Articles tagged “discounting”

Discount travel sites tend to do well during times when vacation rentals and hotels aren't selling well on more traditional travel sites. Expedia/Vrbo's deal with Whimstay may reflect those market dynamics.

Despegar is growing with a steady pace of mergers and acquisitions, including Viajanet and Stays. It's a smart move to use vacation rentals to defend and expand market share.

At a time when some big hotel brands seek to increase average daily rates, Booking Holdings' expansion of its Genius loyalty and discounting program could hurt that effort. Some individual properties, hungry for increased exposure as they compete with vacation rentals and other hotels, will welcome the move.

Domestic airfares around the world fell dramatically in May — on average. But, as with hotels, there are currently pockets of strength — and will be for months. Still, contrarian trends don't make for a nice, tidy trend line when it comes to prices.

In an I-just-saw-an-elephant-fly moment, Marriott International will be directing businesses to Expedia Group to access certain Marriott wholesale rates. Bedbanks, tour operators, and smaller online travel agencies that play games with room rates are put on notice.

A recent Today Show segment touting Costco Travel is riling ASTA, as are Four Seasons ads on Facebook promising perks for direct bookings. Travel advisors are irked as well, but are finding ways to hold their own.