Marriott International announced Wednesday it is adding its global hotel portfolio to the TripAdvisor Instant Booking platform. Starting later this summer, travelers using TripAdvisor will be able to make a booking at any of Marriott’s more than 4,200 hotels without leaving the TripAdvisor website.
“TripAdvisor is a perfect partner for Marriott, both strategically and culturally,” said Arne Sorenson, CEO and president of Marriott International. “Our new agreement demonstrates how the growth strategies for our two companies are aligned in the travel space.”
“TripAdvisor has created a new distribution model that changes the game in the travel industry by addressing key concerns of hotel suppliers,” said Shafiq Khan, Marriott International’s senior vice president, channel strategy and distribution. “The result is mutually beneficial to both partners from a strategic and economic standpoint. Marriott’s partnership with TripAdvisor will make it easy for consumers to book with our hotels and allows Marriott to build a direct relationship with these guests even before arrival. The agreement also maintains our ability to control where the rates and inventory for Marriott’s hotels are displayed. Our partnership will continue to enable us to offer the best benefits, such as Marriott Rewards and Ritz-Carlton Rewards points to our customers who choose to book directly on our channels, including Marriott.com.”
With Instant Booking, travelers may simply click on the “Book on TripAdvisor” button to initiate a reservation. TripAdvisor reminds consumers throughout the process that their booking is powered by Marriott and provides the traveler with links and phone numbers to contact the hotel’s customer-service associates directly. All customer-support inquiries will be handled by Marriott representatives.