Online reservations continue to increase in importance as more and more consumers demand real-time, instant reservations. This page will keep you up to date on industry trends and online reservation news; if you'd like us to address a particular topic, don’t hesitate to contact us.
 

Tip of the Month

Announcements from BedandBreakfast.com
Online Reservation Trends

Tip of the Month
Are you missing out on international business? If so, the reason may be that you're not bookable online. With different time zones, your guests won't be able to call you during regular business hours. Let them book a room on their time at the push of a button! Don't miss out on the entire overseas market--take reservations while you sleep with BedandBreakfast.com Online Reservations.

Questions? Contact Online Reservations Support at 800-GO-B-AND-B (800-462-2632), extension 4; 512-322-2700, extension 4 or Reservations@BedandBreakfast.com.

Announcements from BedandBreakfast.com
Good news! BedandBreakfast.com Online Reservations is now available to properties worldwide!

How does it work? The function is exactly the same as it is for U.S. and Canadian properties. All payments are made in U.S. dollars, and international properties must have a PayPal account in order to receive payment. Read more.

More than 1,500 innkeepers in the United States and Canada have signed up for the BedandBreakfast.com Online Reservations program, which includes placement on industry leading sites like Expedia, hotels.com, SideStep.com and Kayak.com. This is a highly effective tool for helping you increase your occupancy during the times you need it. Call 1-800-462-2632, extension 4, or email Reservations@BedandBreakfast.com to learn how you can participate in this program and fill your unsold/empty rooms.
 

Get started today!

"The program is easy to learn and to use on an everyday basis. The Online Reservation Manager screen has a lot of helpful features. We have been very pleased with the amount of business we've received from BedandBreakfast.com, hotels.com and Expedia through this program." -- Tangi Pina, The Mary Prentiss Inn, Cambridge, MA

Trends in Online Reservations
One-third of German tourism revenues generated online: “Nearly one-third of total German tourism revenues were generated via the internet in 2006, a new study revealed. Online revenues rose to €12.9 billion in 2006 compared to €9.45 billion the year before. In contrast, offline distribution through travel agencies or direct sales channels such as call centers dropped from €28.1 billion to €27.7 billion, according to the study by research organization Ulysses Web Tourismus. The study predicts online travel sales will grow to €16.2 billion this year and to €19.3 billion in 2008, which would be 42% of a total market worth €45.5 billion.

"The major development last year was the rapid growth of online sales for major tour operators, who now generate about 10% of revenues through the internet, the study said. Specialist operators have even stronger online sales, with nearly 15% online. The study’s results were based on interviews with 357 tourism managers."

Expedia launches in Spain: “Expedia, Inc. announced the launch of its Spain website, Expedia.es, a full-service travel booking site designed specifically to meet the needs of Spanish travelers. It marks the company’s first Spanish-language Expedia-branded site, and its ninth Expedia point of sale in Europe, bringing the international total to 13. Spain is the fourth largest online travel market in Europe. With more than 50 million visitors each month to its international websites, and hundreds of staff throughout the world dedicated to working with hotel partners in local markets, Expedia is the global leader in online travel. (If you participate in BedandBreakfast.com Online Reservations, like The Chanric Inn below,  your inn is available on expedia.es.)


Expedia No. 1 for customer experience: Expedia was ranked as the No. 1 site in the Keynote Customer Experience Rankings in each of the three studies – airline, hotel and rental car – with the best overall ranking across the 250+ customer experience metrics measured in each study.

Online travel sales up: “Sales of online travel services could reach $146 billion by 2010, but year-to-year growth rates are cooling, according to a new research report from eMarketer. The online industry researcher's forecast includes all leisure and unmanaged business travel sales, including sales of airline tickets, hotel rooms, cruises and rental cars, but not meals or event tickets.

“For the first time, eMarketer noted that online travel bookings in the U.S. will surpass offline bookings in volume this year, according to PhoCusWright. In 2007, eMarketer estimates that 41.3 million U.S. households will book travel online, representing 53% of all U.S. online households. This year, U.S. online consumer travel sales will reach $94 billion, up 19% over 2006, according to eMarketer estimates.

“The report also noted that in 2006, an estimated 37.1 million households booked travel online, which is 50% of the total online households in the U.S. In 2010, eMarketer estimated there will be 51.1 million households booking travel online, representing 55% of online households in the U.S.”
 

Why people book last-minute: A new priceline.com survey of consumer trends finds that many short-notice travelers are just too busy to book their vacations any further in advance.

• 30% said they were overscheduled and can’t plan more than seven days in advance
• 13% said that concern about personal finances was behind their procrastination
• 27% believed they could find better travel deals by waiting to make their purchases

How long do they stay?

• 70% of survey respondents said that they stay three nights or fewer when they take a short-notice vacation
• 30% said they will vacation 4-7 nights on a spur-of-the-moment whim.
• 4% would book a trip of eight nights or longer on short notice.

What do they purchase last-minute?

• "Most consumers (59%) were inclined to buy hotel rooms on short notice, followed by airline tickets (36%) and rental cars (35%). Only 10% of respondents would buy a vacation package on short notice, and 7% would buy a cruise on short notice."