online travel booking definition

The Complete Guide to Booking Travel Online

What is an online travel agency, and what are the best sites and apps to use to search for hotels and flights we break it all down for you..

• Copy Link copied

There’s a lot to navigate when researching and booking travel online.

Photo by Rawpixel.com/Shutterstock

My first travel adventure was to Venezuela. I booked the ticket with a travel agent over a pay phone. The agent searched a dozen flight itineraries over a few days, all so I could save $15.

Times have changed. Today, flight searches start online , often on your mobile device. Passengers book either directly with the airline or hotel or with online travel agencies. Rarely do we get on the phone. In fact, American Airlines and United Airlines charge $25 to make a domestic flight booking by phone. And pay phones hardly exist anymore.

So, what is the best way to book online? Here is our complete guide to online travel agencies, search tools, and the variety of booking options available on both mobile devices and desktops.

What is an OTA?

An online travel agency, or OTA, is a website or mobile app that allows users to search for and book travel services such as flights, hotels, car rentals, cruises, and activities. The booking is made directly with the online travel agency but confirmed by the service provider, such as an airline or a hotel. As a customer, your relationship is with the OTA.

What are the main OTAs?

Many online travel agencies nowadays are owned by two main companies: Expedia and Priceline. The Expedia Group is the largest online travel agency in the United States with 70 percent market share, according to travel data firm Phocuswright. Expedia Group operates Expedia.com , Orbitz, Hotels.com , Trivago, CheapTickets , Hotwire , Vrbo , and Travelocity .

Priceline is a major competitor to Expedia, with global revenues larger than the Expedia Group. The company owns Priceline.com, Booking.com, Cheapflights, Momondo, and Kayak—the latter two being metasearch engines (more on that below).

There are also independent newcomers such as Hopper (a mobile-only booking tool) and Kiwi.com (which allows you to book flights on air carriers that don’t normally have a commercial relationship).

Are OTA fares lower than booking directly?

Generally, no. The fares that are displayed by an OTA will be similar if not slightly more expensive when compared to an airline’s website. They’re usually only a few dollars higher or lower. The OTAs charge a booking fee to the airlines, and often that fee is passed directly to consumers. For example, Lufthansa tacks on an additional $18 to any booking made through an OTA for Lufthansa flights. The same flights are exactly $18 cheaper on the airline’s website.

Where you can score a good travel deal through an OTA is when booking a last-minute hotel and flight package. Many OTAs have cut agreements with airlines allowing last-minute travelers to access lower rates than are typically available when passengers book a flight alone.

Are all airlines available to be booked through OTAs?

No. Many OTAs do not display flights from some of the low-fare leaders. For example, Southwest and Allegiant flights are not available through OTAs; the same goes for Ryanair in Europe. And, earlier this year United Airlines threatened to pull out of Expedia altogether, only recently signing a multi-year agreement to stay in. The airlines would rather not lose any margin to online travel agencies in an already low-margin industry and would rather maintain a direct relationship with the customer.

Are smaller OTAs safe to use?

Expedia and Priceline are the two largest players in the online booking space, but there are dozens of independent OTAs, such as CheapOAir, OneTravel, JustFly, and SmartFares. Confusingly, you might actually stumble on ads for these OTAs while using Expedia or Priceline sites. That’s because the larger OTAs earn revenue through advertising, sending passengers to smaller OTAs and charging those OTAs for the favor.

Buyer beware: some of these lesser-known OTAs are masters at hidden fees. For example, a flight search on JetBlue allows for free seat selection in many instances. If you perform the same search on FlightNetwork, an independent OTA, and select a seat, you will be charged an additional $25—despite the fact that JetBlue doesn’t charge a seat selection fee if you book directly.

What if you need to change your itinerary?

Itinerary changes are often a pain. If your plans change, it won’t matter whether you’ve booked directly with an airline or with an OTA—you’re going to pay fees for the privilege, if you can even change your ticket at all.

For example, CheapTickets.com, which is part of the Expedia Group, charges $25 to change or cancel a ticket if that change is requested after 24 hours of making the booking—it is free if you do so within 24 hours of booking. However, the fees go up from there. JustFly, an independent OTA, charges a $75 fee for changes to domestic flights in addition to airline change fees, plus the difference in fare, for tickets that can be changed. For an international trip, the fee rises to $200. That means to change an international flight with Delta (which charges a $100 change fee) booked through JustFly, you’ll be assessed $300 in fees, plus the difference in fare. At that rate, you may as well book a new flight. FlightNetwork indicates in its terms of service that changes may incur a change fee but doesn’t specify what those fees are. That hardly makes the few dollars you saved by booking with the OTA in the first place worth it.

What is an OTA price match policy?

To assure travelers that they are getting the lowest fare possible, many OTAs have a price match policy. The rules vary and so do the benefits.

For example, if you book with Orbitz and find a less expensive flight, car rental, or activity on any U.S.-based website within 24 hours of your booking, Orbitz will refund you the difference you paid. And it works: I have personally found a flight in the same class, on the same airline, for the same origin and destination cities, and requested Orbitz to refund the difference of around $35. Within a few weeks, I received a check in the mail. A similar program applies for CheapOAir, but there’s a catch—the price difference must be found on a major OTA such as Expedia or Travelocity.

Expedia has a particularly good price match policy, but you have to pay extra for it at the time of booking. Expedia offers the price match option as an add-on that costs between $5 and $30 when you book. With the price match applied, if the airfare on Expedia drops between 120 days of the flight and up to six hours before the flight, Expedia will automatically refund you the difference in fare. Unfortunately, fares generally do not drop substantially as the travel date approaches, so while this might give you peace of mind, it’s probably not worth the expense.

How do Google Flights and other travel metasearch engines work?

Frequent fliers are likely familiar with websites such as Google Flights, Kayak, Momondo, or Skyscanner. On these websites, passengers search on the site but are redirected to the service provider to complete the booking, such as an airline, rental car company, or hotel.

Metasearch started with a product called ITA Matrix, which is a tool for searching airfares online but not for actually booking online. ITA Matrix allows for multi-city searching, such as setting two different departure or arrival airports, and for offering a calendar view of fares for easier comparison. That company was acquired by Google in 2011, and savvy travelers swear by it to help find the least expensive fares online. Most consumers are more familiar with Google Flights, which has gained traction more recently not least because it has the benefit of being displayed first in search results on Google.

Metasearch engines receive distribution fees from the airlines for sending traffic to the supplier websites. There are no additional hidden fees for using a metasearch engine because you’re booking directly with the airline or hotel.

A major benefit of the metasearch engines is their price tracking tool, which lets users know whether the displayed fares are low, average, or high for the flight, allowing travelers to make a more informed decision on whether to book a flight or not . Google Flights and Kayak, for instance, both have price tracking tools.

Why not just book directly?

The airlines would definitely much rather you book directly with them. Over the past five years, they have gotten much better at marketing and selling their product directly to consumers online and through mobile sites and apps. But in the past, they weren’t so good at it. In fact, Delta, Northwest, United, American, and Continental got together to invest $145 million to launch Orbitz in 1999 to counter the threat from Expedia. Now Orbitz is owned by Expedia.

The airlines also try to encourage customers to book directly so that they can maintain a closer relationship with them. It allows carriers to connect bookings with loyalty programs and create special offers and discounts catered to individual passengers.

There is another benefit to booking directly. The U.S. Department of Transportation requires carriers to hold a reservation at the quoted fare for 24 hours without payment or allow a reservation to be cancelled within 24 hours without penalty, so long as the booking is made at least seven days before travel. The law applies, however, only to U.S. and foreign air carriers that have websites marketed to U.S. consumers. This means that, in theory, an online travel agency does not have to offer such a policy, although most OTAs do.

What are the options for booking on your mobile device?

Airlines and the major OTAs all have apps to help you book and manage your trip on your mobile device, but their functionality is lacking compared to these websites’ desktop editions. For example, Expedia’s app doesn’t allow you to view flights on a month-view calendar. Kayak has an app with more bells and whistles and a better user interface, including a month-view calendar with color-coded pricing. It also has a handy “augmented reality” function to help you see if your carry-on bag will fit in the overhead bin (a feature originally developed by KLM). Point your phone’s camera at the luggage, and it’ll give you the dimensions.

While apps are improving and gaining in popularity, you still might find it easier to locate the best deals on flights and hotels by using your desktop, where you can have multiple tabs open and have all the available search tools at your disposal. Apps are fine for booking directly with an airline once you know which flights you want to book.

If you’re determined to use your mobile device, you may want to look into Hopper. Hopper is a mobile-first flight booking tool that has a solid price prediction tool. You can research travel options and book directly on the app. Another benefit of Hopper: Of its team of 300 employees, nearly half are dedicated to customer support and are based in Canada versus some OTAs and airlines that outsource much of their customer service further afield.

The bottom line?

Like many travelers, I enjoy a flight deal as much as the next person, but I also don’t like any added hassle. I typically start my travel searches using the ITA Matrix or Google Flights to get a general sense of the fares. It helps to know what is a good deal and what is expensive for a particular route. I do my research, typically on a desktop computer. When I’m ready to book, I’ll book directly with the airline. I’ve found that customer service is better when booking directly with the service provider. But I’ve also saved money by using OTAs and have booked with them, too. Whichever way you choose to book, you can be safe in the knowledge that finding and purchasing travel online is a lot easier today than searching for a deal with a travel agent on a pay phone.

>> Next: How to Get the Best Last-Minute Travel Deals

• Credit cards
• View all credit cards
• Banking guide
• Loans guide
• Insurance guide
• Personal finance
• View all personal finance
• Small business
• Small business guide
• View all taxes

You’re our first priority. Every time.

We believe everyone should be able to make financial decisions with confidence. And while our site doesn’t feature every company or financial product available on the market, we’re proud that the guidance we offer, the information we provide and the tools we create are objective, independent, straightforward — and free.

So how do we make money? Our partners compensate us. This may influence which products we review and write about (and where those products appear on the site), but it in no way affects our recommendations or advice, which are grounded in thousands of hours of research. Our partners cannot pay us to guarantee favorable reviews of their products or services. Here is a list of our partners .

The Pros and Cons of Booking Through Online Travel Agencies

Many or all of the products featured here are from our partners who compensate us. This influences which products we write about and where and how the product appears on a page. However, this does not influence our evaluations. Our opinions are our own. Here is a list of our partners and here's how we make money .

You’re likely already familiar with online travel agencies, even if you don’t travel often. These companies — such as Priceline , Expedia and Orbitz — act as intermediaries between you and a travel provider.

Booking your travel through an OTA can be a good idea in some circumstances, but you’ll want to be wary of its pitfalls. Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of online travel agencies, so you’ll know what to use to book your next vacation.

Pros of booking through online travel agencies

There are certainly advantages booking through online travel agencies, though you’ll find different experiences whether you’re using public OTAs — such as Kayak — or private ones like those offered by your card issuer, such as the Chase's travel portal .

✅ It may be cheaper

When searching for flights online, you may see different prices for the same routes that vary across websites. Although it may be a result of fare type — for example, some search results may not clarify that a fare is basic economy rather than main cabin or economy — other times, the difference comes down to competition for your business.

Online travel services will often offer slightly lower prices on flights in an effort to entice you as a customer. This is true for both hotels and airlines.

» Learn more: Best credit cards for online travel-booking websites

✅ It can earn you more rewards

Have you ever heard of shopping portals ? By logging into a shopping portal, you can earn rewards for purchases made with many online merchants. Some hotel chains, such as Hilton , Marriott and IHG , can be accessed through shopping portals while still booking directly on the hotel website. In this way, you can earn rewards with the hotel directly as well as with the shopping portal.

The same isn’t true for shopping portals and most airline sites. However, many public online travel agencies are accessible through shopping portals, which can then earn you rewards for airfare bookings. By opting to book in this way, you’ll be able to earn points or cash-back rewards through the shopping portal that you’d otherwise miss.

Some card issuers will also reward you heavily when using their online travel services. Clear examples of this can be seen with Capital One and Chase. With the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card , for example, you’ll get 10 miles per dollar spent on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel .

The Chase Sapphire Reserve® is similar. With this card, you can get 10 Ultimate Rewards® points per dollar spent on hotels and rental cars booked through Chase's portal.

While these numbers are high, it’s important to remember that there are trade-offs when booking through an OTA rather than directly with a hotel or airline. We’ll get into that a little later.

Online travel agencies offered by your card issuer may not feature the same prices as booking directly; you’ll want to compare these before committing to a purchase.

Some card issuers will go so far as to give your points more value when redeeming through their online travel agencies.

This is true with the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card . When redeeming points on Chase's travel portal, you’ll get 1.25 cents in value per point rather than 1 cent elsewhere.

» Learn more: How much are your airline miles and hotel points worth this year?

Cons of booking through online travel agencies

There are several downsides when it comes to using online travel services for booking travel. It mainly comes down to the fact that travel providers prefer that you book directly with them — and offer more perks to woo your business.

❌ It can be harder to change a booking

Ever needed to change a flight after it's booked? No matter the reason, attempting to alter or otherwise cancel a flight can be a hassle — especially if you’ve booked through a third party.

Generally speaking, rather than offering you direct assistance, both hotels and airlines will recommend you contact the online travel agency you’ve booked with in order to make any changes.

While you may be able to make changes or get refunds with the travel agency, airlines and hotels can — and will — offer much more flexibility when you’ve booked with them directly. You may also be subject to additional fees charged by the online travel agency, which can erase any savings you’ve received.

❌ You may not receive elite benefits

This is the real kicker for anyone wanting elite status. Although airlines will almost always recognize your elite status and allow you to earn miles even for bookings made through an online travel agency, hotels and rental car companies will not.

This is especially important for hotel chains. Earning elite status with hotels generally relies on elite night credits. Although these can be earned in a variety of ways — including having complimentary status by holding certain credit cards — the main method of acquiring elite night credits is by spending nights in hotels. Rooms booked through an online travel agency do not count toward elite status as elite night credits.

Additionally, you will not receive any of the benefits of your existing elite status if your booking is through a third party. This can mean the loss of perks such as room upgrades, complimentary breakfast and even free Wi-Fi.

» Learn more: The best airline and hotel rewards loyalty programs this year

❌ It may be more expensive

Did you know that many hotel chains have best price guarantees? Hyatt, Hilton, Marriott and IHG all have a guarantee that’ll give you either points or a discount if you find a better rate elsewhere.

These guarantees are generous; Hilton, for example, will match the rate and then discount it by a further 25%.

Although you’ll need to file claims for these guarantees and they face limitations — such as a 24-hour window from when you made the booking — you can save a lot of money on your stay if your request is approved.

Online travel agencies can be hit or miss

There are two sides to every coin and this is no different, as there are several benefits and limitations of online travel services. Depending on your needs and loyalty program status, you’ll want to choose whether to book directly with a travel provider or rely on OTAs to do the job for you.

Booking travel through credit card portals from issuers like Chase and Capital One can earn you big rewards. But if you anticipate altering your travel plans or aim to earn elite status instead, booking directly is the way to go.

How to maximize your rewards

You want a travel credit card that prioritizes what’s important to you. Here are our picks for the best travel credit cards of 2024 , including those best for:

Flexibility, point transfers and a large bonus: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

No annual fee: Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card

Flat-rate travel rewards: Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

Bonus travel rewards and high-end perks: Chase Sapphire Reserve®

Luxury perks: The Platinum Card® from American Express

Business travelers: Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

on Chase's website

1x-5x 5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries, 2x on all other travel purchases, 1x on all other purchases.

60,000 Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 when you redeem through Chase Travel℠.

1.5%-6.5% Enjoy 6.5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel; 4.5% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery service, and 3% on all other purchases (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year). After your first year or $20,000 spent, enjoy 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel, 3% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery service, and unlimited 1.5% cash back on all other purchases.

$300 Earn an additional 1.5% cash back on everything you buy (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year) - worth up to $300 cash back!

on Capital One's website

2x-5x Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, every day. Earn 5X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, where you'll get Capital One's best prices on thousands of trip options.

75,000 Enjoy a one-time bonus of 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel.

What Exactly Is an Online Booking System?

By Kyla Steeves

Share this article:

• Facebook icon
• LinkedIn icon
• Twitter icon

An online booking system is a software solution that allows potential guests to self-book and pay through your website, and other channels, while giving you the best tools to run and scale your operation, all in one place. 

