Hotel+Flight: The silent disparity that threatens your direct channel
Booking Engine 11/07/2025
The hotel distribution ecosystem is undergoing constant transformation, and OTAs, far from losing pace, seem determined to lead the way. It's no surprise that many of the leading online travel agencies have gradually strengthened their offerings with the option to book Hotel+Flight packages, often through third parties, which has become almost a standard within the segment.
A step that goes beyond improving the user experience and directly aims to strengthen your customer acquisition capacity and control over the entire traveler booking process. What you may not have considered is that if you don't have at least one comparable solution in your direct channel, you're already falling behind . A situation that represents another form of disparity, beyond price (remember, disparity isn't just about rates), that directly impacts your competitiveness.
To provide some context, below we review when and how the various global OTAs were incorporating this functionality , a clear sign of the high stakes.
When an OTA offers a Hotel + Flight package, it not only provides a differential value compared to hotels that don't, simply by including the flight, but it can also generate a potential price disparity that is difficult to overcome, even in the accommodation-only option. Why does this happen? In addition to OTAs' ability to reduce their commission on accommodation-only bookings to subsidize part of the booking cost and facilitate closing the sale (the impact of this strategy can be minimized by disabling online payments on the OTA, but this is not always sufficient), they benefit from the opaque nature of the vacation package . By accessing very competitive airfares due to the high volume they manage, they can adjust the price of the hotel within the package downwards without the customer clearly understanding how much they are paying for each component. The result is a package offer that exceeds, in price and perceived value, the sum of the separate hotel and flight bookings , even when the accommodation is booked directly through the establishment's official website.
While Oceanflights allows hotels to compete on a level playing field, in the hands of OTAs, this resource becomes a powerful lever for diverting regular hotel-only customers to their platforms, thanks to a more competitive final price.
Therefore, the disparity is no longer reduced solely to a perception of differential value that improves the traveler's experience, but also to a perception of price, a direct threat to the distribution strategy and customer loyalty: two key pillars to ensure the profitability and sustainability of the direct channel.
Oceanflights, our native Hotel + Flight solution, developed in conjunction with Maarlab , allows hotels and hotel chains to offer vacation packages directly through their official website and telephone reservation center. This eliminates the need for third parties, redirects, and URL changes, ensuring a seamless experience for both the user and operational level, and strengthening the value proposition for increasingly demanding and comfortable guests. In short:
Given this scenario, staying ahead of the technological curve is no longer just an option, but an obligation. If OTAs offer Hotel+Flight packages, often through third parties, why not take advantage of this unique opportunity to do it better than many of them and provide differentiated value, endorsed by the hotel brand guests trust and supported by the corresponding licenses (ATOL and IATA)?
Beyond price, the real challenge lies in offering a complete, agile, and seamless experience from the hotel's official website. Therefore, implementing transfer and experience sales at the origin point with immediate confirmation, and flight sales natively in your booking engine, represents an effective response to counteracting the flight churn to third parties , allowing hotels to:
A step that goes beyond improving the user experience and directly aims to strengthen your customer acquisition capacity and control over the entire traveler booking process. What you may not have considered is that if you don't have at least one comparable solution in your direct channel, you're already falling behind . A situation that represents another form of disparity, beyond price (remember, disparity isn't just about rates), that directly impacts your competitiveness.
Evolution of the “dynamic package” in OTAs
To provide some context, below we review when and how the various global OTAs were incorporating this functionality , a clear sign of the high stakes.
- Expedia : A pioneer in dynamic bundling, it launched its Hotel + Flight program in 2012, surpassing 3 million package sales just one year later. In 2018, it further encouraged package bookings by applying discounts of up to 50% on hotels when adding a flight.
- Booking : Traditionally focused on hotel bookings, it launched its flight and package offering around 2017 (coinciding with its acquisition of eTraveli, which closed in 2023 after several blockages). Today, it offers flights on various sites on its website, including search results, and has a dedicated Flight+Hotel tab that links to a portal powered by Lastminute. Offering flights through a third party implies a loss of control and a fragmented experience , with frequent complaints about redirects and service (exactly the same as what happened on the official hotel website before the arrival of the native integration we recently launched).
