Russell Hannon - September 30, 2019
Do you book direct with hotels to avoid paying third party booking fees? If so, I hate to break the news that you still pay these fees even when booking direct.
That's because hotels bake the cost of commissions they pay to third party websites (i.e.: Expedia, Priceline, Hotels.com) into their rack room rate. This is one reason fares posted by hotels are not lower than those offered on third party websites, but there are other factors...
Third party websites would go broke if they charged more than the hotels themselves for the same rooms. The reason hotels do not undercut these websites is they get a lot of business from these websites they would not otherwise get. So it's in the hotel's best overall interest to keep prices at par.
Difference between booking direct v.s. a third party:
| Commissions | Loyalty Rewards | |
| Book Direct | Hotel bakes commission cost into room rate | Entitled to points |
| 3rd Party | Website receives commission from the hotel | Not entitled to points |
Earn Commission When Booking Your Hotel
TRVL.COM splits with you the booking commissions they receive from hotels for your hotel booking. Although commission amounts vary by hotel, you can realistically get 10 - 12% of your room cost back. Cash back payouts of 10% or more are better value than the best loyalty programs, which offer 1 free night for 10 nights paid. Even more enticing, your rewards are paid in cash, whereas other loyalty programs are only redeemable for rooms.
Business Travelers
If you travel for work on the company dime, book your hotel on TRVL.COM using your personal credit card, then claim those expenses for reimbursement from your company. Since TRVL.COM releases your cash reward to your TRVL.COM account upon checkout, you get 10% or more of the cost of a room you didn't pay out of pocket for.
Cheers to earning commission when booking your hotel!
Once feeling unable to afford to travel, Russell Hannon uses lean principles to travel at a fraction of the going rate. He has been featured on CNBC, FOX, CBS, America Tonight, CTV, CBC, Around the World Travel TV and nationally broadcast lifestyle and personal finance shows. He also wrote 'Stop Dreaming Start Traveling: The Ultimate Guide to Traveling More and Spending Less'.
FREE GUIDE: Download 'Beat the best Online Fare - Every Time, Every Flight at BreakTheTravelBarrier.com