But if your business has gotten far without an online booking system, you might think: do I even need one? What’s with all the hype anyway? You’re getting enough reservations already. Why bother taking on that extra expense?

Well, let me ask you this: is your email inbox a war zone? Does your phone ever stop ringing? Are you drowning in paper waivers and booking forms? Is your Excel booking system getting harder to understand with messy formulas and mistakes?

Case closed.

The purpose of an online booking system

A booking system can help you do way more than just passively accept bookings and payments online. Reservation technology (res-tech) has evolved to the point that it’s become a central hub for managing every aspect of your business, from marketing to distribution to operations.

Here are just a few things you can do:

• Track your growth with real-time reporting 
• Avoid double bookings with channel management
• Keep track of your partnership commissions
• Assign inventory and staff to individual activities 
• Gather details about your guests before they arrive
• Break down your day to day priorities 
• The list goes on and on 

But don’t just take my word for it. Before you adopt a new system, you should always consider if it’s right for your business. So, let’s quickly go over the pros and cons of an online booking system.   

Advantages of an online booking system

1. your business is always open.

One of the biggest advantages of an online booking system is that you can stay open for business 24/7, no matter your hours of operation. Similar to how your website allows guests to find out more about your business without getting hold of a brochure, a booking system makes it so they don’t have to wait until they can get a hold of you to reserve their spot. 

Instead, they have the convenience to book on their own, when it’s right for them — on the train to work, while the water boils, or sitting in the airport doing last-minute trip planning. Which brings up a good point. If you serve mostly internatioal travelers, many won’t have a phone plan in your country or the time to standby for an email reply.

In other words, an online booking system opens doors, rather than closing and locking them at the end of the day. 

2. Offers more security than spreadsheets

With a cloud-based booking system, your business information will no longer be confined to a desktop computer. Although it seems strange to think of your data floating around in cyberspace, it’s actually a far more secure solution.

Think of it this way. A hard drive crash or computer virus can wipe your entire system, whereas online booking software relies on highly protected servers to safeguard your hard-earned sales. I’m not trying to scare you. It’s just the reality you shouldn’t ignore until it’s too late. 

Plus, everything’s more accessible when it’s online. Just like travelers who can book on the go, you can run your business from anywhere, using a mobile app while out and about with guests or with your laptop when you want to keep tabs on how things are going while away on vacation.

3. Cuts your workload in half

Manual data entry might be your one chance in the day to turn off your brain and listen to a podcast, but it always takes way more time than you expect, doesn’t it? Time you shouldn’t have to give up in the first place. 

You don’t have to be chained to your desk as a business owner. You can make it home in time for dinner, spend weekends with your family, go on local adventures, even on a Monday, and be the face of your business by meeting and greeting guests.

An online reservation system can help you save time by tackling mundane tasks, whether it’s sending thank-you emails, creating cash-out reports, or updating availability on every channel. Everything runs in the background so that you and your staff can focus on more important things — like your guests and having a healthy work-life balance. 

4. Creates a better guest experience

Guests today expect instant gratification. Thanks to smartphones, they’ve been hardwired to believe that anything’s accessible in a matter of seconds. Meaning they’re usually impatient if they ever have to wait on a slow loading website, busy phone line, or neverending queue.

Reservation technology speeds everything up from booking to check-out. In just a few steps, guests can book, pay, and sign required documents while getting a confirmation in their inbox right away. And they rarely have to hear a “one moment please” upon arrival either, because check-in will be just a few clicks for your staff, too!

Not to mention, you can enhance the guest experience by adding personalization. Whether it’s using tokens in your automated emails , showcasing relevant add-ons during the booking process, or giving guests the freedom to customize the message and total amount on Gift Certificates . 

5. Helps you stay organized

Let’s be real. Does it look like someone pranked your desk with sticky notes? Do you write everything down in a daily planner that’s only legible to you? Or worse, do you keep everything in your head and expect others to read your mind?

If your operation feels chaotic, on a good day, it might be time to get things in order. As mentioned, an online booking system is like a central hub. It stores all of your business information, including guest details, revenue, waivers, forms, invoices, inventory, staff, partners, and more. 

Everything is all in one place. All you have to do is login and you’ll see a breakdown of your daily bookings, which guests still have to pay and sign, what inventory is available, etc. You can even leave notes for your staff on individual bookings, so they’re always in the know. 

6. Prevents cancellations and no-shows

When someone books online, with or without a deposit, they’re more likely to feel on the hook to show up. And if they neglect to read your cancellation policy and let you know they can’t make it, you’ll already have their credit card details on hand so that you don’t lose money for a last-second empty seat.

Plus, with an online booking system, you can always set up automated reminder emails or text notifications to stay in a guest’s good graces because we’re all only human, and sometimes people simply forget .

7. Provides insight into your business

If creating reports makes you want to pull your hair out (we can all relate), why not let a program automatically create them for you, in real-time? 

Since a booking system keeps track of every reservation and the details tied to it, you can see what products make you the most money, better understand who your typical guest is for targeting, and get a snapshot of your business trajectory. Analytics are all right there.

8. Connects your favourite software tools

Some business owners like using Quickbooks Online , whereas others prefer Xero . You might be a fan of ActiveCampaign rather than Mailchimp . That’s okay. There’s a reason why you use the software tools you do. Your business is unique, and so, you probably have a particular way of doing things, a system that works well. 

Here’s the thing. Booking software doesn’t have to throw it all out of whack, but rather, complement the processes you already have in place. Most booking solutions have popular integrations and tools you can use at your disposal to help grow your business and optimize your workflows.

Disadvantages of an online booking system

1. it takes time to set up.

While it’s relatively easy to get a booking system up and running, you still need at least 24 hours for implementation. You might be eager to get things live ASAP, but it’s best to learn how to set up online reservations properly first. That way, you can get it right from the get-go rather than having to fix misconfigurations later. 

Of course, there is a learning curve, but the best booking software company should provide you with all the support you need — as well as options for configuration assistance — to execute a successful launch. 

2. You have to train your staff

After your booking system is set up, you have to show your staff, especially the front desk, how to use it. Fortunately, booking software is super user-friendly, especially once everything’s configured correctly. It can take as little as five minutes or an hour, depending on each individual’s role. 

That said, it’s still downtime you have to account for, not just in the beginning, but for every new hire. However, you can always speed up this process with software training videos or checking if there are any recommendations on the fastest way to train staff on booking software . 

So, is an online booking system worth it?

When evaluating software, you should always consider the initial investment, both time and money, and whether it’s best for your business. We covered the benefits of an online booking system (and a couple of disadvantages), but there’s a lot left to go over. So, let’s dive deeper and explore more of the ins and outs of booking systems.

Want to find out more about online booking systems?

Download the Complete Guide to Online Booking Systems

And learn all about our software and then get started with Checkfront for free.

Next Chapter: How Does An Online Booking System Work?

Home: The Complete Guide to Online Booking Systems

Related Articles

Checkfront announces global merger with Rezdy and Regiondo

Today, I’m thrilled to share some long-awaited news that will change the landscape of reservation technology. Checkfront has merged with…

• Booking Management

7 reasons why new online booking software feels overwhelming for water sports rental businesses

Change is scary. That goes for everything in life, but especially in your business.  For most seasonal rental operators consistency…

Search Blog

Subscribe to our newsletter.

Get tips and strategies to grow your business and impress your guests.

Blog Categories

• Business Tips
• Guest Experience
• Marketing Strategies
• Operator Highlights

ColorWhistle

Digital Web Design Agency India

Explore our Market-Fit Services

We ensure to establish websites with the latest trends as we believe that, products whose value satisfies the needs of the market and its potential customers can be efficiently successful.

Quick Links

• About Us – ColorWhistle
• Engagement Models
• Testimonials
• Case Studies
• Agency Services
• Web Development
• Web App Development
• Digital Marketing
• Travel Website Development Services Company
• Real Estate Website Development Services Company
• Education Website Development Services Company
• Healthcare Website Development Services Company
• Hotel and Restaurant Website Development Services

Category: Travel

Date: October 20, 2023

Online Travel Agencies – A Brief Introduction

The role of an online travel agency (OTA) is becoming increasingly important in the accommodation industry as they provide a convenient way for travelers to arrange their stay. From the comfort of their home, travelers can compare hotel prices and book them over the internet. 

In this blog, we are going to discuss what an OTA is, the best OTA platforms, travel website development and how to do it right, and more.

Ready? Let’s go.

What Are Online Travel Agencies?

An online travel agency (OTA) arranges and sells accommodations, tours, transportation and trips on an online platform for travelers. They are third parties who sell services on behalf of other companies.

Usually, these OTAs offer many benefits with added convenience with more of a self-service approach. They also include a built-in booking system which allows instant bookings.

How Do Online Travel Agencies Work?

OTAs generally work on two models. They are,

1. Merchant Model

In this model, hotels sell rooms to OTAs at a discounted or wholesale price. Then, the OTA sells them to the customer at a markup price

2. Agency Model

This is a commission-based model where OTAs acts as a distribution partner. OTAs receive full commission after the stay has taken place. The hotel directly receives the payment from the end customer and does not wait for the payment transfer from third-party distributors.

What Are the Benefits of Partnering with Online Travel Agencies?

In one word – exposure! Online travel agents get thousands of website visitors from all over the world. Plus, they have positioned themselves as an authority on everything related to travel. So, people trust the recommendation they receive from OTAs.

By listing in OTAs, accommodation businesses like hotels not only reach a vast set of audience but will also find their service among many other reputable sources of information.

In addition, hotels that are listed on OTAs can also benefit from what is referred to as the ‘billboard effect’. This means that OTAs provide a form of advertising for service providers such as hotels on their platforms. Once the user gains this awareness, they may even go to the website of that particular hotel to make a direct booking.

What Are the Advantages and Disadvantages of Selling Through Online Travel Agents?

Accommodation businesses like hotels and B&Bs have pros and cons of getting listed in OTAs. Let’s take a look at them.

Advantages Of Online Travel Agents

• Low-cost method of selling accommodation services
• Reduced online marketing spend as OTAs invest in advertising to attract potential customers
• Impartial reviews give customers the confidence to book
• Users can easily compare various accommodation costs at one place

Disadvantages Of Online Travel Agents

• Commission rates are charged on every sale. It can range between 10-15% of the gross cost
• Restrictive cancellation terms
• Even if accommodation businesses use OTAs, the need for their own website and booking engine does not go away
• Investment in a balanced multi-channel strategy may be needed to boost sales

Even though OTAs can help to fill your rooms, accommodation businesses must try to maximize revenue through their own website. Consistent work on search engine optimization tactics and other digital marketing techniques is a must. Accommodation businesses must focus on customer retention techniques and directly target their existing customers through emails and direct marketing.

How To Start An Online Travel Agency?

Travel agencies no longer inform customers about the availability of flights and rooms. They issue rooms and get a commission from the respective accommodation businesses. That is why most of the new travel businesses follow the OTA model.

If you plan to enter the OTA arena, you can specialize in pilgrimages, leisure travel, business travel or any niche. But, focusing on how effectively you offer things is the key to success.

Here Are Some Points You Have To Consider When Starting An Online Travel Agency.

• Register the name of your agency and if applicable, take a license as per your local laws
• Try to get a membership in IATA or any other reputed travel organization
• Gain more knowledge about the travel industry and particularly the nice you want to concentrate
• Get your travel website designed by a professional company like ColorWhistle
• Offer deals that focus on a specific geography. Focusing on a particular niche will also bring more success
• Publicize your business in the online space
• Utilize the power of blogging
• Create a good social media presence

Why Do People Use Online Travel Agencies?

 here are some of the main reasons they prefer ota’s..

• Few OTAs offer reward programs which can be used for future travel needs
• Special rates which cannot be found elsewhere
• Some OTAs may have generous cancellation policies. For example, Priceline does not offer any penalty if the user cancels the ticket until the end of the next business day
• Most users may not have an idea on where to book other than an OTA
• OTAs make it easy to compare different rates

Who Are the Top Online Travel Agents?

1. booking.com.

Booking.com is one of the largest accommodations websites which has now expanded to smaller markets such as family-operated bed and breakfast, vacation rentals and self-catering apartments.

Interesting statistics

• Every day, 1,550,000 nights are booked
• 68% of nights booked came from families and couples
• 42% of nights booked came from unique places such as homes and apartments
• 38% of reviews are given by guests which are useful for other travelers
• 75% of nights booked come from guests who booked more than 5 times

2. Expedia’s Hotels.com

Expedia’s Hotels.com is a popular brand which has a global audience and attracts diverse travelers. The company gained more power in the industry by acquiring Travelocity.

• Gets over 675 million monthly site visits
• Operates in 70+ countries and 40+ languages
• Attracts 75 million monthly flight shoppers

Airbnb revolutionized the travel accommodation industry by introducing home-sharing. The website has diverse listings and travelers get a sense of safety as they can know their guest’s identity.

• 2.9 million hosts are present on Airbnb
• Average of 800k stays each night
• 14k new hosts join every month

Apart from these major OTAs, there are many small ones such as OneTravel, Vayama, Tripsta, TravelMerry, ExploreTrip, Kiss&Fly, Webjet, GoToGate, Travelgenio, Bookairfare, Fareboom, Skybooker, Travel2be, OneTwoTrip!, and eBookers.

Drive Conversions and Boost your Business with Expert Travel Website Development.

What the future holds for online travel agencies.

It is clear that, in the near future, accommodation businesses are not about to back down from OTAs. They are enjoying the billboard effect and trying their best to retain website visitors and convert them into direct booking. 

Sure, there is a cost involved. The upside of this is that accommodation businesses are working hard to create a loyal customer base that will continue to seek direct bookings.

The chances of OTAs suffering in the long run are pretty slim. Smaller accommodation businesses have a lot to gain from the exposure they receive through OTAs. Plus, a large portion of the younger generation prefers OTAs. So their market will continue to grow.

If you need any help to design, develop or market an OTA website, contact our travel web design and development experts at ColorWhistle . 

We can create an amazing website with beautiful designs combined with dynamic content such as live rates and special offers. Contact us today for your free business analysis and consultation.

In quest of the Perfect Travel Tech Solutions Buddy?

Be unrestricted to click the other trendy writes under this title that suits your needs the best!

• Travel Meta Search Engine
• GDS Travel Agency Guide
• GDS OTA Travel Meta Searchengines
• Travel Aggregator Website
• Best Travel Websites Inspiration
• Travel Website Features
• Top WordPress Travel Website Themes

Related Posts

How Predictive Maintenance Can Help the Travel Industry

Exploring the World Through AI and VR in the Travel Industry

How AI-based Travel Booking Applications Can be Developed?

About the Author - Anjana

Anjana is a full-time Copywriter at ColorWhistle managing content-related projects. She writes about website technologies, digital marketing, and industries such as travel. Plus, she has an unhealthy addiction towards online marketing, watching crime shows, and chocolates.

View Our Services

Have an idea? Request a quote

Share This Blog

its a good website i love it

i think it is a great website i love it so much but i need more information about what am looking for. thanks

It is a good website and I need more information for learning

I learned a lot through this web.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Ready to get started?

Let’s craft your next digital story

Sure thing, leave us your details and one of our representatives will be happy to call you back!

Eg: John Doe

Eg: United States

Eg: [email protected]

More the details, speeder the process :)

What is an online booking system & how does it work?

By Kevin Tjoe — 23 Nov 2021

online booking system

Updated November 2022 -If you’re working in the travel and tourism industry, your job has most likely been impacted in some way by modern online booking systems.

In just a few years, these systems have utterly transformed how tourism bookings are accepted, managed, and maximized. Online booking systems have also saved thousands upon thousands of admin hours for tour and activity operators. Game-changing is not an overstatement when it comes to describing online booking software .

What is an online booking system?

An online booking system is a software solution and reservation system that makes it simple for guests to book and pay for your tours and activities online . Some of these systems also include reporting software for tour operators and other user-friendly tools that help you improve efficiencies and boost bookings.

The online booking system concept has been around for years, but it’s rapidly become a necessity for tourism operators.

