Booking.com News

As a global leader in online accommodations and travel services, Booking.com continues to shape the digital travel experience through innovation, platform evolution, and strategic partnerships. PhocusWire delivers the latest Booking.com news to keep industry professionals informed on how this travel giant is adapting to shifting market dynamics and consumer expectations.

Key Booking.com updates, partnerships, and market trends

Follow developments in Booking.com’s core technology, loyalty strategies, and supplier relationships, along with its expansion into flights, experiences, and payments. Our reporting covers how the brand is responding to competitive pressures, regulatory environments, and the increasing demand for seamless, personalized travel.

TRVL raises $2.7 million round and pivots to traveller-becomes-agent model
News / Distribution
TRVL raises $2.7 million round and pivots to traveller-becomes-agent model
By Kevin May | May 31, 2017
TRVL is celebrating turning itself from travel content aggregator to a hotel booking platform with a $2.7 million capital-raise. The company made the switch this year after hinting at a change in l Read More
Hitting the mainstream - nothing alternative about alternative accommodation now
News / Distribution
Hitting the mainstream - nothing alternative about alternative accommodation now
By Kevin May | May 22, 2017
It suited the industry vernacular for a long time to pigeon hole everything that wasn't a hotel into the term "alternative accommodation". Long before the emergence of Airbnb and even HomeAway, bra Read More
Amazon and its return to travel via the back door
News / Online
Amazon and its return to travel via the back door
By Kevin May | May 19, 2017
Not anticipating the scale of the impact of mobile on the travel industry is quite an admission. This is especially true when it comes from someone who has been involved in so many of the bleeding Read More
Booking.com dominates leads for hotels in key European markets
News / Distribution
Booking.com dominates leads for hotels in key European markets
By Kevin May | May 12, 2017
Interesting data released from hotel switch eRevMax this week that shows the dominance of Booking.com as a source for hotel bookings in a number of European countries. In each of the five markets - Read More
Latest tech-driven era in travel needs a new type of rock star leader
News / Online
Latest tech-driven era in travel needs a new type of rock star leader
By Alex Bainbridge | May 11, 2017
I have been in online travel (and offline, before that) long enough to experience a number of distinct eras. The first travel startup that I founded, in 2000, was billed as the first brochure-less Read More
Priceline Group bookings soar by a quarter to hit $20 billion in three months
News / Distribution
Priceline Group bookings soar by a quarter to hit $20 billion in three months
By Kevin May | May 9, 2017
The Priceline Group has seen gross bookings across the group for the first quarter of 2017 hit a record $20.7 billion. The increase of 24% year-on-year is more than $400 million compared to the sam Read More
TripTease shifts focus to direct booking and service management
News / Distribution
TripTease shifts focus to direct booking and service management
By Kevin May | May 3, 2017
Direct-booking champion TripTease is opening what it hopes will be another weapon in the arsenal of ways to lure business away from online travel agencies. The launch of Direct Booking Platform: Il Read More
TripAdvisor finally gets IHG on-board for Instant Booking
News / Distribution
TripAdvisor finally gets IHG on-board for Instant Booking
By Kevin May | April 27, 2017
TripAdvisor has persuaded another of the global hotel giants to join its Instant Booking service: InterContinental Hotels Group. The group's portfolio of brands will now be available, allowing user Read More
Why OTA commissions are actually a steal of a deal
News / Distribution
Why OTA commissions are actually a steal of a deal
By Viewpoints | April 6, 2017
In the past six months I’ve written about increasing hotel brand fees (Hotel Loyalty Rate Analysis) and increasing loyalty fees (The Great Loyalty Rate Debate). Both articles prompted some very int Read More
Booking.com in a bind in Turkey over court row with domestic agencies
News / Distribution
Booking.com in a bind in Turkey over court row with domestic agencies
By Kevin May | March 30, 2017
Turkish authorities have ordered the temporary suspension for some of the operations at Booking.com in the country. The injunction was imposed by a court in Istanbul during an ongoing dispute with Read More
Direct bookings and web presence beat mobile and personalisation as hotel priorities
News / Distribution
Direct bookings and web presence beat mobile and personalisation as hotel priorities
By Kevin May | March 28, 2017
Game on - the top business focus for hotel owners this year is to increase their direct bookings and improve their online presence. The finding, indicated in the annual Global Hotel Business Index Read More
HundredRooms lands €4 million to push into new markets
News / Distribution
HundredRooms lands €4 million to push into new markets
By Kevin May | March 27, 2017
Vacation rental search engine HundredRooms has brought its total funding €11 million, with its eyes set on launching in more countries. The €4 million round was led by Seaya Ventures and featured p Read More
Ixigo confirms $15 million Series B, Paytm partners with booking.com
News / Distribution
Ixigo confirms $15 million Series B, Paytm partners with booking.com
By Martin Cowen | March 23, 2017
Indian travel search engine Ixigo.com has completed its $15 million Series B round after months of negotiation and rumour, with Sequoia Capital and Fosun Kinzon backing the raise. The participation Read More
Come on, Airbnb - consumers want you on online travel agencies
News / Distribution
Come on, Airbnb - consumers want you on online travel agencies
By Kevin May | March 21, 2017
The people have spoken - Airbnb listings should be integrated into traditional hotel search results. This is the view of the majority of 2,500 travellers in the US that were polled by travel indust Read More
Instant meta booking milestone - Tripping hits 3M rentals
News / Distribution
Instant meta booking milestone - Tripping hits 3M rentals
By Kevin May | March 9, 2017
Who says the drive to instant bookings on search engines can be hard (well, TripAdvisor, for starters) - in vacation rentals it appears to be working out very well. Vacation rental marketplace Trip Read More
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