OTAs —online travel agencies such as Booking.com or Expedia— have changed the way hotels attract bookings. They have opened up international markets, simplified digital sales and given visibility to thousands of properties that would otherwise struggle to reach certain travelers.
But that convenience comes with a trade-off: when too large a share of bookings depends on a handful of platforms, the hotel may lose decision-making capacity over its margin, inventory, prices and relationship with the guest.
The question is not whether it makes sense to work with OTAs. For most properties, the answer is yes. The important question is a different one: are OTAs a channel within your strategy, or have they become your commercial strategy?
Is hotel distribution monopolized?
Not in the strict legal sense. There are numerous sales channels: the hotel’s own website, traditional agencies, tour operators, metasearch engines, telephone sales, companies, groups and event organizers. However, the digital demand generated by online agencies is highly concentrated among a small number of major operators.
This concentration is especially noticeable among independent hotels, tourist apartments and small accommodations. Large platforms have technological, advertising and brand investments that are difficult to match individually. Many travelers begin their search on these platforms, compare options, read reviews and book without ever visiting the official website.
The problem is not that an OTA brings bookings. The risk appears when the property stops deciding what inventory to sell, on which dates, at what price and at what cost. At that point, the intermediary stops being a commercial support and becomes the main gateway to the business.
Why OTAs have gained so much importance
OTAs solved real needs for hotels and travelers. For a small property, publishing rooms on an international channel provides immediate access to markets, languages and customer profiles that would be expensive to reach through its own campaigns.
They also offer travelers a convenient experience: filters, reviews, payments, customer service and a familiar booking process. This trust reduces purchase friction, especially when the guest does not know the destination or the hotel brand.
For this reason, rejecting these channels on principle is not usually a wise decision. An OTA can be very useful when opening, during periods of low demand, to boost a specific international market or to sell inventory that is not being sold through other means.
Dependence begins when the hotel limits itself to opening availability, accepting automatic discount recommendations and waiting for results. A platform does not know the property’s positioning, operating costs or profitability objectives as well as its own team does.
The real cost of a booking is not just the commission
A booking that arrives through an OTA should not be assessed solely by the price shown in the booking or by the agreed commission percentage. To know how much it truly contributes, it is necessary to calculate the net revenue per booking: the amount that remains with the hotel after subtracting all costs associated with the channel.
Net revenue = selling price − commission − discounts − acquisition costs − booking-related costs
This calculation may include hotel-funded promotions, visibility programs, mobile-only rates, payment costs, cancellations and the operational effort involved in management. It is also worth considering a less visible factor: the possibility that the guest will return and book directly in the future.
For example, a room sold for 160 euros through a channel with a commission, promotional discount and greater cancellation risk may leave less margin than a direct booking at 145 euros. Conversely, a direct booking obtained through very costly advertising will not necessarily be the most profitable either.
The correct comparison is not OTA versus the hotel’s own website for ideological reasons. It is net cost, margin and future customer value versus net cost, margin and future customer value.
When selling more does not mean earning more
High occupancy does not always equal a good commercial strategy. A hotel may fill rooms well in advance, through the most expensive channels and at rates that are too low, while missing higher-value bookings that could arrive closer to the date.
This is where revenue management comes into play: the discipline that helps sell the right room, to the right customer, at the right time and through the most profitable channel. It is not simply a matter of raising or lowering prices. It requires relating demand, available inventory, booking lead time, customer segment and distribution cost.
If high demand is expected for a long weekend, a local event or a holiday period, it may not make sense to keep all inventory open on high-commission channels. On the other hand, if a period shows weak occupancy, those same channels can be useful for gaining visibility and capturing additional demand.
Distribution must be dynamic. Applying the same availability and the same promotions throughout the year is usually a sign that operations are being managed by inertia, not by strategy.
Signs that an OTA controls too much of your distribution
There is no universal percentage that indicates excessive dependence. An urban hotel, a vacation resort and a rural accommodation have different demand patterns. Even so, there are symptoms worth reviewing.
- A drop in visibility on an OTA immediately affects occupancy.
- The official website receives visits but generates hardly any bookings.
- The net margin contributed by each channel is unknown.
- Discounts are activated without assessing their impact on demand and profitability.
- Repeat guests continue booking through intermediaries.
- The official website shows worse conditions or less competitive prices.
- Rate disparities exist: the same property appears cheaper on other channels.
Disparities deserve special attention. They may arise from OTA promotions, rates for registered users, agreements with wholesalers or the resale of inventory between intermediaries. The result is harmful: the guest interprets that booking on the official website is more expensive, even though the hotel did not decide to reduce the price on another channel.
Reviewing how the property is displayed on different devices, markets and platforms makes it possible to detect these problems before they damage direct conversion and brand perception.
How to regain control without giving up OTAs
Regaining control does not mean indiscriminately closing Booking.com, Expedia or other distributors. It means deciding what role each channel should play and demanding consistent profitability from it.
Measure each channel’s net performance
The first step is to move from gross revenue to actual margin. Bring together in a single report the bookings, revenue, commissions, discounts, cancellations and acquisition costs for each channel. This will make it possible to identify which source of demand provides volume, which generates the highest margin and which is absorbing an excessive share of profitability.
Design a flexible channel mix
The channel mix is the combination of channels through which you sell your rooms. It should not be fixed. Adjusting it according to season, occupancy, source market, expected demand and booking lead time allows you to use OTAs when they add value and limit their share when the hotel can sell through more profitable routes.
The key is not to be present on every channel with all available inventory. It is to select where it makes sense to be, what type of room to sell and when to do so.
Give guests a real reason to book directly
Direct sales need a clear proposition. This does not always require offering a much lower price, but it does require conditions that travelers perceive as better: greater cancellation flexibility, breakfast included, direct assistance, priority for requests, benefits for registered customers or added services.
In addition, the website must make purchasing easy. A slow, confusing or poorly mobile-adapted booking engine can cancel out any commercial advantage. The direct channel does not compete on price alone: it competes on trust, clarity and ease of booking.
Connect distribution, marketing and guest relationships
A customer’s first booking may arrive through an OTA, but the experience at the hotel belongs to the property. Useful communication before arrival, good service during the stay and a subsequent loyalty proposal can make the guest remember the hotel brand and consider booking directly next time.
This relationship must be built in compliance with data protection regulations and the customer’s communication preferences. It is not about using data without permission, but about offering an experience that justifies a future relationship.
OTAs are a channel, not a strategy
Large platforms will continue to be relevant in hotel distribution. They provide reach, technology and trust, and can be a very valuable source of demand. The mistake is not using them; the mistake is measuring their success solely by the number of bookings they generate.
A hotel retains control when it knows the profitability of each channel, adapts inventory to demand, protects the competitiveness of its website and turns the stay into an opportunity to strengthen its own brand.
Profitable distribution is not about selling less through OTAs, but about not depending on them more than necessary.
Want to balance direct sales, intermediation and profitability?
At FerBcn, we help accommodations analyze their distribution channels, costs, rates and inventory in order to make data-driven commercial decisions.
If you want to reduce unnecessary dependence on OTAs without giving up the demand they provide, we can help you build a more profitable, balanced hotel distribution strategy adapted to your property.
