Computer reservation system
computer system used for the storage and retrieval of accommodation and travel reservations
Computer reservation systems, or central reservation systems (CRS), are computerized systems used to store and retrieve information and conduct transactions related to air travel, hotels, car rental, or other activities. Originally designed and operated by airlines, CRSs were later extended for use by travel agencies, and global distribution systems (GDSs) to book and sell tickets for multiple airlines. Most airlines have outsourced their CRSs to GDS companies, which also enable consumer access through Internet gateways.
Modern GDSs typically also allow users to book hotel rooms, rental cars, airline tickets as well as other activities and tours. They also provide access to railway reservations and bus reservations in some markets, although these are not always integrated with the main system. These are also used to relay computerized information for users in the hotel industry, making reservation and ensuring that the hotel is not overbooked.
Airline reservations systems may be integrated into a larger passenger service system, which also includes an airline inventory system and a departure control system. The current centralised reservation systems are vulnerable to network-wide system disruptions.
History
MARS-1
The MARS-1 train ticket reservation system was designed and planned in the 1950s by the Japanese National Railways' R&D Institute, now the Railway Technical Research Institute, with the system eventually being produced by Hitachi in 1958. It was the world's first seat reservation system for trains.
The public source identifies “Computer reservation system” as computer system used for the storage and retrieval of accommodation and travel reservations. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Computer, reservation and system.
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Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 6, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1122556. The Library of Congress control number is sh85113063. None of the 1 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1958.
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This entry incorporates text from “Computer reservation system” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.