The purpose of online booking systems

If you’re not already working with one, you might be wondering, “Why do we need an online booking system? Don’t phone and email bookings work fine?”. But consider where and how guests are booking these days before jumping to any conclusions.

Guests are now starting to expect tour and activity businesses to accept online bookings. Not offering this important service can discourage guests from booking. To put a number to this fact, over 50% of travelers worldwide would prefer to place a booking online rather than through another channel. Having an online booking system is also particularly crucial for attracting younger demographics.

The key purpose of an online booking system is to help capture that growing demand, with the ultimate objective of bringing in more bookings for your business. Of course, there are a few other advantages of an online reservation system :

• Deliver an amazing user experience for your guests
• Improve the security of online payments for your guests
• Easily capture guest data to help with other business areas, such as tour management and marketing
• Offer promotions and special pricing to boost bookings in quiet times and off-seasons
• Gain insights into how and why guests book with you – and use this to drive new bookings!

Key features of online booking systems

So what exactly are the features of an online booking system ?

The first thing to know is that your guests will see is the front-end booking website, which provides a polished and intuitive booking process to guide them through booking and payment. Meanwhile, you’ll have your own VIP access to the system’s back end  via your business dashboard , which streamlines all the handy behind-the-scenes information to help you meet your business needs.

Here’s how that looks in practice.

24/7 online booking

Potential customers could be located anywhere and be booking at any time, so a booking platform that can take bookings 24/7 makes a whole lot of sense. Who doesn’t want bookings while they sleep? All you need to do is add your tours or activities, set pricing, and choose if you’d like to take bookings on your own website and through other distribution channels . Then you can relax, knowing your online reservation system is available for bookings right around the clock.

You can easily add a booking widget and booking form to add to your booking page on your existing website. Some online booking systems even provide a tool to build your own branded, mobile-responsive website with a click or two .

Streamlined dashboard for reporting and sales

Your dashboard is where all guest bookings and guest data will be available to you and your team in real-time. You can even capture phone and walk-up bookings in the same system, so it’s all in one place. No more manually updating spreadsheets – just smoothly synced data!

Depending on your choice of online booking system, you’ll be able to:

• Embed an online booking widget on your website
• Gather details about your guests and bookings
• Capture important data about guests’ allergies or dietary preferences
• Manage bookings easily, including over multiple sales channels such as Expedia and TripAdvisor
• Take credit card bookings and manage payment processing
• Access daily guest manifestos to make tour management easy
• Assign staff members and inventory for tours or activities, and
• Produce in-depth reports about where, when, and how your guests are booking.

Effortless process automation

Prepare to take up a new hobby or two, because an online booking system can free up hours of standard admin time in a tour or activity business. 

Using automated booking confirmations , you can provide consistently excellent customer service with polished emails or SMS notifications. In addition to improving brand awareness, this handy tool also helps to minimize no-shows.

You can also automate follow-up requests for guests to leave you a glowing review , to spread the word on social media about your amazing guest experiences.

And some online booking systems also let you integrate with other tools and software providers use an API or plugin to automate marketing, digital waivers, bookkeeping, and a whole range of other processes. Why do the tedious jobs when tech can do them for you?

Benefits of using an online booking system

There are countless benefits for a tour or activity operator using the right online booking system, but here are the three major advantages that no business owners can’t ignore.

You’ll save serious time

The right online booking system can help you significantly cut down your workload and improve general time management. Automation and integrations are here to help, so you can spend less time on customer support and more time with guests and growing your business – in normal business hours.

You’ll save yourself hassles and headaches

Double bookings? Forget ‘em! Hundreds of appointment bookings a day? No problem! Even last-minute cancellations are made simpler through clear policies and pre-paid deposits. Live scheduling software makes it a cinch to manage staff, inventory, and guest information in one central place.

You can boost your bookings

This is the vital reason most tourism operators now use an online booking system: it can lead to more business. You can grow your customer reviews, use in-built analytics to advertise more accurately, get paid for bookings faster, and expand your network for growth selling via Online Travel Agencies (OTAs).

Put simply: you can use your online scheduling to improve your guest experiences, and to gain more interest in those experiences. By now travelers have come to expect a seamless online booking process supported by a book now button and a navigable website. So, if you don’t have the right type of booking system in place yet it’s well and truly time to consider it for your business. 

Choosing the booking system that’s right for your needs

There are many different online booking systems available to choose from, but they won’t all offer the same ease of use or functionality. Here are a few essential features to look for when choosing an online booking system :

• Tools to take and boost bookings directly on your own website, as well as through other sales channels
• Customer relationship management (CRM) tools
• A mobile app for online appointment management on the go
• A payment gateway for easily managing payments online
• A smooth guest experience 
• Flexible month-to-month pricing for easy budgeting
• Great support that’s readily available

Capterra compares different online booking systems so you can assess the different features and benefits of each solution. And, be sure to take advantage of Rezdy’s FREE 21-day trial or request a demo .

If you enjoyed this article then make sure to follow the  Rezdy  blog . There are a lot of marketing tools and tour operator tips designed with businesses like yours in mind.

Be sure to also check out our latest  Youtube  video that explains the details and the benefits of an online booking software for tour operators.

Ready to begin your online booking journey? Start your free trial

Enjoy 21 days to take a look around and see if we are a good fit for your business.

No obligations, no catches, no limits, nada

Bookings Management

10 benefits of online bookings for tour and activity operators

Email automation for tour and activity operators

9 ways reservation technology helps tour operators get more bookings

• English (CA)
• Deutsch (DE)
• Deutsch (CH)

Top 10 Online Travel Booking Systems in 2024

What is an online travel booking system, main features of an online travel booking system.

• A user-friendly interface that enables users to search for and book travel services based on their preferences.
• Secure online booking and payment processing.
• Real-time availability and pricing information.
• Travel itinerary and reservation management tools.
• Customer support and traveler assistance.
• Reporting and analytics capabilities.

Best online travel booking systems for B2B

Online travel booking systems for companies, 1. travelperk.

TravelPerk main features

• An intuitive, user-friendly online booking platform -- all traveler data, preferences, and loyalty points are stored.
• Integrated travel policy and approval flows .
• A simplified travel expense process with real-time expense reports.
• FlexiPerk , an add-on that allows users to cancel their travel plans up to two hours before departure with a guaranteed refund of 80%.
• 24/7 business travel assistance with a target 15-second response rate from the 7* customer care team.
• A VAT recovery solution to help businesses save up to 25% on business travel expenses.
• TravelCare , a travel safety and alerts system.
• Centralized invoicing for all business travel, eliminating the need to send invoice requests and reminders.
• A vast catalog of integrations with third-party software .
• Trip Assistant -- a mobile app available on iOS and Android -- that stores all trip information in one place, even when you’re offline.

How customers rate TravelPerk

• G2 rating : 4.5 / 5 stars, based on 1,533 reviews (as of February 2024)
• Capterra rating : 4.8 / 5 stars, based on 402 reviews (as of February 2024)

TravelPerk pricing

• Starter: The first 5 bookings each month are free, with a 5% booking fee thereafter.
• Premium: $99/month with a 3% booking fee. Includes concierge services for special requests and savings of up to 25% with VAT-ready invoices..
• Pro: $299/month with a 3% booking fee. Includes unlimited policy and approval workflows, unlimited budgets by cost center, and access to negotiated rates.
• Enterprise: Designed for enterprise businesses that need customized requirements. To find out more about this plan, get in touch with an expert .

Start saving money on business travel for your company today!

2. sap concur.

SAP Concur main features

• Automated expense reporting and reimbursements.
• Self-booking for flights, hotels, trains, and car rentals through the platform.
• Real-time alerts, notifications, and reminders for traveling employees.

How customers rate SAP Concur

• G2 rating : 4 / 5 stars, based on 5,996 reviews (as of February 2024)
• Capterra rating : 4.3 / 5 stars, based on 2,004 reviews (as of February 2024)

SAP Concur pricing

Click below to compare travelperk and sap concur’s features and benefits, travel booking systems for travel agencies.

Ezus main features

• Automated trip costing and dynamic pricing options.
• Creation of mini travel websites for each project.
• Centralized customer relationship management software (CRM) features and travel portal for visibility into customer history and upcoming opportunities.

How customers rate Ezus

• G2 rating : 5 / 5 stars, based on 11 reviews (as of February 2024)
• Capterra rating : 4.6 / 5 stars, based on 33 reviews (as of February 2024)

Ezus pricing

• Starter: $139/month when billed monthly.
• Professional: $399/month when billed monthly.
• Premium: $849/month when billed monthly.
• Enterprise: Customized subscriptions for larger enterprises.

2. Travelport

Travelport main features

• Itinerary management, fare shopping, and ancillary service integration, including extra travel products such as baggage options, seat upgrades, and in-flight services.
• Personalized and branded itineraries.
• The “Productivity Automator” feature is designed to streamline workflows and reduce the number of manual back-office tasks.

How customers rate Travelport

• G2 rating : 4.5 / 5 stars, based on 1 review (as of February 2024)
• Capterra rating : 4.5 / 5 stars, based on 4 reviews (as of February 2024)

Travelport pricing

Travel booking systems for tour operators, 1. siteminder.

SiteMinder’s main features

• Hotel website builder with templates to showcase unique branding.
• Rates are updated in real-time across all channels to prevent rate disparities.
• Optimized pricing with revenue management systems that dynamically adjust rates based on factors such as demand, competitor pricing, and market conditions.

How customers rate SiteMinder

• G2 rating : 4.3 / 5 stars, based on 24 reviews (as of February 2024)
• Capterra rating : 4.1 / 5 stars, based on 174 reviews (as of February 2024)

SiteMinder pricing

• SiteMinder: Starts at $99/month and is aimed at independent properties looking for channel management, performance and insights, and property management system (PMS) integration.
• SiteMinder Plus: Starts at $129/month and is aimed at independent properties that want all of the SiteMinder features plus a booking engine, hotel website builder, and competitor intelligence.
• SiteMinder Groups and Chains: This plan is aimed at groups and chains. Pricing is customized and can be obtained by contacting SiteMinder directly.

2. HotelBeds

HotelBeds’ main features

• Ancillary products including tours and attractions.
• A booking API helps users choose flexible booking dates, filter hotels under different metrics, and obtain upgrades.
• Features to help tour operators manage bookings and access reporting and analytics.

HotelBeds pricing

3. flights logic.

Flights Logic’s main features

• Automated fare loader helps users stay ahead of competitors.
• Booking software helps tour operators accept online bookings from various platforms.
• Tour operators can accept online payments from their chosen payment gateways.

Best online travel booking systems for B2C

1. skyscanner.

SkyScanner key features

• Search filters including layovers, departure times, and airlines.
• Real-time pricing and flight availability information.
• Multi-city search functionality enables users to search for flights with multiple destinations.

How customers rate Skyscanner

2. booking.com.

Booking.com main features

• Search filters including budget, property rating, and property type.
• Guest reviews and ratings for each property.
• Flexible booking options including free cancellation and the ability to modify bookings within certain timeframes.

3. Rental Cars

Rental Cars main features

• Search for, compare, and book a range of vehicle types and sizes.
• One-way rentals, long-term rentals, and flexible pickup and drop-off locations.
• Multilingual customer support.

How customers rate Rental Cars

Make business travel simpler. Forever.

• See our platform in action . Trusted by thousands of companies worldwide, TravelPerk makes business travel simpler to manage with more flexibility, full control of spending with easy reporting, and options to offset your carbon footprint.
• Find hundreds of resources on all things business travel, from tips on traveling more sustainably, to advice on setting up a business travel policy, and managing your expenses. Our latest e-books and blog posts have you covered.
• Never miss another update. Stay in touch with us on social for the latest product releases, upcoming events, and articles fresh off the press.

5 best corporate travel management apps

The 8 best business travel management companies in Europe

10 best business travel management companies in Ireland

• Business Travel Management
• Offset Carbon Footprint
• Flexible travel
• Travelperk Sustainability Policy
• Corporate Travel Resources
• Corporate Travel Glossary
• For Travel Managers
• For Finance Teams
• For Travelers
• Thoughts from TravelPerk
• Careers Hiring
• User Reviews
• Integrations
• Privacy Center
• Help Center
• Privacy Policy
• Cookies Policy
• Modern Slavery Act | Statement
• Supplier Code of Conduct

Exploring the Pros and Cons of Online Travel Agency Bookings: A Comprehensive Guide

When planning a trip, there are numerous options available for booking accommodations, flights, and activities. One popular avenue is booking through online travel agencies (OTAs). These platforms provide a convenient way to compare prices, read reviews, and book all aspects of your trip in one place. However, like any other option, booking through OTAs has its pros and cons.

The Pros of Booking Through Online Travel Agencies

1. Convenience and Time-Saving: One of the biggest advantages of using OTAs is the convenience they offer. With just a few clicks, you can compare prices, check availability, and make reservations. This saves valuable time and effort that would otherwise be spent researching multiple websites or contacting providers individually.

2. Extensive Options: OTAs typically have a wide range of accommodations, airlines, and activities listed on their platforms. This gives travelers the opportunity to explore different options and choose the one that best suits their preferences and budget. Whether you’re looking for a luxury hotel or a budget-friendly hostel, OTAs have got you covered.

3. Deals and Discounts: OTAs often offer exclusive deals and discounts that may not be available elsewhere. These promotions can help you save money on accommodations, flights, car rentals, and more. By taking advantage of these offers, you can stretch your travel budget further and potentially enjoy additional perks like complimentary breakfast or room upgrades.

4. User Reviews and Ratings: One of the key features of OTAs is the ability to read user reviews and ratings. This allows you to get a sense of the quality and reputation of a particular provider before making a booking. By relying on the experiences shared by other travelers, you can make more informed decisions and avoid potential disappointments.

The Cons of Booking Through Online Travel Agencies

1. Lack of Personalized Service: While OTAs offer convenience, they often lack the personalized service that you might receive when booking directly with hotels or airlines. If you have specific requests or preferences, it can be more challenging to communicate them through an intermediary platform.

2. Hidden Fees and Charges: Some OTAs have been known to add hidden fees and charges during the booking process. These additional costs may not be apparent until you reach the final stages of making a reservation. It’s important to carefully review the terms and conditions to avoid any unexpected expenses.

3. Limited Flexibility: When booking through an OTA, you may encounter restrictions or limitations in terms of changes or cancellations. These policies can vary depending on the provider and the type of reservation. It’s crucial to understand the terms and conditions before committing to a booking.

4. Potential Information Gaps: Although OTAs strive to provide comprehensive information, there may be times when important details are missing or incomplete. This can include updates on renovations, construction nearby, or other factors that could impact your stay or travel experience. It’s essential to conduct additional research and reach out directly to the provider if necessary.

In conclusion, booking through online travel agencies offers convenience, extensive options, deals, and access to user reviews. However, it’s important to consider the potential drawbacks such as limited personalization, hidden fees, inflexibility, and potential information gaps. By weighing the pros and cons, travelers can make an informed decision about whether to use OTAs or explore alternative booking methods for their next adventure.

Exploring the Ups and Downs of Booking through Online Travel Agencies: A Comprehensive Analysis

Related questions, what are the advantages and disadvantages of using online travel agencies for booking travel arrangements.

Advantages: 1. Convenience: Online travel agencies (OTAs) offer a convenient platform for travelers to search, compare, and book various travel arrangements from the comfort of their own homes. 2. Wide range of options: OTAs provide access to a vast selection of airlines, hotels, car rental services, and other travel products, allowing users to choose from a wide range of options at different price points. 3. Competitive prices: Due to their large network and bargaining power, OTAs often offer competitive prices and exclusive deals that may not be available through other channels. 4. User reviews and ratings: Most OTAs include customer reviews and ratings for hotels, airlines, and other services, providing valuable insights and helping users make informed decisions. 5. Ease of customization: Many OTAs allow users to customize their travel itineraries by selecting specific flights, accommodations, and additional services to meet their particular needs.

