Booking Holdings' Agoda Takes a Distinctive Approach on Short-Term Rentals

Much has been said about how online travel agency Booking.com in the past two years has played an aggressive game of catch-up in alternative accommodations. For a while, Airbnb and Expedia Group-owned HomeAway had been the segment leaders. By July 2018, Booking.com claimed to have become the leader in supply, with more than 5 million listings of homes, apartments, and other non-hotel lodgings. What has been less appreciated is that Booking Holdings has been taking a multi-brand approach. A little-noticed flank in the battle is its Thailand-based online travel agency Agoda, which has ramped up its effort this year, too. Agoda Homes — Agoda’s non-hotel accommodation inventory that includes a wide range of properties, such as holiday homes or serviced apartments — has existed as a product for years. In the last few months, the company updated the Agoda Homes branding and l