Tripadvisor announced that for the first time hotels and B&Bs can expand their visibility and reach to a ready-to-book, high spend traveler audience by participating directly in Tripadvisor Plus, a new membership program for travelers.
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 - providing 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 travelers, Tripadvisor Plus offers the ability to up-level their travel by unlocking 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 $99.
Tripadvisor Plus offers an innovative alternative to the traditional online model of room distribution for hotels. Rather than spend as much as 30% per booking on commission fees, hotels can now significantly 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.
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. Tripadvisor Plus accommodations receive special badging and enhanced placement within the Best Value sort order reflective of the strength of their offering to travelers.
Discounted room rates available via Tripadvisor Plus can only be viewed by Tripadvisor members and can only be booked by Tripadvisor Plus subscribers, ensuring those rates are not widely available on the open internet, thereby 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 travelers and hoteliers," said Kanika Soni, chief commercial officer, Tripadvisor. "Travelers 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."