Disadvantages: 1. Additional fees: Some OTAs may charge extra fees for services such as booking changes, cancellations, or seat selections, which can increase the overall cost of the trip. 2. Lack of personalized assistance: Unlike traditional travel agents, OTAs do not typically provide personalized customer service or assistance in case of travel disruptions or emergencies. 3. Limited flexibility: Certain travel arrangements, such as complex itineraries or multi-city trips, may be challenging to book through OTAs, as their systems may not accommodate all specific requirements. 4. Potential misinformation: Occasionally, OTAs may display incorrect information regarding flight schedules, availabilities, or hotel amenities, leading to misunderstandings or inconveniences for travelers. 5. Less negotiation power: While OTAs offer competitive prices, they may have limited flexibility for negotiating terms or additional perks compared to direct bookings with airlines or hotels.

Overall, using online travel agencies can be a convenient and cost-effective option for many travelers. However, it is essential to weigh the advantages and disadvantages carefully and consider individual travel preferences and needs before making a booking decision.

How do online travel agencies impact the financial aspects of planning a trip, such as savings and costs?

Online travel agencies (OTAs) have a significant impact on the financial aspects of planning a trip. They offer several benefits that can help travelers save money and manage costs more effectively.

Savings: OTAs play a crucial role in providing competitive prices for flights, accommodations, and other travel services. They often negotiate exclusive deals and discounts with airlines, hotels, and car rental companies, allowing travelers to access lower prices than those available through traditional booking methods. This competition among different OTAs can result in considerable savings for travelers who shop around and compare prices.

Costs: OTAs also provide transparency and convenience in comparing prices and services across multiple vendors. By using an OTA, travelers can easily compare various options and select the most cost-effective one. Additionally, some OTAs offer package deals that include flights, accommodations, and other services at a bundled price, which can often be cheaper than booking each component separately.

Expert Insights for Financial Planning: Many OTAs also provide helpful financial planning tools and insights. These resources can assist travelers in managing their budgets, tracking expenses, and optimizing their spending during the trip. Moreover, some OTAs offer loyalty programs or reward systems, allowing users to earn points or discounts for future travels, essentially providing a long-term financial benefit.

Travel Insurance: OTAs often offer optional travel insurance packages that provide coverage for unexpected events such as trip cancellation, medical emergencies, or lost luggage. While these add-ons may increase the overall cost of the trip, they offer financial protection and peace of mind in case of unforeseen circumstances.

However, it’s important for travelers to exercise caution when using OTAs. Some OTAs may charge additional fees or have less flexible cancellation policies. It’s crucial to carefully read the terms and conditions, compare prices across different platforms, and consider the reputation and reliability of the OTA before making a booking.

In summary, online travel agencies can have a positive impact on the financial aspects of trip planning. They offer competitive prices, convenient comparison tools, and often provide financial insights and protection options. However, travelers should remain vigilant and make informed decisions to ensure they are getting the best value for their money.

Are there any specific risks or considerations to be aware of when using online travel agencies for booking travel, particularly in relation to credit card payments and protection against fraud?

When using online travel agencies (OTAs) for booking travel, there are certain risks and considerations to keep in mind, especially related to credit card payments and protection against fraud.

1. Security of Payment Information : It is essential to ensure that the OTA’s website has secure socket layer (SSL) encryption, indicated by a padlock symbol in the website address. This encryption protects your credit card information from being intercepted by hackers.

2. Use Credit Cards for Payments : When making online bookings, it is generally recommended to use a credit card rather than a debit card or bank transfer. Credit cards offer better fraud protection and dispute resolution options compared to other payment methods.

3. Read Reviews and Do Research : Before choosing an OTA, read reviews and do thorough research. Look for customer experiences related to any credit card fraud issues or instances of identity theft. Stick to well-established and reputable OTAs.

4. Check the OTA’s Terms and Conditions : Carefully review the OTA’s terms and conditions regarding cancellation policies, refunds, and chargebacks . Ensure they have a fair process in place to protect your rights in case of fraud or unauthorized charges.

5. Monitor Your Credit Card Statements : Regularly monitor your credit card statements for any suspicious activity or unauthorized charges. If you notice anything unusual, contact your credit card provider immediately to report fraud and take necessary actions.

6. Consider Travel Insurance : Travel insurance can provide additional protection against trip cancellations, interruptions, or other unforeseen circumstances. Some policies also cover fraud-related losses, providing an extra layer of security.

Remember, while most OTAs maintain high-security standards, no system is entirely foolproof. By taking these precautions and staying vigilant, you can reduce the risk of credit card fraud and ensure a safer online booking experience with online travel agencies.

Disclaimer: The information provided here is for general informational purposes only and should not be considered as professional financial advice. Always seek the advice of a qualified expert or conduct thorough research with official sources before making any financial decisions.

Table of contents

Discover financial empowerment on CJDFintech.com, your guide through the world of credit, loans, insurance, and investment with straightforward, expert advice.

Recent articles

Mastering the art of personal finance: how to budget like a pro, universal studios vs. islands of adventure: choosing the best theme park experience for your wallet, your ultimate guide: how to open a bank account and what you need.

The Ultimate Guide to United Airlines MileagePlus Program: Everything You Need to Know

Managing Monthly Expenses: A Guide for Single Individuals and Families

The Ultimate Delta Sky Club LAX Review: A Comprehensive Guide to Luxury Travel and Exclusive Benefits

447 Broadway 2nd floor

New York, NY 10013

Copyright © 2015-2023 CJD Fintech

What is an Internet Booking Engine (IBE)?

Are you on the hunt for one software application that can simplify the reservation process, improve conversion rates, enhance customer satisfaction, and inspire data-driven decision-making? Look no further than an Internet Booking Engine . An Internet Booking Engine (IBE) software application allows consumers to book travel-related services directly online.

Often referred to as online booking systems, IBEs are tools leveraged by various travel companies—namely airlines, hotel chains, and cruise lines—to sell travel products directly on their website. Such tools provide real-time, 24/7 booking capabilities to users around the globe, as well as a haul of benefits to businesses that use them. Here’s what you need to know about IBEs.

Internet Booking Engines: The Basics

Let’s start with the basics: What is an Internet Booking Engine, and how does it work? 

Internet Booking Engines connect to travel service providers’ central reservation systems (CRS) or global distribution systems (GDS) to generate timely service and rate information. Each time a customer makes a reservation, the IBE communicates with these systems to confirm availability, process payments securely, and produce immediate booking confirmation.

IBEs are indispensable tools to travel agents and service providers because timely and accurate reservations are paramount in the travel industry. Online booking tools eliminate the need for a manual booking management system, reducing the potential for errors that could impact the traveler experience. They also enable travel brands to offer a more convenient booking process. 

By and large, organizations have found that adopting IBEs can revolutionize operational efficiency and expand customer reach. In today’s ultra-saturated travel market, IBEs can significantly lower customer acquisition costs, enhance rate parity, and provide data-driven insights. These benefits improve the overall user experience, increasing customer loyalty and revenue .

How IBEs Enhance the Travel Booking Experience

From tour operators and travel agents to resorts and rental agencies, here’s how Internet Booking Engines enhance the booking experience. 

Streamlines the Online Booking Process 

IBEs automate the booking journey from search to sale, offering dynamic packaging of multiple travel products, like pairing air tickets with rental car rates. They allow for one-click reservations and payment processes, reducing customers’ time finalizing their travel plans. And because IBEs integrate with an existing website, they instantly feel on-brand to returning customers. 

Enables Personalization and Customization 

Like other online travel portals, Internet Booking Engines can track user preferences over time, enabling tailored travel recommendations and personalized deals. Advanced IBEs utilize AI to enhance the user experience by predicting customer preferences and offering customized packages. Even better, AI-powered insights can personalize travel marketing for heightened user engagement. 

Provides Real-Time Availability and Pricing 

Beyond simplifying and personalizing the travel booking experience, Internet Booking Engines also provide availability and pricing updates in real-time, allowing customers to make informed decisions quickly. This real-time data capability is especially crucial during high-demand travel periods, where prices and availability on flights and hotel reservations can fluctuate rapidly.

Factors to Consider When Choosing an IBE

You’ve come to the right place if you’re searching for a reliable Internet Booking Engine. At arrivia , we’ve been powering white label travel portals and travel loyalty technology for over 25 years. As you conduct research for your travel brand or travel-adjacent business, the team at arrivia recommends keeping an eye out for the following four Internet Booking Engine features. 

Pricing Models and Cost-Effectiveness

Different Internet Booking Engines offer various pricing models, such as subscription-based and per-transaction pricing. Subscription-based models charge a flat monthly fee, while per-transaction models take a percentage of each booking. Assessing your average sales volume and preferred profit margins is vital to gauge which model offers the best return on investment (ROI) for your business.

User Interface and Ease of Use

An Internet Booking Engine should feature an intuitive interface that requires minimal training. This ease of use goes two ways: One way for staff, who must quickly navigate internal data insights, and one way for customers, who anticipate a seamless booking process. Your chosen IBE should boast a minimal learning curve to entice users immediately.

Mobile Compatibility and Responsive Design

At a time when 39% of smartphone users are more likely to browse or shop through their devices or mobile applications for ease of use, your chosen Internet Booking Engine must feature a mobile-friendly design. With many travel bookings made on mobile, your IBE must adapt to different screen sizes to ensure a functional and aesthetic user experience. 

Security and Data Protection Measures

2024 must be the era of data security for travel brands and travel-adjacent businesses. Given the sensitive nature of the financial and personal data processed and cataloged through Internet Booking Engines, your desired IBE must have robust security protocols. Ensure it complies with payment and data protection laws and that customer information is secure from cyber threats .

Elevate Your Travel Program with arrivia

With more than a quarter-century of experience and the most competitive travel inventory globally, the arrivia team knows a thing or two about Internet Booking Engines. If the objective of your chosen IBE is to elevate customer satisfaction, enhance conversion rates, and empower data-driven decision-making, discover the power of arrivia ’s unrivaled travel rewards. 

Trusted by some of the world’s most respected hospitality and financial brands, the arrivia platform revolutionizes where loyalty programs and travel benefits intersect, introducing white label travel capabilities that integrate directly with your existing framework. Explore the arrivia’s product to learn more about our memorable travel experiences and simplified booking abilities.

Keep sailing the high seas of success! What's next?

By continuing to browse this website you are agreeing to accept our privacy policy which includes the use of cookies to analyze and improve our marketing efforts.

Pros and cons of an online Travel agency vs. offline travel agency

What is the difference between an online travel agency and an offline travel agency? We will look at the pros and cons of online travel agencies vs. offline travel agencies

By Jessica Freedman

February 9, 2024

As travel managers constantly look for ways to optimize their corporate travel programs, part of doing so is understanding the differences between going digital or taking your travel management needs offline. In this explanatory guide, we will look at the pros and cons of online travel agencies vs. offline travel agencies so that you are prepared to understand the differences in order to choose the travel booking tool and management system that is most suitable for your company.

Here’s what we’ll cover:

• What is a TMC?

What is an OTA?

Pros and cons of online travel agencies, offline travel agencies, pros and cons of offline travel agencies, how to choose the best corporate travel platform.

Let’s start with a short introduction to some simple terminology to give you a guiding hand.

Types of online booking tools

For starters, to recognize the difference between online travel agencies and offline, it’s important to understand that there is a wide range of online booking tools available for travel. Let’s take a look at the different types:

Travel aggregators

Corporate online booking tools, direct bookings, travel agencies.

Travel aggregators are websites that essentially consolidate the travel offers and prices from multiple sources all in one place. This allows users to book at the lowest prices based on the results listed in the search results. This helps users find the best prices out of all the results the aggregator has found. This way it is easy for consumers to know that they are booking at the lowest price possible.

TMCs like BCD (which we will discuss more in detail below) can function as a travel aggregator. For instance, for hotel bookings, TMCs combine GDS content with content from Expedia, Booking.com, HRS, and others offering this all together in a mobile app or website. In the case of AMEX, they have a proprietary online booking tool, called KDS, which also serves as a travel aggregation tool.

 When it comes to business travel, corporate online booking tools are frequently used by businesses to keep a hand on their business travelers. Corporate online booking tools are ideal for keeping track of trips, travel spend, and ultimately streamlining business travel.  GetGoing  and Booking.com for business are examples of corporate online booking tools, as well as EHI Direct .

Direct bookings are carried out by going directly to the airline, hotel, train or rental car company’s respective sites and booking directly instead of through a third party.

We will look more at online travel agencies, or OTAs below, but the idea is that you can get access to travel inventory all in one place. Online travel agencies are the most common way of booking online travel.

What is a TMC?

A TMC, or a Travel Management Company uses a Global Distribution System (GDS) as a travel booking tool. TMCs started before the boom of online travel. Travel was booked in a traditional way via telephone or email and then arrangements were made by travel agents.

Nonetheless, TMCS have evolved since their beginnings, investing in making business travel more digital even though they still have a way to come in terms of technology. TMCs offer the value of industry experience while offering more personal service through their agents. TMCs integrate custom-built booking  preferences to give business travelers the best choices within their travel  policy , allowing them to compare options. As a travel manager you can work with your TMC to decide how you want to set up your business travel program.

A TMC like BCD Travel, AMEX, and CWT can help companies make the most of their travel in general beyond just booking travel. They can give a helping hand with cost analysis, reporting, duty of care, etc., but that isn’t to say that an online travel agency won’t provide you with data reports of your travel spend.

Full-service business and corporate travel management companies can help optimize, manage and improve your business travel, ensuring you adhere to your travel policy, and providing seamless booking experiences, while offering a hand with travel data, allowing you to optimize your travel spend and costs to make the most out of your business travel program.

OTAs, or online travel agencies offer customers the possibility to book their travel online. OTAs started in 1996 with Travelocity being the first online travel agency. Most of them started off with a strong digital product and platform and added agent support/service as an added benefit.

They are third party agents who sell services on behalf of airlines, hotels, car rental companies, tour operators and others. They arrange and sell accommodations, tours, transportation and trips on an online platform for travelers. Some well-known travel platforms such as Booking or Expedia act both as travel agencies and tour operators allowing customers to read reviews to decide where to stay, and also book package holidays.

Several online travel agencies are only customer-facing, like the above examples, whereas other OTAs can service both B2B and B2C like Booking.com, which offers services for business clients as well as regular customers. On the other hand, OTAs like  GetGoing   and Travel Perk are designed exclusively with Business travelers in mind .

What is an online travel agent?

An online travel agent is an OTA that is part of web-based platform that allows users to book travel services over the internet. Online travel agents are intermediaries between travelers and service providers like airlines, hotels, car rental companies and tour operators. They provide a central platform to book, compare and search for travel arrangements, whether it be for business or leisure.

OTAs have a big market share

The global business travel market is a  $695.9 billion industry as of 2020 , and is expected to reach $2,001.1 billion by 2028. Whereas the online travel market is a $433.2 billion dollar industry, with the revenue share of online sales in the global travel and tourism market at 66% (according to a study by  Statista.com ).

As can be noted by the 66% market share of online travel sales, the great majority of reservations are being made via online travel agencies, and for this reason, OTAs have become an important distribution channel for tourism businesses. While OTAs are often used to book holidays and leisure trips, there are also online travel agencies, known as Travel Management Companies, or TMCs that have the same functionality as OTAs but are primarily used by companies or businesses.

Advantages and disadvantages of online travel agency

An online travel agency is convenient, has a wide range of options, allows you to easily compare prices, can be a great way to see reviews and ratings from other users, gives special deals and discounts and is available 24/7. Some disadvantages of an online travel agency is that there may be hidden fees, you have less leeway for personalization, customer service is harder to track down, and there is less flexibility.

Now that you have a better idea of some of the basic terminology, and some of the advantages and disadvantages of an online travel agency, let’s look at some of the pros and cons of an online travel agency.

online travel agency

1. an online travel agency is self-service .

Online travel agencies are a way to self-manage your travel needs. They have an integrated online booking tool that allows you to make travel arrangements, make cancellations, manage bookings and do everything that a brick and mortar travel agency would let you do with the convenience and benefits of a self-service approach. 

2. Keep track and manage travel expenses

In addition to being self-service, as a travel manager, with an online travel agency or TMC you can keep track of your travel spend and optimize your expenses while at the same time automating your travel policy so that travelers will be notified when their travel expenses are out of policy, and ensuring that you stay on budget.

3. Increased productivity

Working with an online travel agency leads to more productivity because you spend less time managing your trips. All your trip information is conveniently stored in your profile so that you can manage, edit and cancel hotel bookings, car rentals, train bookings as necessary. This means that in the case of travel managers, you can work with the OTA to automate your travel policy, which takes the automated work out of the hands of you and your travelers.

