-have. Travelers will need to choose them when they book during checkout. If the user doesn’t select the required service, they can only move forward once they do.
In the past, adding an extra service would create a new page, creating too many pages with little information. We’ve fixed this now. So, when you add new extra services, it won’t make a new page anymore.
2. Customer Labels
This feature allows you to personalize static strings on your website easily. For example, if the plugin says “Travellers” by default, you can change it to “Travelers.”
This feature is also helpful for translations. Please note that it works best for simple words and static strings, while it might not support longer or more complex texts. If you need more advanced changes or extended texts, consider exploring other options or seek professional assistance.
3. Export booking data in CSV format
With our new feature, you can easily download all your trip booking details into a CSV format.
This lets you keep all your booking information together, even when you’re not using WP Travel Engine.
Analytics Dashboard
Analytics Dashboard has received a significant update, introducing four new categories that will provide you with valuable insights and enhance your travel booking experience.
1. Destinations
With the addition of the Destinations section, you can now access comprehensive information about your popular travel destinations, including:
- Their names, how many sales they have, the payments received, and the booking value.
- An intuitive graph to visually represent the data, making it easier for you to analyze trends and patterns over time.
2. Activities
In the Activities section, you’ll find detailed analytics related to the activities offered by your travel business.
Similar to the Destinations category, this section provides crucial data like:
- Top ten best-selling activities, including their names, how many sales they have, the payments received, and the booking value.
- And a visually appealing graph to assist you in understanding the performance of various activities over time.
3. Trip Types
In the Trip Types section, you will find detailed insights into the most popular trip types among your customers. This section showcases:
- Top ten best-selling trip types, displaying their names, the number of sales they have generated, the total payments received, and the corresponding booking value.
- And a visually appealing graph to assist you in understanding the popularity of different trip types over time.
4. Feature Request
Introducing the new Feature Request section!
Now you can easily track the progress of requested features, from in progress to under review or completed. Our transparent approach ensures you know your suggestions are actively being implemented.
Plus, submitting feature requests is now streamlined directly from the admin dashboard.
Addition of new design: Travel Explorer
We have added a new design in Travel Monster, Travel Explorer. It is designed precisely for travel agencies where customers can book their travel and tours.
Introducing new add-on: Per Trip Emails add-on
Per Trip Emails add-on lets travel business owners create personalized and custom booking emails according to trips.
You can now record all your email templates from one place, allowing you to have more time to concentrate on other tasks while you can also create multiple booking emails according to the trip and customize them.
Recap and reflections: Last month’s product updates
As mentioned in our last product update post, we aimed to enhance eight features. We completed seven of them. However, we couldn’t get started on one feature, which is Single Trip Edit by Elementor, as we were working on other bug fixes. Rest assured, it’s on our priority list for July, along with other improvements.
What are we building in July?
We are building these two highly requested features.
- Customizable Single Trip Page with Elementor: This feature will allow you to edit the single trip page using the Elementor plugin. Once we have built it for Elementor, we will then develop the feature for Gutenberg blocks.
- Customizable email templates: This feature will enable you to customize the look and feel of your email templates.
Conclusion
We always aim to make the WP Travel Engine better and more user-friendly. Your feedback is essential in guiding our improvements.
If there’s a feature or add-on you’d like to see in future updates, we want to hear about it. Please share your thoughts and suggestions with us.
We’re committed to making our plugin work best for you!
