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Flight content strategy

Amadeus API integration: pick the right access, then sell

An Amadeus API integration starts with a business choice, not code: which Amadeus access you hold, who issues your tickets and how you handle changes. This page maps both routes and shows what PHPTRAVELS does at every step of a flight booking.

  • Self-Service or Enterprise
  • Ticketing explained
  • Changes and refunds
  • Your portal, your source code

Amadeus access map

Two ways into Amadeus, side by side

Amadeus offers two kinds of API access. They differ in who they suit, how you sign up, what content you get and how tickets are issued. Every line below is taken from the official Amadeus for Developers guides.

Who it is forSelf-Service APIsIndependent developers and start-ups that want a quick, simple connection, as Amadeus states.Enterprise accessCompanies with scaling needs and leading travel brands, as Amadeus states.
How you startSelf-Service APIsRegister at Amadeus for Developers and get test keys in minutes, with a free monthly request quota.Enterprise accessContact the Amadeus Enterprise team through its contact form and choose your business area.
ContractSelf-Service APIsTo go live you sign a contract and add billing details, then receive production keys.Enterprise accessRequirements depend on your market and the functions you need. Pricing is shared after you sign an NDA.
ContentSelf-Service APIsA set of REST/JSON APIs. Amadeus says Flight Offers Search covers over 500 airlines, but not low-cost carriers, American Airlines, Delta or British Airways.Enterprise accessAccess to the full Amadeus API catalogue, as Amadeus states.
TicketingSelf-Service APIsNo IATA or ARC licence is needed, because an airline consolidator issues tickets for you. You need that contract, or your own accreditation, to book in production.Enterprise accessSet out in your Enterprise agreement. Amadeus does not publish one standard ticketing route on its developer site.
Changes and refundsSelf-Service APIsCancel through Flight Order Management before the ticket is issued. After issue, changes go through the consolidator and refunds are handled offline with them.Enterprise accessDepends on the functions included in your agreement with Amadeus.
PricingSelf-Service APIsThe free monthly quota stays in production, then extra calls are billed pay-as-you-go.Enterprise accessA customised pricing scheme, with support from a dedicated account manager.
Test environmentSelf-Service APIsLimited data collections in test. Published rate limits: 10 transactions per second in test, 40 in production.Enterprise accessTest access and limits are agreed with Amadeus and are not published on the developer site.
In PHPTRAVELSSelf-Service APIsUse test keys to see Amadeus offers in your PHPTRAVELS flight search while you plan your launch.Enterprise accessThe ready-made Amadeus module is built for Enterprise access and comes with the Enterprise plan.

Source: Amadeus for Developers guides (FAQ, flight booking guide and rate limits), checked October 2026. Terms can change, so confirm your own access with Amadeus.

Setting up keys, Dev mode and endpoints is covered step by step in Amadeus connector setup.

Booking lifecycle

One Amadeus flight booking, step by step

Amadeus describes the flight flow as search, confirm the price, create the order and then manage it. Ticketing sits in the middle and decides who you work with. Here is who does what.

  1. 01

    Search

    Amadeus side

    Flight Offers Search

    Amadeus returns flight offers for the route, dates and passengers.

    PHPTRAVELS role

    Runs the search form on your site, agent portal and apps, applies your markup, and lists Amadeus offers next to fares from your other flight suppliers.

  2. 02

    Price

    Amadeus side

    Flight Offers Price

    Amadeus says the selected fare must be confirmed for availability and price before booking.

    PHPTRAVELS role

    Shows the chosen fare, baggage and conditions at checkout, collects traveller details and takes payment through your gateways or the agent wallet.

  3. 03

    Book and create the PNR

    Amadeus side

    Flight Create Orders

    The confirmed offer becomes a flight order with its booking reference.

    PHPTRAVELS role

    Creates the order with the traveller data, stores the booking and reference in your admin and emails the confirmation and invoice.

  4. 04

    Ticket

    Amadeus side

    Consolidator or your accreditation

    Amadeus states you must be able to issue tickets to book in production: through a consolidator or your own accreditation.

    PHPTRAVELS role

    Keeps the booking, payment and ticket status in one record so your team or consolidator knows what to issue. PHPTRAVELS does not replace your ticketing authority.

  5. 05

    Change, cancel or refund

    Amadeus side

    Flight Order Management

    In Self-Service you can retrieve and cancel orders before ticketing. Later changes and refunds go through your consolidator.

    PHPTRAVELS role

    Lets staff cancel or update bookings with a log of every action, record refunds against the booking and keep agents and travellers informed.

Route finder

Which Amadeus route fits your business?