4. Help keep travelers safe

In the case of an online travel platform like GetGoing, you can have added assistance in keeping your traveler’s safe thanks to built-in AI technology that prefers the safe travel options, like not passing through high-risk countries, helping to fulfill your duty of care. You can also have access to traveler tracking and emergency support in the case of need. 

1. Less personal

While online provides great convenience, one of the cons is that it is less personal, lacking the personal touch of an in-person offline travel agency. Of course there is always the possibility to call, chat or speak to a representative, it’s not the same as a face-to-face encounter, especially for managing business.

2. Less hand-holding

For those inexperienced travelers, online travel agencies can be more “do-it-yourself” meaning that there is less hand-holding if you need it . This can take away from productivity because travelers must evaluate the options themselves, rather than having a TMC that can give you a helping hand. A TMC would be able to discover the most effective (and safest options), meaning less layovers in potentially risky countries.

3. Hard to get around the rules

When you are working with an offline agency it’s easier to bend the rules or get around travel provider’s policies. TMCs can oftentimes make changes to bookings without charges that travelers or travel managers on their own wouldn’t be able to do thanks to their business relationships with the providers.

Now that we’ve looked in depth at online travel agencies, let’s take a look at offline travel agencies, including their pros and cons.

What is an offline travel agency?

Offline Travel Agencies are travel agencies, including corporate travel departments, who operate from “brick and mortar” offices. This means that they have physical offices rather than operating as an OTA with only a website. Customers typically call or go to their offices to get travel-related services, which they provide using a GDS like Galileo. An offline travel agency usually has a team of travel agents who can help clients book flights, hotels, car rentals and other travel services.

While it’s true online travel agencies have gained popularity for their convenience, there are still many who prefer the personalized service provided by a face-to-face interactions at offline travel agencies. Offline travel agencies may cater to a specific market or specialize in certain kind of travel, i.e., business travel, group trips, leisure travel, etc. and this kind of assistance and hand-holding may give clients a sense of reassurance.

Advantages and disadvantages of offline travel agency

An offline travel agency has its advantages like the ability to get expert advice, personalized service, the face-to-face component, the ease of problem resolution, and the convenience of being hand-held along the process of booking travel. However, there are also some disadvantages like limited accessibility, potentially higher costs, limited choices, time-consuming, constraints on availability of store hours, and perhaps less transparency.

Now that you have a better idea of what an offline travel agency does, as well as the advantages and disadvantages, let’s take a look at some of the pros and cons.

offline travel agency

1. it’s more personal.

As much as we move more and more towards a digital-first approach, there is still an element of face-to-face contact that can’t be replaced. This is one of the main pros of an offline agency, being able to meet in person to book travel and even design your corporate travel program. Also for the travel agency, it’s easier to cater to the traveler’s needs, and really understand what they are looking for.

2. Enhanced service

Since online agencies tend to be more self-service, it can be argued that offline agencies offer enhanced services. Trip planning, including more complex routings or integrated travel booking, which include multiple forms of transport, accommodation and leisure activities can be more easily managed with an offline travel agency, setting them apart from their offline counterparts.

3. It’s more inclusive 

While for the purposes of this article, we are more focused towards business travel, it goes without saying that offline travel agencies are more inclusive. According to a study by the UN’s ICT agency, an estimated 37% of the world’s population (2.9 billion people) have never used the Internet. For that reason, in underdeveloped countries, an offline travel agency is still crucial in order to service this part of the population.

1. Not as flexible

With an offline travel agency, you must adhere to business hours in order to make your business travel plans. If it’s late at night and you are working after hours to plan your business trip, this means you’ll have to wait until the next business day to book your trip. 

2. Less technology-forward

Of course, offline travel agencies use technology like GDS to book your travel, it goes without saying that a traditional offline travel agency is less technologically advanced. Unlike online agencies, they don’t have to rely on technology or even have a fast website to help make travel plans. Since they are dealing with external systems for the most part, there is no precedent for having a technologically-forward website. 

3. Less efficient

While it can be efficient to work with an offline agency when you are booking complex trips with multiple providers, it can be less efficient for everyday use. With OTAs, all the information is readily available making it quick and efficient to book a trip. In the case of going offline, you have to rely on the help of an agent to take care of your everyday travel needs, which can be less efficient than handling travel plans on your own.

Now that you’ve fully understood the pros and cons of an online travel agency vs. an offline travel agency, here are some tips to choose a corporate travel platform that’s right for you.

• Look for balance between online technology with offline support
• Ease of creating your travel policy
• Safety first
• Simple approach to data
• Allows you to save money

1. Look for balance between online technology with offline support

This means that you have a tool that has all the functionalities of an online travel platform, but with expert service and assistance when you need it most. Sometimes business travel doesn’t go as planned; there might be delays, lost luggage, long wait times, cancellations, overbookings or a wide range of other issues. This is why you need to have a support system in place that is ready to help when the going gets tough. At GetGoing you have the ease of digital but with the guarantee of 24/7 service when you need it.   This way you can travel worry-free knowing that an expert is there to lend you a hand if any of these unexpected circumstances arise.

2. Ease of creating your travel policy

When it comes to creating your travel policy, you want to find a travel management company that will support you in creating a policy that allows you to save money, protect your travelers and optimize your business travel. This is why you should look for a TMC that allows you to automate your travel policy . Automation is at the core of productivity and by optimizing your travel policy, you can also save money. 

3. Safety first

Whether you decide to go with an online travel agency or an offline travel agency, ensure that your traveler’s safety is first and foremost. This means that you should be able to offer certain security measures to your travelers so that as business travel slowly recovers, they feel safe to get going. 

4. Simple approach to data

Not everyone on your team is data-savvy, so you want to find a corporate travel management system that makes understanding data easy. Whether you’re a Finance manager , an HR or Office Manager , you need to have a system that allows you to visualize your data, including travel spend, seeing how much travel is booked within your travel policy, and using detailed reports to optimize routes, supplier relations and keep your travelers happy. Having data at your fingertips is the best way to optimize your business travel program. 

5. Allows you to save money

While optimizing your travel program, and understanding your data, you will without a doubt save money.  However, another very important part of business travel is having access to corporate travel deals . Not only does having access to deals save you money, but your staff will also be more productive because they don’t have to look in a million different places for the best deals. 

Get a helping hand in business travel

GetGoing is your helping hand in business travel so that you can book, manage and optimize your business travel. We provide the ease of a digital platform but with the peace of mind of a travel agency.

• Empower your team
• Save time and money
• Gain more visibility
• Ensure safe and comfortable travel

Go share the news:

Sign up now to receive exciting news & updates.

What is an online booking system and how do I choose one?

What is an online booking system?

How does an online booking system work, uses of an online booking system, the benefits of an online booking system, typical features of an online booking system, how to choose an online booking system, currently trending in online booking systems.

Making purchases over the internet is a part of daily life. In the US, e-commerce’s share of total retail sales has doubled in the last six years, and is forecast to reach 13.7% in 2021.

And if there is one industry that ecommerce has truly revolutionised, then it’s the travel industry.

Globally, 82% of all travel bookings in 2018 were made online and without human interaction.

Although there is evidence of a recent upswing in the popularity of traditional face-to-face travel advice , it is clear that the overwhelming bulk of travel sales are made online.

By 2020, top online travel agencies (OTAs) offering their customers a ‘one stop shop’ – i.e. a service that allows customers to research, compare and purchase travel products all on the same website – are expected to represent 41% of the online digital travel market.

At the same time, as we highlighted in a previous post , travel agents are operating in an increasingly competitive marketplace and abandonment rates remain relatively high.

Globally, the average abandonment rate for OTAs is 93.96 percent , according to SaleCycle, so this is something to benchmark your own performance against.

Another source puts conversion rates for travel bookings made on mobile devices at just 0.7% compared to 2.4% for desktops.

Clearly, travel agents need to be doing everything in their power to make the booking process as simple and seamless as possible.

And that means making sure that your online booking system is the very best it can be and that it is able to adapt to future developments.

Put simply, an online booking system is a software solution used for reservation management. Before such systems were available, in order to track bookings and manage inventory, travel agents had to work with a series of spreadsheets and enter the information manually.

Instead, an online booking system uses smart technology that eliminates the risks associated with manual input and human error . It simplifies the booking process for you and your customers by automatically updating processes such as payment scheduling, inventory management and tracking bookings.

It keeps customers on your website since they can see all of the available options and book the ones they need without switching between web pages or going to other websites.

Its automation capability also carries a range of further benefits for your business, such as generating reports and more.

Online booking systems are commonly sold as cloud-based software-as-a-service. The system is integrated into your existing website as well as your social media pages, if appropriate. There are two distinct areas of a booking system: the back-end and the customer-facing end.

The back-end is commonly displayed as a dashboard management tool which allows you to set-up, manage, and review your inventory, reservations and bookings. The benefits here are that all the information about your business can be viewed from the same location rather than having to cross-reference between multiple spreadsheets. Every business has its own unique set of policies and so the initial set-up of a new online booking system and customizing content and procedures to your requirements will take some time. However, once all areas of the system are activated – including your booking form, payment settings, notifications, report-writing and analytics preferences – then automation kicks in and everything else is straightforward. The customer-facing end of the booking system should ideally be a two-step process: book and pay.

First-time customers will need to fill in a form where you capture their details, but after that subsequent bookings will be even quicker.

Online booking systems are designed to safely handle online payment processing and are protected by encryption and log-in and password protection.

Once a booking is made, the system automatically updates itself in real-time, and your customers can receive email or SMS notifications of any changes or simply be reminded of the upcoming reservation.

Travel booking software is much more than just the engine that allows your customers to pay online. In fact, your online booking system reaches into almost every aspect of your business operation.

At the customer-facing end, here are some of the key uses of an online booking system.

A wide range of filters to suit your customers’ needs

When booking a vacation or business trip your customers are likely to have a wide variety of needs and requests. Do they want to be near the Coliseum? Are they travelling with a pet? Children? Do they have special accessibility requirements? The best booking systems have an extensive list of filters to help customers quickly focus on what they are looking for.

Easy comparison display

Your online display of the choice of hotels or flights needs to be presented in a logical and clear way that allows the user to make comparisons easily and select the best choice for them.

Cross-selling

Your booking system needs to have the flexibility and scalability to add new products and categories, i.e. car rental options, visitor attractions, tours, theatre tickets, restaurant bookings. Customers must be able to add multiple items to their cart and purchase them all in one single transaction.

At the back-end, here are some of the key uses of an online booking system.

Sell a wide variety of inventory

Most software systems enable you to sell third party inventory in addition to inventory directly contracted by your agency.

For travel agents that serve both B2B and B2C customers, this means that they can aggregate their suppliers via XML API and offer flight inventory from GDS such as Amadeus and Travelport, for instance, and hotel stays from bed banks like Stuba, hotelbeds and gta … the choice is vast.

Make back-office operations simple

Booking software can automate routine admin tasks to increase overall employee efficiency. For example, once the initial parameters have been set as desired by your business, mark ups and margins can be generated automatically. You can set the system to automatically cancel bookings that have not been confirmed or make modifications if needed.

Create complex quotes efficiently and fast

Most booking software available allows your employees to create tailored quotes for complex itineraries in a fraction of the time it would take manually. All of the items in a quote can be booked in a single transaction and your employees can work with greater efficiency from a single platform rather than having to access multiple suppliers’ systems.

Before we take a further look at individual features and how to choose an online booking system, here is a quick recap of the advantages an online booking system has over other forms of reservation management.

• Increased sales – At the risk of stating the obvious, online booking systems offer the ability to book and make payments 24/7. (Incidentally, Monday is the most popular day of the week to book travel and Saturday is the quietest.) Therefore, depending on your target markets, consider a booking and web system that is multi-lingual and allows customers to pay in their local currency.
• Reduces telephone-based sales – By reducing the amount of manpower necessary to secure a booking, internet-based reservation management systems can reduce your staffing costs.
• Streamlined and standardized payments – As soon as customers book their accommodation online, the funds are transferred directly into your account.
• Improved process management – Automates business operations by eliminating the need for manual data entry, managing bookings, monitoring inventory, creating reports, and processing payments.
• Streamlined reporting -Dashboard and reporting tools allow users to obtain insights into profits and sales, and create custom reports to influence future strategies.

Online booking systems are commonly sold as comprehensive software packages specifically designed for travel agents. As highlighted above, these services include customer-facing features as well as back-office automation.

There are clear differences between a basic booking software system and something more complex and bespoke , says Germany-based software provider Regiondo . A look at the following summaries will help you understand what kind of system you need.

Basic online booking software requirements:

• Cloud-based
• Payment options (credit card, bank transfer, PayPal, deferred payment processing, cash)
• Inventory system
• Real-time booking
• User-friendly interface
• Customer support
• Integrations with an email marketing software

Complex online booking software requirements:

• SMS and email automation
• Language and currency settings
• Email customization
• Integration with third-party software (e.g. POS Systems, Rating Portals, etc.)
• Detailed sales reports
• Voucher and promo code management
• Distribution channel management
• Resource management

US-based software review and comparison website Capterra has a useful (and long) list of travel agency software providers that allows you to filter your searches depending on the key features of the software that you require. According to Capterra, most products in the market are priced on a per-month-basis (although other models may apply) and range from as little as $5.00 up to $125.00+.

When doing your research, one of your key considerations will be: how simple and easy is the booking process? The most successful ecommerce companies make the payment process extremely straightforward and easy , thus reducing the number of customers who get frustrated and give up.

Some cloud-based online booking systems may offer you a widget that is easy to add to your website. Although these are very easy to integrate, do bear in mind that they do not give you much control over the booking process. Customers are usually directed onto an external payment platform to complete their booking which means they have left your website. This must be avoided in favor of a bespoke solution that gives you full control throughout the sales funnel, allowing you to understand your customers behavior and better optimize your rate of conversion.

Another thing to consider is that if your travel agency or travel host agency is aimed at specific types of travelers (e.g. adventure holidays, business travelers), it is wise to select a software solution that’s designed for your niche, or can be customized to fulfill your business needs.

You will also want to choose a software provider with a solid reputation for high quality customer support and tour operator software if you offer this kind of service. Occasional glitches or technical failings are a fact of life. What kind of response and support does your contractor provide? Also if you are installing a new system, do it during your low season.

To round things off, here is a quick look at three trends which are getting talked about in the area of online booking systems and travel agent software.

Flexible payment options

Given the increasingly competitive marketplace that travel agents and tour operators find themselves in, there are some who believe that offering more flexible payment options and allowing customers to pay off purchases in a series of installments could be a way of standing out from the crowd.

AI and chatbots

Online travel agents ( OTAs ) are increasingly adopting the use of algorithms and artificial intelligence that have made the likes of Amazon and Google the most successful service companies in the world. The ability to make recommendations, upsell and truly engage with a customer’s needs on a personal basis is becoming a competitive necessity.

Chatbots or ‘virtual travel agents’ are an important part of this trend. Putting a chatbot onto your website will soon be within the reach of medium-sized travel agents and not just the likes of Kayak and Expedia.

This is probably not a trend for 2020 but something to bear in mind all the same. There is growing evidence that voice-based search and shopping using Alexa may one day become just as widespread as typing your queries into Google. We may be looking at a future where Alexa is an integral part of the process of planning travel, acting as a reassuring and helpful companion along the way.

Subscribe to our newsletter

Yay you are now subscribed to our newsletter.

Stephen enjoyed over 25 years in Yield, Sales, Retail, Cruise, Product Contracting and Traveltech in the travel industry. From these platforms, he has managed to gain in-depth knowledge of working cultures in UK, Europe, and the Middle East.

Mize is the leading hotel booking optimization solution in the world. With over 170 partners using our fintech products, Mize creates new extra profit for the hotel booking industry using its fully automated proprietary technology and has generated hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue across its suite of products for its partners. Mize was founded in 2016 with its headquarters in Tel Aviv and offices worldwide.

