OTA stands for Online Travel Agent, which is a platform that acts as an intermediary bringing hotels and travelers together, making it easier to connect and provide convenience for travelers in booking accommodations, payment channels, transportation, and various tourist services, all of which can be done through OTAs (One-Stop service). OTAs receive commissions from hotels for selling accommodations through their platforms.
Examples of well-known OTAs today include Agoda, Booking, Expedia, and Traveloka. However, in reality, there are more than 400 OTAs worldwide.
In Thailand, the most popular and widely used OTAs are Agoda and Traveloka. In the beginning of the year 2021, the booking volume of hotel accommodations through Agoda and Traveloka accounted for 56.45% and 19.9% respectively. Bangkok residents use OTAs for hotel bookings the most, while those in the northern region use OTAs the least.
It can be seen that using OTAs for hotel bookings is an important channel. In addition to having good hotels, having good OTAs can help reach customers and increase hotel bookings.