- Hotels.com (since 2000, Expedia Group)
- eDreams (fully specialized since its founding, back in 2000-2005)
- Hotwire (since 2003, Expedia Group)
- Priceline (since 2005, Booking Holdings)
- Despegar (2010, main OTA in Latin America)
- Trip.com (2017, Chinese group with a strong presence in Asia)
- Agoda (since 2019, Booking Holdings)
And to top it all off, a probable price disparity
When an OTA offers a Hotel + Flight package, it not only provides a differential value compared to hotels that don't, simply by including the flight, but it can also generate a potential price disparity that is difficult to overcome, even in the accommodation-only option. Why does this happen? In addition to OTAs' ability to reduce their commission on accommodation-only bookings to subsidize part of the booking cost and facilitate closing the sale (the impact of this strategy can be minimized by disabling online payments on the OTA, but this is not always sufficient), they benefit from the opaque nature of the vacation package . By accessing very competitive airfares due to the high volume they manage, they can adjust the price of the hotel within the package downwards without the customer clearly understanding how much they are paying for each component. The result is a package offer that exceeds, in price and perceived value, the sum of the separate hotel and flight bookings , even when the accommodation is booked directly through the establishment's official website.
While Oceanflights allows hotels to compete on a level playing field, in the hands of OTAs, this resource becomes a powerful lever for diverting regular hotel-only customers to their platforms, thanks to a more competitive final price.
Therefore, the disparity is no longer reduced solely to a perception of differential value that improves the traveler's experience, but also to a perception of price, a direct threat to the distribution strategy and customer loyalty: two key pillars to ensure the profitability and sustainability of the direct channel.
The Value of Oceanflights: Why is Native Integration Important?
Oceanflights, our native Hotel + Flight solution, developed in conjunction with Maarlab , allows hotels and hotel chains to offer vacation packages directly through their official website and telephone reservation center. This eliminates the need for third parties, redirects, and URL changes, ensuring a seamless experience for both the user and operational level, and strengthening the value proposition for increasingly demanding and comfortable guests. In short:
- Total control, no redirects
Allows you to book Hotel + Flight without intermediaries or jumps. - Reduction of functional disparities
The disparities aren't just about price: they include payment methods, occupancy, features... If your website doesn't offer packages, the direct channel is clearly at a disadvantage compared to an OTA that does. - Increase in direct sales
The package appeals to new niches seeking convenience and savings, boosting the reach and average sales of the direct channel, which will increase by around 10% to 15%. - Reduction in cancellations
Due to the non-refundable nature of package flights, the cancellation rate for accommodations is reduced by up to 97%. - Solid user experience
Complete booking without leaving your website or call center, eliminating friction and building trust. - Access to 95% of air connectivity
By integrating Oceanflights, you allow your guests to combine their room reservation with a wide variety of flights, thanks to its compatibility with most airlines on the market. - Data ownership and management
Since this is a real direct sale, you have complete control over your customer data. You can integrate it into your CRM, analyze it from your BI, and personalize the experience just like any other booking. - Full integration into the loyalty program
Oceanflights adapts to your Loyalty Program. Customers will continue to earn points, retain their benefits, and enjoy an experience consistent with their loyalty status.
Prevent OTAs from gaining ground on you
Given this scenario, staying ahead of the technological curve is no longer just an option, but an obligation. If OTAs offer Hotel+Flight packages, often through third parties, why not take advantage of this unique opportunity to do it better than many of them and provide differentiated value, endorsed by the hotel brand guests trust and supported by the corresponding licenses (ATOL and IATA)?
Beyond price, the real challenge lies in offering a complete, agile, and seamless experience from the hotel's official website. Therefore, implementing transfer and experience sales at the origin point with immediate confirmation, and flight sales natively in your booking engine, represents an effective response to counteracting the flight churn to third parties , allowing hotels to:
- Raise your direct sales ceiling
- 100% control over experience and margin
- Eliminate functional disparity
- Weathering the competition from OTAs