Related Posts

List of 32 travel agency management groups

6 min. Whether you are thinking of moving into the travel industry or you already own a business in this sector, the concept of travel agency management groups is a task worthy of analysis and study. Defining an effective business model for your retail travel agency is one of the key factors in optimizing sales […]

Ultimate Guide to Understanding the Benefits of a Travel Management Company

12 min. Managing and operating modern businesses often encompasses corporate travel. However, managing business travel is complex, especially with limited experience and resources. You must ensure that everything goes smoothly for the travelers while staying on top of the logistics and expenses. That’s why many organizations decide to outsource their travel management to a dependable […]

The Essentials About the Inventory System Used by Travel Agencies

11 min. While travel agencies have to overcome many challenges to remain competitive, there is one challenge in particular that all agencies need to overcome despite their size or target market. They need to excel as intermediaries between tour operators or travel product suppliers and consumers or travelers. The real question is, how do they […]

• Documentation
• Contact Support

Subscribe to our blog

What Is an Online Booking System? (Reservation System Definition)

March 6, 2023

Booking Tools

Reading time

Explore topics

Guide to Creating Life Coaching Packages & Fees + Examples

How to Package Consulting Services? The Complete Guide

How to Cancel an Appointment? Examples and Tips for Service Business Owners

Amelia vs. Calendly: In-Depth Comparison To Help You Choose a Scheduling Solution

Recurring Appointments Guide: Streamline Your Scheduling & Boost Performance

Limited time offer

Effortless Appointment & Event Booking

Save 40% on WordPress Booking Plugin

Read Inspiring Customer Stories

Check out how our user set Amelia for his business

In the past 20 years, technology has radically changed the way we do business. Agreeing on deals has gone from a business lunch ending with a handshake to the click of a button. Stores are constantly being replaced with websites. Countless other changes have meant that the way businesses function has changed fundamentally.

One such change that has a huge impact on businesses is how customers want to book services and products.

No more are they eager to get on the landline and call up a business to book an appointment – that’s old-school now.

They prefer to be able to go online to see all the time slots available and select the best one for them.

This makes it so much easier, not only for the client but for companies too.

That is if you have the right software!

What Is an Online Booking System?

The name pretty much speaks for itself. An online booking system lets customers book with you online. This means no more phone tag or emails back and forth to find a suitable time.

Remember the days of checking manually for whether an appointment slot was free? After you did that, you’d let the client know, then they would suggest another time, and so on and so forth. Any further changes required another call and the same process all over again. Even with receptionists and dedicated staff, this takes up a lot of admin time and inefficiency, resulting in lost customers.

At the core, online booking systems give clients a way of seeing, booking and paying for appointments online through your website.

The whole process is done all online, pretty much without any involvement from you. As it’s all a digital process, this means that no double-booking or human error can occur in this process.

Truly forward-thinking software can even let customers even on mobile. Suddenly, people can book from anywhere, at any time of day. No more lost customers due to business hours or busy landlines. Customers will be happier too, using the simple system where they can see all options available at a glance.

Why should your company consider using online appointment scheduling software ? The benefits of using this are profound – saving you time and money. That’s not to mention the increased satisfaction of your customers meaning greater profits for you.

Who Is It For?

Think about the companies that have been using online booking forms for a long time. When was the last time you called up a hotel to see when they have a free reservation? It just makes sense to do it all online for a number of industries. Travel, hotel, and property bookings. Restaurants, hairdressers, and spas can all streamline their booking services this way too. Online booking systems can be used by any type of business that takes bookings though.

The main small to medium business types that use online booking systems are the following:

• Health services, such as doctors or dermatologists
• Wellness services, like personal trainers
• Entertainment, like booking show tickets online

If your organization relies on reservations or bookings as part of your business, getting an online booking system will change your life.

It is one of the fastest and easiest ways to save time and increase business efficiency. It’s seen as an essential tool by those who have already experienced it. These are the industries who really benefit from using an online booking system:

• Training providers
• Event managers
• Travel (airlines, cruises)
• Accommodation (Airbnb, hotels, holiday homes)
• Meeting room hires
• Law practices
• Rentals (like car rentals)
• Beauty (spas, massage therapists)
• Hairdressers
• Activity companies
• Real Estate (open home bookings)
• Doctors and other medical service providers

How Does Online Booking Software Work?

Essentially, online booking systems offer a way for customers to book a service. They can even pay for that service online through your website too. The more advanced software will allow clients to book via social media and on their cellphones. This means that people can book from anywhere at any time. This makes booking appointments so much easier.

Online booking systems are also referred to as software as a service (SaaS). You usually pay a monthly price to use the services the software offers.

So how do online bookings work? They can be integrated into your existing website or social media page without too much hassle. They are designed so that when a customer visits your site, they can see a booking calendar with available appointments. Then they just choose the service they want, the time and fill out a booking form online. You can set up this booking form, so you give out all the necessary data needed for the appointment.

The next step is for the customer to pay for their appointment through an online payment gateway. This will transfer the payment to your company. You can trust online booking software to safely undertake online payment processing. All details are stored securely in cloud content management systems. These are usually completely protected and encrypted. This means that customer data and information cannot be stolen.

7 Main Features of Online Booking Software

When looking for an online booking system, these are 7 features you’ll want to have.

Ease of Use

For people to go through with their intention to book, the booking system itself is the first hurdle. Online booking systems should be easy to use for the company but also for the customer. It should be user-friendly with clear steps.

On the business end, they should be easy for staff to manage. This way, owners can view what appointments are coming up and manage staff time.

Calendar Incorporation

When booking, it helps customers when they are shown a calendar. They can then click on the day they want and book from there. On the calendar, it should be self-explanatory which appointments are available.

Payment Facilities

Not every company needs to accept payments in advance. If yours is one that does, you need to make sure that the payment system is a smooth process for customers.

Appointment Management

Available times and staff should be clear to customers when they are making a booking . They should also be aware of the cost and time available for the appointment.

Real-Time Booking

There’s no reason your customers should have to wait for booking confirmation, with the days of email and phone booking behind us. Your guests are there to make a booking quickly and easily. Therefore, bookings on your site should be in real-time. Customers should immediately receive confirmation.

Third-Party Integration

The online booking system will, of course, contain a lot of data about your clients and appointments. This can be used by you for your marketing and decision making. That’s why it’s important that you find an online booking system that integrates with other marketing tools. These would include Google AdWords or Facebook. If you can find one that integrates with your financial system, that’s even better. Especially if you are accepting online payments.

Automated Emails

We’ve already discussed that the days of emailing back and forth to find an appointment time are over. You should be able to find software that provides automated emails instead. These could include appointment confirmation , arrival information, and payment requests.

Why Get an Online Booking System?

The purpose of an online reservation system is that customers can make their appointments with you online. Cut out the middleman by getting bookings directly from customers. No need for going through a receptionist. Here are three reasons you should consider getting an online booking system:

It Gives You an Edge Over Your Competition

Plenty of businesses that do tours create a website and are present on Google Places. However, not many let you book their tours online. By opting for an online reservation system, you’re a step ahead of your competitors. This could be the deciding factor when people are choosing to book with you or not. They know exactly when they can come on your tours, but if they go with someone else it’s an extra step to call and book.

That alone may not be enough to make the sale, but with a sharp website, you’re sure to attract more bookings . You don’t want people to click on your page and then go somewhere else. Make sure you have eye-catching photos and interesting content too.

You Increase Your Bookings

Booking platforms can be used by your customers 24/7. This gives you a huge advantage over competitors who take phone or email bookings. This means they can only take and confirm bookings during business hours. But you can do it at any time! You could go to sleep and have more customers when you wake up. The system is always working for you.

Secure Payments

PayPal and Sage Pay have become so common nowadays that people really don’t like giving card details over the phone anymore. And there’s no need with the invention of secure payment gateways.

Online payments used to make people question a company because they weren’t sure it was secure. but now we have better methods for doing this and credit card fraud is quite rare through online payment systems. Look for an online booking system that has an ‘SSL Certificate’ on the page. This way your customers know they are using a secure service.

It Speeds Up Your Cash Flow

Payments go straight from customers into your account. You don’t need to do anything – hundreds of customers could decide overnight to book and pay and you could wake up with much more cash. There’s no wait time for receiving it and you don’t need to do anything to accept the payment.

It Saves You Time

Once you’ve chosen your online booking system and set up your team’s availability, that’s it! You can sit back, relax, and watch the bookings roll in. No more reminders or follow up emails to worry about – the system does it all for you. By saving you time, these systems can save you a lot of money. So, spend your time focusing on the more important things.

It Is an Information Resource 

Customers provide a lot of information when booking; names, phone numbers , email addresses . It’s a great source of data that, with software, can be organized and used again. Send follow-ups with special offers or thank them for using your service. This will remind your customers that you’re there and they may book again. Have amazing customer service without a great deal more effort or time spent.

You will Increase the Efficiency of Your Operations

It’s so easy to stay on top of things with these systems because they will update your availability instantly. They interact with other calendars to sync up so there’s no double-entry of information. Save time spent on admin and take away the chance of double-booking!

You Will Get Smarter Insights into Your Business

Online reservation systems can provide you with data and analytics. These are usually displayed as an easily readable dashboard so it’s simple to see what services or staff your best-sellers are. This gives you critical information about customer behavior and therefore tells you what to focus on in your business.

Less Phone Time

If you have an online booking solution, you’re canceling the need for clients to call to make an appointment. They have all the information they need online, so won‘t have to pick up the phone. Because you’re spending less time on the phone, you’ll have more time to make the in-person customer experience amazing.

Examples of Appointment Scheduling Software

Which software you’re going to choose does have a huge dependence on the industry you’re working in. But to give you an idea of what’s out there, here are some examples:

Amelia  is an online scheduler that will definitely exceed your expectations. It is a  feature-packed plugin  that works well with WordPress and has many happy customers to attest to this.

By using Amelia, you can perform all sorts of appointment-related tasks,  easily customize the booking process , and even manage appointments for different business locations.

And all those under only one license, no add-ons needed, unlike other similar plugins you’d find in this list.

For those who own business chains, Amelia is the perfect match because it is able to centralize all the data in one place. Amelia is one of the best scheduling apps you can use, regardless of your business’ size, and it is exceptionally user-friendly with a clean, modern interface.

Amelia also has an Events Calendar module  integrated within its features.

This means that you can automate your Event bookings as well. To be more precise, it means that you will be able to schedule a single day, a multi-day, and also recurring events with Amelia.

To test things for yourself, I’d suggest  checking out the demos  and see how things look on the front end as well as in the back-end.

Trafft is a great option to use because it’s not just a scheduling tool. Trafft is a professional service business management software , a professional tool, and a digital business partner that covers different aspects of running a business.

It’s the kind of app that small and medium business owners, administrators, managers, and key staff in the service industry are using to take their processes and businesses to the next level .

How does it do that? Well, Trafft is a combination of an online no-code platform and human service from a team of service business automation experts. While that’s a mouthful, we can make it simple by saying that it provides all the necessary tools to organize schedules, accept bookings and payments, send reminders and integrate with other tools.

Trafft differentiates from typical apps and tools that automate smaller tasks like online bookings or personal schedules, and are usually hard to configure and maintain, and support is hard to get.

The Trafft app and its team do that by providing support for the complete workflow cycle of a service business, and has an extremely intuitive interface and UX .

What does that mean practically for you? You would not need to waste time on repetitive tasks like calling clients and confirming or rescheduling, and you won’t even need to hire additional people to do that.

It also comes with all the features that you need to get started, such as:

• Automatic online payment processing through multiple providers
• Two-way synchronization using external calendars (such as Google Calendar and Outlook )
• The ability for clients to reschedule
• The ability to create a call-to-action (CTA) booking page
• In-depth overviews of your business performance using key performance indicators
• Client management using email and SMS notifications and reminders
• Discount/loyalty coupons when managing appointments
• Ability to manage bookings, employees, locations, services, schedules, and more

Bookeo was set up to be used by individuals or smaller companies. Photographers, therapists, and car washers enjoyed using this tool for their scheduling needs. However, Bookeo has now expanded to work for different kinds of companies and clients. You can choose between its two products – Bookeo Tours & Activities and Bookeo Class & Courses. The first will let you book tours and other tourism activities, while the second is good for language classes, cooking lessons and much more.

Resurva is an efficient online booking solution. A lot of barbershops seem to use it. It offers a way to do bookings over multiple franchises of your business so it’s great for medium-sized businesses in this way. Some other features are automated reminders, weekly calendars, and analytics.

Booker is a great software that lets clients make bookings through your website, mobile app or social accounts. Not all software can do that, especially not the social accounts part. That’s its main point of difference. It can also manage inventory and customer information, as well as accept payments.

10to8 is great because it integrates with iCal, Gmail and Outlook as well as other software. You can embed their booking button onto your own website as well as their booking form. It’s useful for a whole range of business types. Tradies and other service industries like to use this one.

Should You Have an Online Reservation System?

Let’s get back to the basics – do you really need an online reservation system? Our answer is; only if you want to save time and money while increasing customer satisfaction. So that’s a yes. Online booking systems have been becoming more popular for a reason – customers love them. Research shows that the harder it is for a customer to book with you, the less likely they are to do it.

If you insist on taking phone bookings, you’re limiting the timeframe in which customers can book. With online systems, they can book any time of day or night without needing you to be there, phone in hand.

Small businesses often question whether this online software is worth the investment. It’s important to shop around and find a software that best suits your business needs. It will be a big change for your staff to get used to it, so it’s important to get it right the first time. Many offer free online booking system trials so you could give them a go and see if they have everything you need. It’s best if the trials you take have the two ‘no’s’ (no credit card information needed and no contract) – just like Amelia’s Amelia Lite version.

Many offer free online booking system trials of at least a month.

When choosing a provider, consider whether that online booking system is targeted toward bigger or smaller enterprises. It’s critical that you get one that’s aimed at your level or it won’t have the functionality best suited to your needs.

After researching the different systems available, you should have a good idea of what will suit your business. Try out the one you choose for at least a quarter to see if it works. Any less time is not long enough for your customers to try it out effectively.

FAQs about online booking systems

1. what is an online booking system.

A software platform known as an online booking system enables users to schedule appointments or reservations online at any time. The technology automates the booking procedure, enabling businesses to manage bookings more effectively and providing clients with a quicker and more comfortable means of ordering goods or services.

2. What are the benefits of using an online booking system?

Online reservation systems have many advantages, including enhanced productivity, lighter workloads, higher customer satisfaction ratings, and increased revenue. They make it possible for businesses to handle reservations in real-time, provide clients with more individualized services, and lower no-show rates.

3. How do online booking systems work?

Customers can browse available dates and times, choose the service they want, and pay for it online using online booking systems. The system subsequently confirms the reservation and provides the consumer with a confirmation. Customers can receive reminders from the system before to their appointment, and businesses can use the system to track bookings and manage reservations.

4. Can I customize an online booking system to fit my specific needs?

Yes, the majority of online reservation systems provide branding, pricing, and service options customization possibilities. Some systems even let companies build their own custom fields or forms to record certain consumer data or requests.

5. What types of businesses can benefit from using an online booking system?

An online booking system might be useful for any business that requests appointments or bookings from clients. Businesses including hotels, restaurants, hairdressers, exercise facilities, and healthcare providers fall under this category.

6. How do customers use an online booking system to make reservations?

By accessing the company’s website and choosing the service or item they desire, customers can use an online booking system. Following that, they can choose the time and date that work best for them and make an online payment for the service. The system will then validate the reservation and email the customer confirmation.

7. Is it possible to integrate an online booking system with other software programs?

Yes, a lot of online reservation systems provide for interaction with other applications, including CRM, payment processors, and marketing automation tools. This makes it possible for companies to control every facet of their operations from a single platform.

8. What security measures are in place to protect customer data in an online booking system?

To protect consumer data, the majority of online booking systems employ industry-standard encryption and security standards. To further ensure that consumer data is secure, they also provide additional security features including two-factor authentication and data backups.

9. How much does it cost to use an online booking system?

The price of an online reservation system varies according to its features, degree of customization, and volume of reservations. While some systems have a set rate, others charge by the booking or the user.

10. What kind of support is available for businesses that use online booking systems?

The majority of online reservation systems offer email, phone, or live chat support. To help organizations get the most out of their system, some systems additionally provide thorough documentation, tutorials, and online training.

