The OTA & hotel face-off

Taking a stand, FHRAI, the apex hospitality association in the country, is now at loggerheads with the OTAs and it seems the battlefield has been laid out. We bring to you the story so far…

The cost of a room is often the most crucial factor for customers when booking a hotel, and lately, with hefty discounts being offered to them by Online Travel Aggregators (OTAs), the latter have ensured they’re a preferred choice for many. This preferential shift clubbed with high commission rates has made things difficult for hoteliers, especially the ones in the mid-market and budget segments.

A boycott initiated by hotels in Gujarat against the biased business practices of

Goibibo and MAKEMYTRIP (Go-MMT) soon led to a nationwide protest against the latter. Around 270 hotels in Ahmedabad stopped entertaining bookings from the two OTAs, and other cities followed suit. The decision was taken at a meeting of the hotel and restaurant association in Gujarat, and was soon backed by FHRAI as well as Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI).