Summer travel accommodation: get accurate first-hand information by booking direct!
Summer travel accommodation: get accurate first-hand information by booking direct!
As the summer holiday season gets back underway in unusual and difficult circumstances around Europe, HOTREC warmly encourages tourists and travellers to get directly in with hotel establishments to make their accommodation bookings.
HOTREC President Jens Zimmer Christensen said: “As we slowly emerge from the confinement phase, we are delighted that tourism and travel can cautiously resume around Europe this July. Hoteliers will be doing their utmost to ensure the required levels of cleanliness and hygiene. Travellers should get directly in touch with hotels where they wish to book a stay to get first-hand and detailed information about the measures taken by the hotel and make sure any special requests can be met.”
Throughout spring 2020, hotels in Europe have been hit extremely hard, with occupancy rates hitting rock bottom – below 10% – in most European countries at the height of the crisis. For many establishments, this summer will be a ‘make-or-break’ season: many hoteliers believe a direct relationship with guests could be a decisive factor in making ends meet. Hoteliers also feel aggrieved by the lack of support and the non-adequate behaviour of online booking platforms throughout the COVID-19 confinement period, which has maintained high commission fees and poorly handled customer cancellations and complaints.
To strengthen the relationship and to raise awareness on the many advantages of direct bookings for guests HOTREC and its Member Associations launched a BOOK DIRECT campaign across Europe. The campaign is accompanied by a logo and various promotional products like stickers, flyers, displays, etc. Campaign download material is available free of charge and additional promotional products for a small fee for European hoteliers in several language versions on https://www.book-direct-shop.eu/.
HOTREC Chairman on online distribution Markus Luthe added: “Our BOOK DIRECT campaign highlights that a direct contact between guests and hotelier is the best way to make sure specific and personal requests can be discussed and be responded to in a confidential and efficient manner. The direct relationship, like everywhere else in life, helps making the supplier – guest connection closer and more familiar. When searching online for a hotel in a chosen destination guests should therefore scroll down the ‘search results’ lists in order to access the actual websites of hotels, too, to check out prices and direct contact details.”
For further information: www.hotrec.eu
PRESS CONTACT: Jacques Lovell, +32 (0)2 504 78 42, [email protected]
HOTREC represents the hotel, restaurant and café industry at European level. The sector counts in total around 2 million businesses, being 99,5% small and medium sized enterprises (90% are micro enterprises, i.e. employing less than 10 people). These businesses make up some 60% of value added. The industry provides almost 12,5 million jobs in the EU alone (2017). Together with the other tourism industries, the sector is the 3rd largest industry in Europe. HOTREC brings together 45 national associations representing the interest of this industry in 33 different European countries.