If you enjoyed reading this article about online booking systems, you should read these as well:

• ScheduleOnce vs Calendly: Which One is Better?
• Consulting buzzwords you should know before starting your business
• Guide to Opening a Gym and Starting a Successful Gym Business

Share the article

Sign up and get the latest stories and deals to your inbox!

We won't spam you, we will send just interesting stories and best features once or twice per month.

We care about your data in our privacy policy

Introducing the improved Amelia Cart feature.

Seamlessly book multiple appointments in a single transaction.

• View all new features

Who's it for

• Web Developers and Agencies
• Beauty and Spa Salons, Barbershops
• Yoga Instructors and Studios
• Doctors and Healthcare
• Event Agencies and Hosts
• Gyms and Personal Trainers
• Automotive and Car Repairs
• Photographers and Studios
• Coaching and Consulting
• Appointment Booking
• Scheduling for Your Business
• Booking for WooCommerce Stores
• Success Stories
• Suggest a Feature
• Customer Support
• Affiliate Program

All Rights Reserved (c) TMS, Amelia WP Booking Plugin 2018-2024

What Is An Online Travel Agency And How Do They Work?

• Category: Marketing Strategy for Tour Operators
• Date: November 4, 2020

Wondering what an online travel agency is? Arival defines an OTA in its “Sales & Distribution Trends & Outlook 2020” report: “Contract tour and attraction products from operators, market them online, and resell them on their websites for commission.” Below, we’ll provide additional definitions and examples of online travel agencies.

We’ll also cover how an online travel agency earns money, their roles in the travel industry, and the disadvantages of online travel agencies.

What Is An Online Travel Agency?

An Online Travel Agency (OTA) is an online or app-based marketplace where consumers can browse, book, and pay for hotel rooms, transportation, lodging, airfare, restaurants, and experiences. Customers book directly with the OTA and the OTA confirms with the service provider. Therefore, the OTA has a relationship with the customer, not the service provider. OTAs differ. While some target a specific audience, others may be broader.

This is a straightforward way for travelers to find activities in the area they’re visiting without having to do a ton of research. While it makes it easier for travelers to find an activity in the area they’re staying in, going through an OTA is more of an impersonal experience.

The allure of OTAs is that they have millions of monthly visitors and offer a depth of travel inventory that covers a wide variety of experiences, geography, and groups of travelers.

OTAs – One-Stop-Shop

OTAs have become a one-stop-shop for travelers. From bookings airfare to hotels to experiences, consumers no longer have to spend hours researching or calling to plan their adventures. OTAs also provide reviews that have become increasingly popular and more important in this technological age.

Online Travel Agency Examples

Notable examples of OTAs are Expedia, TripAdvisor/Viator, GetYourGuide, and Klook. Consumers visit websites like these to book their guided tours, hotels, and airfare because of its ease of use. OTAs are the intermediary between tour operators and the customer. Because they operate not just as an agent for outfitters but as a marketing arm, guiding companies pay them a commission. 

"> Automate Your Tasks ">

Tour operator life is complicated Use a booking platform that simplifies it.

How An Online Travel Agency Works

Getting started.

• Some online travel agencies require tour operators to apply to be a supplier on their site, while others only request guides to make an account and they’re automatically approved.
• When the OTA approves the tour operator, they can create a listing. Usually, the OTA prompts for answers to help the operator complete fields relating to their listings.
• Once a tour operator finalizes their listing, it goes live immediately, soon thereafter, or following the OTAs review.
• There is a possibility of finding new customers through the OTA because they can reach and advertise to places a small or new operator cannot.

The Marketplace

• Consumers visit the marketplace and browse for their next adventure, hotel, or airline ticket. Not only are tour operators competing with other tour operators but they’re also competing with OTAs that offer their own options, like GetYourGuide.
• Some OTAs offer “curated marketplaces” instead of “open marketplaces.” This means they choose what providers to show on their platform. Some operators fear that OTA’s will curate towards ‘best-selling, high-capacity’ companies (i.e. large companies preferenced over smaller operators). Let’s remember that the best-selling does not always equate to the best quality or best guest experience.
• When a consumer signs up on the OTA platform, their contact information and review stay on the OTA platform and are not pushed to the operator’s website.
• Depending on an OTA’s cancellation policy, if the consumer cancels their reservation, your business could lose money.

How An Online Travel Agency Earns Money

Whenever a customer books an activity through an OTA, the tour operator must pay the OTA a commission, which can range anywhere from 15 to 30% of a booking . OTAs and tour operators negotiate the commission rate.

Bigger companies can negotiate a lower rate because of their size. According to Arival, this is one of the primary reasons operators won’t work with OTAs. As a small operator, their commission fees could be too costly and you could end up losing money.

Disadvantages Of Online Travel Agencies

Not necessarily the best deal through an ota.

Many consumers visit online travel agencies for deals, but what ends up happening is that they end up paying the same, if not more than if they booked directly with the tour provider. 

OTAs Keep Customer Contact Information

For tour operators, most, if not all, OTAs own the customer data and do not share it with tour operators. This means there is no relationship between tour outfitters and the people who go on your excursions.

Lack of Inventory Tracking

In order to keep track of inventory, tour operators will likely have to have a connectivity channel provider. A connectivity provider is a communication line between the tour operator’s website and the OTAs website. This keeps inventory numbers accurate and prevents outfitters from having to track inventory manually.

If a tour outfitter does not use a connectivity channel provider, it is up to them to track their inventory by hand. Manually tracking inventory often leads to overbooking or double booking reservations.

Tour Operators Become Overreliant On OTAS

It might make sense for a new tour operator to use an OTA to reach a new market they wouldn’t otherwise. The extensive database of customers on an OTA platform provides the possibility of more bookings an operator could receive as opposed to marketing to a new audience on their own.

What we’ve heard happen is that these operators become too reliant on OTAs for new customers. Should this happen, an operator is at the mercy of any changes made by the OTA, like commission fees, for example.

Alternatively, Origin offers freedom and growth for tour operators. We’ve developed simple booking software to keep you organized and to grow your business.

Get Started with Origin​

Sign up and get started on Origin today. Start using a scheduling and booking platform built for your business.

You Might Like...

How Tour Operators Are Improvising During COVID-19

Why You Need Outdoor Adventure Guide Scheduling Within Your Booking Platform

How Operators Can Minimize Abandoned Bookings (With Origin)

How To Create The Best Damn Automated Booking Confirmation Communication System

What Does Your Booking Process Say About Your Guiding Business?

Mastering Post-Trip Automated Review Requests: A Guide For Tour Operators

Unleashing the Spirit of Adventure: Inspiring Women Guides You Need to Know

The journal.

What Does the Online Travel Booking Process Look Like?

Table of Contents

Customers are getting more and more options when it comes to travel, which is making the hotel business very competitive on digital platforms. It’s easy to lose out if your website and booking engine don’t match. Let’s explore some ways to optimize your online travel booking process and make sure your customers have a smooth and seamless experience.

In a world that is becoming more digital, it shouldn’t be a surprise that a big part of the hotel room business is done online. People often go to the websites of travel agencies to get information ahead of time and to make reservations.

There are many benefits to booking online. The main reason for a hotel to have its own online hotel booking engine is so that it can get reservations without having to pay commissions to a third party. Online travel agency (OTA) means that the hotel will make more money directly.

A secure, self-service platform that lets your guests book through your website at any time and from anywhere, without help from staff. This makes sure you never lose a booking because you don’t have enough staff. For international travelers, that means they don’t have to worry about time zones when making reservations. Also, online booking tools make the booking process more professional and say a lot about your brand and services.

The Online Booking Process

The main goal of an online booking system is to let people book and pay for themselves on your website. All of the back-end management features are just a huge bonus.

So, you might be interested to know how the online booking process looks to guests. Because if they can easily follow the steps, you’ll be able to get more direct bookings and make twice as much (or more) money.

As technology improves and gets more modern, most hotels now let people book rooms online. But it can be hard or confusing for people who have never booked a hotel online before to do this. But the steps below will help people who have never booked a hotel online understand how it works and book a room quickly and correctly.

Choosing a travel service

When you go to the websites of the big travel agencies, you can see on the top bar that they offer different services, like planes, hotels, car rentals, packages that include both planes and hotels (like a tour) to help customers save time on travel, and other services. First, you should decide what kind of service you want. For example, you might want to book a flight or find a hotel for your trip.

Selecting travel dates and destinations

After you choose a service like a flight or hotel that works for you, you can see in the middle of the screen that you have a lot of options. You should think carefully about when you will arrive and when you will leave. Don’t forget to set a firm and good date for your trip. 

You should also think about what the weather is like there and what big events or festivals are going on to help you find more interesting things to do on your trip. One more thing to keep in mind about choosing a fixed time: if you book a hotel room, you must check out on the same day so you don’t mess up the plans of the next person who booked a room at the same hotel as you.

Choosing specific travel options

You should find the right room type for your trip based on how many people will be going. Because there are so many options for how many people are going, the reservation system can suggest suitable room types without any trouble or worry.

The website will show you everything you need to know to book a hotel room, including the address, a picture, an introduction, a list of room prices, the amenities, and the rules of the hotel. Which hotel do you like? You can choose your arrival date, your departure date, your room number, the number of adults, and the number of children. After that, click Done or Find.

Choose the right room rate, look at photos and the room’s features, and think about adding an extra bed. Click Book Now to keep going.

Entering passenger information

After you choose the hotel where you want to stay and decide whether you want to book through a travel agency or directly on the hotel’s website, you can book a hotel online. After that, you’ll click “booking” and fill in some basic information about yourself, like your first and last name, phone number, email address, the room number you want to book, the type of room you want to book, how many people will be staying there, etc.

Making a payment

With the growth of the internet, travel agents now offer more ways to pay for hotels that are booked online. You can pay with a bank card through online banking, a credit card, an e-wallet, or at a cash collection point, among other options. With different ways for customers to pay, goods are also easier to buy.

When you book online, you may get a discount if you pay with a certain e-wallet or a credit card from a certain bank. So, you should check to see if there’s a way to pay that helps you save the most money.

If you are going on a long trip and need to stay at a hotel for several days, you can pay for the room for the first two or three days before you get there. The rest of the stay will be paid for when you get there. But not all travel agents or hotels let you do this, so before you pay, you can call and ask.

Reviewing and confirming booking details

After you pay for your online hotel reservation, the system will send you a confirmation email. A booking confirmation receipt and a booking code are often sent to the booker’s email or phone number these days. When you check into the hotel, this reservation code is one of the most important pieces of information you’ll need.

P/s: If you’re looking to take your hotel’s online booking process to the next level, you might want to consider using the WordPress travel booking engine payments gateway add-on . This powerful tool enables you to seamlessly integrate payment gateways into your booking engine, making it easier and more convenient for your customers to pay for their reservations online. In this introduction, we’ll explore the benefits of using this add-on , as well as some tips for getting started.

Carefully check the confirmation receipt

Lastly, it’s your job to double check the confirmation receipt to make sure all the information is correct. This includes the check-in date, check-out date, agreed room rate, number of rooms, booking information,… When everything is right and your online hotel booking is done, all you have to do is wait for the day, pack your bags, and go!

Real example of an online booking process

John and his wife, Mayar, stop in London for two days before going on vacation to Mozambique. John convinces Mayar that taking a bus tour is the best way to see more of the city since they don’t have much time.

Choosing a flight on Delta Air Lines' website

The best time for their trip will depend on what they want to do and what they need. John can go to the website and type in the basic information about the trip, such as the date of departure, the date of return, and the number of people who will be going. This will show him which flights are available on that day.

Searching some available information

Before booking a room on the website, John can find out some information, review the comments of bloggers or other customers on the website to check the brand’s reputation. By searching for keywords on google like “best bus tour in London”, or “impressive places to visit in London”, .. will have a lot of articles appearing with the website that they trusted booking to make their trip before.

Begin booking and Make a Reservation

John returns to their website, selects the bus trip, clicks “Book Now,” and then follows the on-screen instructions.

• Fill some information about your time travel including your arrival date, return date and the number of people joining your journey
• Compare the price and information of each service, for example, compare the prices of hotel A and hotel B, find out about the location, about the service and other amenities.
• Make a reservation and fill in some payment method information
• Reviewing and confirming booking details. It can be sent via email or SMS

Advantages and Disadvantages of Online Booking

Reservations can be made at any time on travel website

With online scheduling platforms, your company is accessible every day of the week, 24 hours a day.

To reserve a golf time, go anywhere. In other words, your clients can book a table whenever it works for them. Consumers spent more than $450 billion online in 2017, and this figure is only going to rise. Furthermore, research has shown that having something available right away when browsing for goods or services significantly boosts the number of purchases or appointments.

You can attract more customers who want to make an appointment or a tee time online.

Convenience and ease of use

By accessing a reputable travel website, you can search for any information and can rely on the 24/7 support or a virtual assistant. A room may be reserved at any moment. All your wishes and plans are available in the search engines without spending too much time traveling to a live travel agent to book or pay for services.

Ability to compare prices and reviews

When you book a room online, you’ll find there are plenty of choices. Before booking, you need to research and find reputable websites, have many people to choose from and feel satisfied after your trip because of good service. You can also freely compare the prices of other travel agents to find the services that suit your needs.

Disadvantages

Potential for technical issues and errors

If you book during the tourist season, there will be more bookings, so there may be some errors such as a slow website or problems that need to be refilled. For each situation, there will be different solutions and remedies. It is important that you better book at times when other people are resting.

The wrong booking system could make your job more difficult.

The proper online booking platform will make it simpler to accept, handle, and expand your bookings, whereas the incorrect one may make it more challenging to do so. If visitors find it difficult to make reservations, a poorly designed reservation system may even have the unfavorable effect of degrading customer service. Therefore, it’s crucial to take your time and thoroughly select your provider.

It is now simpler than ever for travelers to plan and schedule their trips thanks to the travel industry’s increasingly streamlined and effective online booking process. There are numerous online booking platforms accessible to customers, each with their own distinct features and advantages, for everything from flights and hotels to vehicle rentals and activities. Travelers can easily research and compare prices, read other travelers’ reviews, and make their travel arrangements with just a few clicks thanks to the ease and flexibility that online booking offers.

Unleash The Full Potential of Your Travel Agency Website with Traveler

• NEW VERSION 3.1.1 – Upsell and Trust Badges For Partner by traveler 16/11/2023
• How to Increase Bookings for Your B&B? by traveler 13/09/2023
• NEW VERSION 3.1.0 – New Update Solo Tour Demo, Mega Menu, Upsell Power and Trust Badges by traveler 11/09/2023
• How To Optimize Blog Content for Your Bed & Breakfast Business? by traveler 10/09/2023
• Top 5 Ways to Advertise Your Bed and Breakfast Business by traveler 10/09/2023

Related Posts

How to increase bookings for your b&b, how to optimize blog content for your bed & breakfast business, top 5 ways to advertise your bed and breakfast business.

• Privacy Policy
• Support Policy
• Refund policy
• Term and Conditions

Traveler design by ShineCommerce © All rights reserved

Diversity Dictionary: What is an online booking tool?

The benefits of using an online travel booking tool:

Save time and money, secure & centralised data, compliance all the way, accessible anywhere, travel data analysis, like what you just read.

Subscribe  to  our  weekly  blog  for  all  your  travel  management  and  procurement  news,  views  and  facts.

• Property Management System
• Channel Manager
• Booking Engine
• Marketplace
• Revenue Management
• Cloudbeds Payments
• Cloudbeds Amplify New!
• Whistle for Cloudbeds New!
• B&Bs and Inns
• Hotel Groups
• Vacation Rentals
• Channel Connections
• Ambassador Partner Program
• Cloudbeds Horizon
• Become a Partner
• Case Studies
• Resource Center
• Guides & Reports
• Calculators
• What to Expect
• Customer Success
• Knowledge Base
• Product Updates
• Cloudbeds University
• Government Compliance
• Company News
• Meet the Team
• Careers We're Hiring!
• Become an Ambassador
• Event Schedule
• Cloudbeds Amplify
• Whistle for Cloudbeds

What are online travel agencies? The ultimate guide to OTAs

Love them or not, online travel agencies (OTAs) play a critical role in every property’s distribution strategy. According to Expedia Group’s 2023 Path to Purchase report, OTAs captured 51% of online hotel & lodging bookings and possess the visibility and marketing power that most individual properties cannot achieve on their own. 

