What Scraping 20,000 Google Hotel Listings Reveals
Skift Take
Key Points
- Skift Research scraped over 20,000 Google hotel listings, finding Booking.com as the dominant brand in sponsored results.
- The Biden administration proposed rules requiring airlines to disclose junk fees upfront and offer automatic refunds for significant disruptions.
- Hyatt's loyalty program now includes 700 Mr & Mrs Smith properties, adding 20 new countries where members can earn and redeem points.
Summary
Skift Research analyzed over 20,000 Google hotel listings to understand the competition among online travel agencies (OTAs) and direct hotel sites. Booking.com emerged as the most dominant brand in Google's sponsored results, while Expedia.com is heavily investing in ad space, particularly in Asia-Pacific and the Middle East and Africa. Google tends to prioritize direct sites over OTAs despite higher prices. Additionally, new rules from the Biden administration will require airlines to disclose junk fees upfront and provide automatic refunds for significant flight disruptions. Lastly, Hyatt's loyalty program now includes around 700 properties from Mr & Mrs Smith, expanding the list of countries where members can earn and redeem points.
Skift Daily Briefing Podcast
Listen to the day’s top travel stories in under four minutes every weekday.Presented by Criteo.
Good morning from Skift. It’s Thursday, April 25. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.
Listen Now
🎧 Subscribe
Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Overcast | Google Podcasts | Amazon Podcasts
Episode Notes
Skift Research recently examined more than 20,000 hotel listings on Google to discover which online travel agencies and direct sites compete for bookings. Senior Research Analyst Pranavi Agarwal explains the major findings from Skift Research’s report.
Agarwal notes that Booking.com is the dominant brand across Google’s sponsored results, paying to appear the most often in every region. However, Skift Research found Expedia.com is investing heavily in ad dollars to be the top-of-the list option in Google’s sponsored results, especially in Asia-Pacific and the Middle East and Africa.
In addition, Agarwal reports Google actively prioritizes direct sites over OTAs even though they are far from being the cheapest price.
Next, the Biden administration has unveiled a set of rules that would require airlines to tackle junk fees, writes Airlines Reporter Meghna Maharishi.
Maharishi reports the Department of Transportation is requiring airlines to disclose junk fees upfront. Airlines and ticketing agencies would have to inform customers of the prices for checked baggage, carry-ons, and changing or canceling a reservation. Airlines would also need to share all information on fees with third-party sites.
The Biden administration has also unveiled rules mandating airlines provide automatic cash refunds in instances of significant flight disruptions and delays in checked baggage. The Department of Transportation said consumers often encounter a cumbersome process to receive a refund from an airline.
Finally, Hyatt is finally permitting members of its loyalty program book at roughly 700 properties vetted by booking site Mr & Mrs Smith, which it bought last year, reports Senior Hospitality Editor Sean O’Neill.
O’Neill reports the new properties add about 20 countries to the list of nations where Hyatt loyalty members can earn and redeem points. In addition, booking a stay at a Mr & Mrs Smith hotel will work on the same points-earning system as a stay at a Hyatt property.
Producer/Presenter: Jane Alexander
Photo Credit: A person performs a Google search on their mobile phone. Unsplash / Arkan Perdana
Up Next
The State of Corporate Travel and Expense 2025
New Skift Feature: Uncovering Tech Vendor Opportunities Using AI Analysis
New Skift Podcast Mini-Series: How I Travel
Japan Airlines Under Cyberattack, Flights Delayed
