Reservations made directly via a hotel's owned channels (website, call centre, app) rather than through OTAs or intermediaries.
Direct bookings are reservations made through a hotel’s owned channels - website, phone, email, or app - rather than OTAs. They usually improve contribution margin and give you first-party customer data you can use for retention and upsell.
Browse related definitions in the same glossary category.
Audience Segmentation
Dividing potential guests into groups based on behaviour, demographics, or interests to tailor marketing messages.
Average Daily Rate (ADR)
A hotel performance metric showing the average income per paid room occupied in a given time period.
Booking Engine
An online reservation system that allows hotels to take direct bookings through their website, usually integrated with PMS or channel managers.
Booking Funnel
The journey from awareness to reservation. Includes discovery, consideration, booking, and post-stay loyalty stages.
Booking Window
The number of days between when a guest books and their arrival date - valuable for campaign timing and segmentation.
Build vs Buy
The strategic decision between developing custom solutions or purchasing existing products and services.
Understanding "Direct Bookings" is just the first step. Our team at TwoSquares specializes in technical SEO and digital strategy, helping brands turn complex concepts into measurable growth.