Working with OTAs isn’t just a matter of signing up and hoping for the best. To take advantage of the opportunities and avoid the pitfalls, you need to actively manage your listings, pricing, and inventory and take a strategic approach to online distribution. 

If done correctly, adopting the right OTAs as part of your distribution strategy can actually help drive direct bookings through the “billboard effect.” Building a comprehensive channel mix incorporating different types of OTAs will ensure you reach your target audience and secure a steady stream of reservations. 

See which OTAs dominate globally, regionally, and across property types based on Cloudbeds customer data and how properties like yours use OTAs as part of their distribution strategy. 

At Cloudbeds, we know the world of OTAs and distribution channels can be complex. We’ve created the Big Book of OTAs to help demystify this process and explain how to create a recipe for success when working with third-party distribution channels.  

What is an online travel agency (OTA)?

An online travel agency (OTA) is a website that acts as a search engine for travel. They connect providers across the travel industry to help travelers easily plan their trips. On OTA sites, travelers can often access package deals with accommodations, airfare, cruises, rental cars, and more .

On average, travelers view 141 pages of travel content in the 45 days before booking a trip, with OTAs making up 67 of those pages. Therefore, properties must be active on as many channels as possible to increase brand awareness and drive bookings — both OTA bookings and direct bookings (more on this later). With the increased popularity of OTAs around the world, hoteliers now have access to markets once unattainable.

How do OTAs work?

Online travel agencies emerged in the 1990s, using the internet’s extensive reach to aggregate global travel supply into a single place so consumers could book their own travel online. These self-service tools reshaped the hotel industry and the way travel was researched and booked, as the general public could now easily plan their trips and reserve their airfare, accommodations, and tours on their own rather than rely on a physical travel agent.

Sites such as Expedia.com, Booking.com, Airbnb, Orbitz, Hotels.com, and TripAdvisor are often consumers’ first stop when researching and booking their next trip. These sites offer a seamless user experience at all stages of the buying process: problem/need recognition, information search, evaluation of alternatives, purchase decision, and post-purchase behavior.

Properties of all types and sizes can connect to multiple OTAs through an integrated channel manager . A distribution system, like a channel manager, shares room inventory and rates from your property management system (PMS) to your booking engine and OTAs. Properties that use a channel manager can streamline hotel operations, increase hotel revenue via revenue management best practices , and increase occupancy across channels (all without the fear of overbookings). 

OTA business models

Hotels form partnerships with OTAs by basically outsourcing marketing to OTAs, who then make money through two business models: the merchant model (guest pays the OTA  in advance) and the commission model (guest pays the hotel at check-in or check-out). Most OTAs offer a blended model so that hotels can let guests choose which option they’d prefer. 

The merchant model

In this model, the online travel agency acts as the merchant of record and collects payments from guests at the time of booking. Once the guest has checked out, the OTA pays the hotel. Contracts exist between hotels and OTAs to provide a set number of rooms to the OTA at a favorable rate. The OTA then makes a profit off each room sold but must meet its contractual thresholds.

The agency (commission) model

In this model, the consumer books via the OTA but pays the hotel directly at the time of checkout. The hotel then pays the OTA a commission on the total value of the booking after checkout. There are no contracts, and rates are set by hotel management. 

The advertising model

This model has increased in popularity and exists on metasearch sites such as Google Hotel Ads, Tripadvisor, Trivago, and KAYAK. Metasearch engines work primarily on a cost-per-click basis where hotels can promote their rooms with links to their direct booking engine, and pay a fee based on the number of clicks they receive. Some of these sites, such as Google, also offer a cost-per-acquisition model (also known as “pay per stay”) where the property pays a percentage of the total reservation cost upon completion of the stay.

For hotels, it can be frustrating to watch distribution costs rise without getting more in return, but there are costs associated with direct bookings too. Demand doesn’t appear without at least some sort of distribution or marketing strategy in place, and those marketing campaigns, loyalty offers, special deals, and direct booking tools have a cost to the hotel. That’s why it’s important to use OTAs wisely and in conjunction with your own direct marketing strategy. 

Online travel agencies vs. online travel agents

Before the rise of OTAs, it was the role of a travel agent to book leisure and business travel. This is because travelers back then did not have access to hotel availability and rates the way we do today. While the internet has made it easier for travelers to book their own trips online, some segments like luxury, corporate, and group travelers still prefer to utilize a person, or online travel agent, to help plan and book a trip.

Travel agents are beneficial when planning complex trips such as a destination wedding, honeymoon, or corporate trip. They have the expertise and connections to find unique accommodations at better rates than most people can find themselves.

Travel agents such as Kuoni have a team of destination experts who work behind the scenes to curate tailor-made accommodations, experiences, and itineraries. Their in-person stores allow travelers to enjoy a glass of champagne while meeting with a travel expert to plan their dream vacation.

Travel agents usually have a portfolio of properties they recommend to travelers and take a commission fee, similar to OTAs. Strong relationships with travel agents can help properties drive more bookings in alternative segments than the OTA market.

Difference between OTAs and metasearch

With so many online booking channels available today, it can be challenging to understand the difference between certain channels.

Metasearch websites like Skyscanner act as aggregators and display hotel information and room rates from a variety of online channels, including OTAs like Agoda, Trip.com, Travelocity, or Priceline.com and a hotel’s website. It enables travelers to compare all of their hotel booking options in real time across the web so that they can book the best deal.

OTAs provide room rates and booking capabilities for only one channel — their own. Meanwhile, metasearch sites can display up to twenty or more results.

Properties can invest in hotel marketing efforts through metasearch engines. Metasearch sites rank listings and it pays off to be near the top. Paying to have your listing higher in the ranks to drive more direct bookings can drive serious results. 

Is Google an OTA?

Google is often a traveler’s first stop when looking for a hotel room. In recent years, Google has changed the hospitality industry with its products. Google offers Google Hotel Search, which acts as a hotel metasearch platform. When a traveler enters a property’s name into Google, it will show all of the rates and listing information from across the web.

Google also has free booking links , a game-changer for independent hotels as they can list their direct rates and links to their own website within the Google Hotel Search box. This option encourages potential guests to book direct.

The Big Book of OTAs

• First name *
• Last name *
• Property Name *
• Property Type * Property type* Hotel Bed and Breakfast Hostel Apartment Groups Vacation Homes Alternative Accommodations
• How many listings do you have?
• How many Addresses does your business have?
• Language for your demo * English
• Increase revenue
• Delight guests
• Streamline operations
• Property Name
• Property Type Property type* Hotel Bed and Breakfast Hostel Apartment Groups Vacation Homes Alternative Accommodations
• Postal Code
• Language for your demo English Spanish Portuguese Franch Vietnamese Japanese Thai Italian
• Cloudbeds Hospitality Platform
• Cloudbeds Websites
• Ambassador Program
• Cloudbeds Login
• Terms of Service
• Privacy Policy
• Data Security
• Cookie Policy
• Accessibility

Exciting news! We've launched a new website for Expedia Group partners. As you explore this website, you may be redirected to the new experience to get the latest information. Check it out today ! 

Oops. It looks like your browser doesn't support JavaScript, which is keeping you from having the best experience on our site. No worries! You can fix it by going to the settings in your browser and enabling JavaScript.

Why do you need an Online Travel Agency (OTA)?

Working with an Online Travel Agency (OTA) not only helps you reach more travelers globally, it allows you to engage them when they’re researching, planning and booking their next trip. Discover how they work, what tools they offer and how to choose the right one for your business.

What is an OTA?

An online travel agency (OTA) is a web-based marketplace that allows consumers to research and book travel products and services, including hotels, flights, cars, tours, cruises, activities and more, directly with travel suppliers. Every day, millions of travelers around the world use OTAs to plan leisure and business travel.

OTAs provide access to your potential guests in locations and at volumes that would be difficult for you to access through your own marketing efforts. Additionally, OTAs provide market insights and tools for targeting travelers, securing and processing bookings, communicating with guests and managing reviews.

How do hotels work with OTAs?

Hotels of all sizes–including bed & breakfasts, inns and ryokans–sign contracts to list their properties on an OTA. There are no upfront fees to list rooms in the marketplace. OTAs make money only when rooms are booked, collecting a percentage of the total value of each secured reservation.

The OTA provides opportunities to  showcase rooms and properties  through amenity descriptions, photos, nearby points of interests and more. Listings are displayed to travelers searching for places to stay in your destination. If they use filters to narrow their search—e.g. only looking for pools, free Wi-Fi, or air conditioning—the OTA will align travel criteria with the detail provided by the hotel, displaying the properties that match best.

The OTA provides a secure booking platform and is the traveler’s main point of contact for booking amendments and cancellations. At no cost,  OTAs provide a variety of tools —from real-time access to market data to tools for managing reviews—to help their partners be successful.

Why work with an Online Travel Agency (OTA)?

OTAs are increasingly popular. In fact, travelers today use OTAs  50% more  than hotel websites to compare leisure travel options. And that means OTAs can play an important part in your  distribution strategy.

Here’s why hotels like yours are choosing to use OTAs.

Online marketing investments you don’t have to make

Every year OTAs spend millions of dollars attracting consumers from around the world to their online travel marketplaces. Their investment in on online and tv advertising, billboards and sponsorships, social media and other marketing channels helps hotels to engage hard-to-reach travelers they couldn’t afford to reach otherwise. OTAs give you a low risk opportunity to grow your business, especially if you have limited marketing funds.

Greater visibility for your own website

Evidence shows that being listed on an OTA can bring more traffic to your property’s own website, because consumers often use OTAs for their search before booking directly. This is known as “ The Billboard Effect ”.

A  2011 study  which looked at consumers’ online pre-purchase behavior found that around 75% of people who made direct reservations with a major hotel brand had visited an OTA website before booking directly with the hotel.  Another report in 2017  showed that the “Billboard Effect” still occurs, as many people still visit an OTA prior to booking direct.

Increased ability to target high-value guests

Through their listing tools and marketing programs, many OTAs can help hotels target guests who will be delighted with their stay and drive profitable growth. Possibilities range from packaging rooms with flights to attract guests who tend to cancel less, to targeting business travelers, budget or luxury guests, families or those from specific regions.  Marketing programs  can help you achieve specific business goals, including maintaining high  average daily rates (ADRs) , driving longer stays to reduce costs or capture last-minute bookings. Best of all, when you attract the right guests for your property, you increase the likelihood of positive, glowing reviews.

Access to rich tools, analytics and insights

OTAs give you  free access to market data , competitive insights, traveler preferences and tools that otherwise can be costly to acquire on your own. Most will offer easy-to-use analytics to help you better understand your  year-over-year performance  and how you compare to like properties in your market. Based on their data and the booking trends in their marketplace, they may make suggestions to help you improve your results and offer tips and resources to support your decision making.

Dedicated support teams

Many OTAs support their partners’ success through regionally based account teams. These individuals have extensive market knowledge, can share insight on regional trends and advise on tactics that will help drive business success. When partners have issues or concerns, support teams and  help content  is available. Additionally, most OTAs provide travelers with service when they experience challenges before, during and after a trip.

What should you consider when choosing an Online Travel Agency (OTA)?

There are many OTAs to choose from, and they come in all shapes and sizes, from large, global OTAs to local and niche-interest ones. Here’s what to consider when comparing OTA options.

Who is their audience?

Many OTAs target specific audiences. Think about the region and segment you want to target and whether an OTA caters to this audience. For example, if you own a small B&B mainly catering to families, you would want to avoid signing up with an OTA which mainly targets business travelers.

You can find out more about an OTA’s target audience by looking at the properties listed on their website, or by simply asking a representative at the OTA before  signing up .

What is the user experience for guests?

Take a look at their traveler-facing websites (such as expedia.com) and get a feel for what the searching, browsing and booking experience is like for your potential guests.

If you find the experience difficult or frustrating, it’s likely other travelers will too. Frustrated travelers are likely to look elsewhere to make their bookings.

What features do they offer to partners?

Every OTA has a different set of  tools and analytics  to help with revenue management, pricing decisions, and promotion of your property. Some larger OTAs have whole teams dedicated to creating these tools, so it is worth assessing which OTAs offer the most useful tools for you.

Another important thing to consider is whether an OTA integrates with your  channel manager . This integration will be important to your  distribution strategy , helping smooth management of bookings and eliminating the risk of overbooking errors.

Once you’ve considered all these options and found the perfect OTA, it’s time to  sign up !

Meet Expedia Group

Prague hotel enjoys growth in a saturated market

Surrounded by 4 and 5-star competitors in the city’s old town, this historic hotel uses real-time pricing data and package promotions to grow steadily.

Discover Partner Central

What is Booking

Booking.com is an international travel rate aggregator and accommodation booking metasearch engine. It is part of Booking Holdings Inc, one of the world’s leading online travel companies, and has more than 17,000 employees spread across 198 offices in 70 countries around the world. Its headquarters are in Amsterdam (Netherlands).

Booking offers more than 30 million listings in nearly 150,000 destinations in 229 countries and territories around the world. Every day Booking.com receives more than a million and a half bookings from people from all over the world looking for a place to stay during their holidays or a business trip. The website is available in 43 languages and its advertising slogan is “Booking.com: Booking.yeah”

• 1 Origin of Booking.com
• 2 What is Booking for?
• 3 How Booking works

Origin of Booking.com

Booking.com has evolved significantly since its inception in 1996. In 2000, Bookings Online, founded by Sicco and Alec Behrens, Marijn Muyser and Bas Lemmens merged with Bookings.nl, creating the website we know today as Booking.com. This new website quickly grew in popularity due to its simple and user-friendly interface, which allowed travelers to search and compare deals easily.

In July 2005, Booking Holdings (then known as Priceline Group) acquired the company for a declared amount of USD 133 million. Following this acquisition, the company collaborated with ActiveHotels.com, another European hotel booking website that was also acquired by Booking Holdings / Priceline for $161 million.

Under the leadership of Stef Noorden, who was appointed CEO in 2000, Booking.com has experienced exponential growth and is now one of the world’s leading online travel companies, offering travelers a wide selection of accommodations across the globe. With more than 1.5 million properties in more than 225 countries and territories, Booking.com remains a trusted resource for travelers looking for the best deals on hotels, flights, rental cars and more.

What is Booking for?

The website offers a wide range of accommodation options, from hotels and resorts to houses, apartments and hostels. It also provides users with information about local attractions and activities at their destination, as well as detailed maps and directions.

How Booking works

Booking.com works to make traveling and booking accommodation easy and hassle-free. The website offers users a number of features that simplify the booking of their ideal accommodation, be it a hotel, a resort, a house, an apartment or a hostel.

The website has an intuitive search engine that allows users to easily search through thousands of and find their perfect stay. Once they have found the right property, users can book it directly through the secure Booking.com platform with their credit card or PayPal account.

The website provides comprehensive information about each property, including photos, reviews from past guests, and detailed descriptions of available amenities. In this way, users can make an informed decision on how to choose the right accommodation for them.

Booking.com also offers a loyalty program and exclusive discounts to its customers who book through its website. This helps incentivize users to come back again and again, allowing Booking.com to build a loyal customer base that keeps coming back on a recurring basis.

Digital Marketing, Analytics and Marketplaces Agency

• Digital Marketing
• Marketplaces

MADRID OFFICES

• Ferrocarril, 18. 28045 Madrid
• +34 91 060 64 28
• [email protected]
• Arimetrics © 2022
• Legal Notice

Privacy Overview

Example sentences travel booking

Sometimes there's no option if, for example, you want to make a travel booking .

It also offers online group travel booking services.

In 2010 an interactive website that has online dating and social networking, as well as a travel booking engine and music player.

Most of the growth of online travel booking has come from the development of travel websites that allow booking of flights, hotels, and car rentals.

The company receives most of its revenues from providing travel bookings to corporates.

Definition of 'booking' booking

Definition of 'travel' travel

COBUILD Collocations travel booking

Browse alphabetically travel booking.

• travel arrangements
• travel book
• travel booking
• travel brochure
• travel budget
• All ENGLISH words that begin with 'T'

Quick word challenge

Quiz Review

Score: 0 / 5

Wordle Helper

Scrabble Tools