Tripadvisor has unveiled a new subscription-style membership program designed to help hotels and B&Bs to expand their visibility and reach ready-to-book, high-spend travellers.
Through Tripadvisor Plus, hotels receive special badging and increased visibility on the Tripadvisor platform, helping them to stand out from the competition and increase bookings at a lower cost than traditional channels.
Tripadvisor said this would provide “a crucial cost saving to hotels as the hospitality industry recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic”.
The program is free for hotels to join, with no upfront costs and zero-commission rates.
For travellers, Tripadvisor Plus offers the ability to unlock insider savings, personal service, benefits and perks, such as a free bottle of wine upon check-in, room upgrades when available or spa credits, all available for an annual membership fee of US$99 (roughly $129).
How it works
Tripadvisor claims to offer an alternative to the traditional online model of room distribution for hotels through Tripadvisor Plus.
Rather than spend as much as 30 per cent per booking on commission fees, the company said hotels can now reduce their third-party costs and pass on some of those savings to their guests via discounts and perks, increasing room demand and enhancing the guest experience at the same time, Tripadvisor claims.
“By offering these savings and perks to Tripadvisor Plus subscribers, hotels increase their visibility on the world’s largest travel platform, among both subscribers and non-subscribers alike,” it said.
Tripadvisor Plus accommodation will receive special badging and enhanced placement within the ‘Best Value’ sort order reflective of the strength of their offering to travellers.
Discounted room rates available via Tripadvisor Plus can only be viewed by Tripadvisor members, and can only be booked by Tripadvisor Plus subscribers.
The company said this would ensure those rates are not widely available on the open internet, preserving a hotel’s rate integrity.
Furthermore, by participating directly in the program, Tripadvisor Plus hotels get full access to all of the customer information from each reservation.
“Tripadvisor Plus is a game-changer for both travellers and hoteliers,” Tripadvisor’s chief commercial officer, Kanika Soni, said.
“Travellers get to enjoy a memorable experience thanks to special perks and discounts, and hotels have a brand-new way to attract valuable guests while avoiding hefty third-party commissions.”
Tripadvisor Plus launched in beta in December 2020 to a small slice of Tripadvisor’s traffic in the United States, and will soon become available to all US travellers with additional markets to follow.