Answer two questions to see a sensible starting point. It is a guide to plan your talks with Amadeus, not a decision Amadeus has made for you.

Route finder

Where are you today?

Who will issue tickets?

Start with Self-Service test keys

Register at Amadeus for Developers, try the flight APIs in test and run a PHPTRAVELS demo to plan markups, payments and agent roles. Test data is limited, so judge content once you are live.

Self-Service in production with a consolidator

Sign the Self-Service contract, add billing details and agree ticketing with a consolidator. Check that the airlines you need are covered, because some carriers are excluded.

Talk to Amadeus Enterprise

If you ticket yourself or need the wider catalogue, contact the Enterprise team. The PHPTRAVELS Amadeus module is built for this access.

Sample guide. Your final access is agreed with Amadeus.

Costs and contracts

What an Amadeus portal costs, and who you pay

There is no single price for an Amadeus API integration. You pay several parties, each for a different thing. This ledger shows where each cost comes from, without guessing their figures.

Cost lineWho you payHow it is priced
Booking platformPHPTRAVELSOne-time licence: Startup $2,499, Agency $4,999, Enterprise $9,999. The Amadeus module comes with the Enterprise plan.
Amadeus API accessAmadeusSelf-Service: free monthly quota, then pay-as-you-go. Enterprise: custom pricing shared after an NDA.
Ticket issuingConsolidator or your own set-upThe consolidator's own terms, or the cost of your accreditation.
HostingYour hosting providerYour own server, because PHPTRAVELS is self-hosted.
Card paymentsYour payment gatewayThe gateway's transaction fees under your merchant account.
Extra workPHPTRAVELS or your developersQuoted per scope, for example a regional endpoint or an Amadeus API the module does not use yet.

Prices for the platform are listed on Pricing and a full budget walk-through is on Software cost guide.

Beyond the API

What a sellable Amadeus portal needs around the API

Amadeus gives you flight content and booking calls. Customers and agents need far more than that before they will book. Building each line yourself is a project of its own. In PHPTRAVELS each one is already part of the product.

  • A public flight search, results and checkout in your own brand
  • A B2B agent portal with logins, roles, credit and agent wallets
  • Markups by fixed amount or percentage before any price is shown
  • Payment gateways linked to each booking before it is confirmed
  • Amadeus fares mixed with other flight suppliers in one result list
  • A bookings list with traveller details, status and references
  • 24 languages and many currencies, including right-to-left scripts
  • Full source code on your own server, so developers can extend it

See how the pieces fit:FlightsB2B travel portalB2B agent walletAmadeus travel agent software

Multi-supplier

Amadeus is one source, not the whole portal

Most agencies do not stay with one flight source. Some routes price better on another GDS, and some airlines sell their best fares through NDC. In PHPTRAVELS each supplier runs on its own credentials, and their results appear in the same search with the same markup and payment rules.

That keeps your Amadeus API integration flexible. Start with Amadeus, then add Sabre, Travelport or NDC content when the business needs it, without rebuilding checkout or the admin.

Try the flights demoSee pricing

FAQ

Amadeus API integration questions

What agencies and OTAs ask before they choose their Amadeus access.

Talk to sales

It connects your travel website or agent portal to Amadeus so flights can be searched, priced, booked and managed inside your own platform. PHPTRAVELS adds the portal, checkout, markups, payments and admin around those calls.

Amadeus aims Self-Service at independent developers and start-ups, and Enterprise at companies with scaling needs and leading brands. If you need the full catalogue or ticket under your own agreement, talk to the Enterprise team. The PHPTRAVELS Amadeus module is built for Enterprise access.

Not for Self-Service, according to Amadeus. You work with an airline consolidator that issues tickets for you. To book in production you need either that consolidator contract or your own accreditation to issue tickets.

No. Amadeus states that low-cost carriers, American Airlines, Delta and British Airways are not available in its Self-Service flight APIs. If those carriers matter, ask Amadeus about Enterprise access or add another flight supplier.

In Self-Service, Amadeus lets you cancel an order before the ticket is issued. After issue, changes go through your consolidator and refunds are handled offline with them. PHPTRAVELS logs each step and records the outcome on the booking.

You pay PHPTRAVELS a one-time licence, Amadeus for API access, your consolidator or accreditation for ticketing, plus hosting and payment fees. Amadeus sets its own prices: pay-as-you-go for Self-Service and custom pricing for Enterprise.

The PHPTRAVELS side is a configuration job: install, add your keys, set markups and test. Most of the time goes on Amadeus approval and your ticketing agreement, so start those talks early.

The Amadeus connector setup page walks through creating keys, entering them in the admin, Dev mode and switching to production. This page covers the business choices that come first.

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