Millions of travelers around the world yearn to go on vacation again: industry giants are confident that tourists will pay subscriptions for access to exclusive offers.

Today, consumers are used to paying subscription fees for services ranging from food and entertainment to clothing.

Now, an increasing number of companies in the tourism sector intend to add holidays to this system.

Tripadvisor announced in early March that it would launch a subscription service called Tripadvisor Plus. For $ 99 (about 85 euros) per year, members have access to exclusive discounts and benefits at participating hotels in the United States.

Millions world travelers return vacations industry confident

Wyndham Destinations, now officially known as Travel + Leisure Co. following the $ 100 million acquisition of the travel magazine brand, it plans to launch its own subscription service this summer. The subscription will probably cost $ 10 a month.

In February, Travel + Leisure CO. he also announced the launch of his new booking platform, BookTandL.com. Noah Brodsky, president and chief brand officer of Travel + Leisure Group, a division of Travel + Leisure Co., explains that the company is considering travel subscriptions as the next evolution of its booking services.

"What we do is take advantage of this whole booking platform that we're building, but then, for club members, we add value and really exceptional experiences to make those trips even better," Brodsky explains.

Millions world travelers return vacations industry confident: The timing of these new subscription services is not a coincidence. The travel and hospitality industry has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. And while no one knows for sure when leisure travel will return to its prepandemic levels, the industry consensus is that they will return faster than business travel, which is good news for tourist destinations.

There are also indications that travel is recovering, at least in the United States. The U.S. Transportation Security Administration has re-registered more than one million commuters a day at U.S. airports. And in a late February survey of 2,000 U.S. consumers, Tripadvisor found that 50% of respondents planned to travel this spring.

Having a group of paying subscribers would provide hotel companies like Travel + Leisure Co. and Tripadvisor a source of recurring revenue and reliable cash flow as they try to get back to normal after the pandemic.

Millions world travelers return vacations industry confident

On Tripadvisor, revenue fell 61% in 2020. The company offers click-based advertising, sponsored ads and commissions, and charges commissions to restaurants and travel experiences for appearing on listings.

"It didn't make much sense for us to try to optimize a section of our site when no one was traveling-traffic and bookings had plummeted," he says. "So, instead, we direct our efforts to this bigger bet."

Max Starkov, internet travel technology consultant and adjunct professor at New York University, is optimistic about Tripadvisor Plus's potential to attract hoteliers to its platform.

"Hoteliers are desperate, and I mean desperate to sell more inventory, whatever it takes," says Starkov. "The main question is: where are [hotels] going to get the money to pay for these advantages? And will they be able to convince hoteliers, local tour operators and event organizers that they offer these advantages?".

Millions world travelers return vacations industry confident: Last year was the worst ever for the hotel industry. According to hospitality data company STR, occupancy reached historic lows of 44% in 2020 - a 33% drop from 2019-and revenue per available room (RevPAR) decreased by 47.5% from the previous year.

But before the pandemic, Tripadvisor had more than 400 million unique visitors a month, which means it has a large audience that hotels can target.

Tripadvisor Plus is free for hotels and gives hoteliers visibility in the form of a special badge and a priority location in the Tripadvisor "Best Value" filter. Instead of paying a commission for bookings, as they would with an online travel agency like Expedia or Booking.com, participating hoteliers agree to offer Tripadvisor Plus subscribers a discounted rate.

Millions world travelers return vacations industry confident

Starkov says that he would not be surprised if some OTAs ended up also introducing paid subscriptions to take advantage of the large audience they have in their loyalty programs. Hoteles.com for example, it has more than 50 million members in its loyalty program. A spokesperson for Expedia Group, owner of Expedia and Hoteles.com, he did not want to comment on whether the company would consider turning the program into a paid subscription service.

A spokesman for Booking Holdings has stated that the company does not plan a paid subscription service at the moment, but that starting this month it will extend the benefits of its Genius loyalty program to anyone who makes an account with Booking. Those benefits include discounts, free room upgrades and complimentary breakfast.

"I'm sure they're following the Tripadvisor experience very closely," says Starkov. "The industry is trying to move in that direction."

Millions world travelers return vacations industry confident: eDreams, an OTA based in Spain, already charges 54.99 euros per year for discounts on flights and accommodation through its Prime program.

Tripadvisor Plus hopes to become a successful subscription service by serving all travelers. But members paying a subscription fee for exclusive travel services is not new in hospitality, especially in the luxury sector. Inspirato, for example, charges $ 2,500 per month for unlimited stays at partner homes, hotels and resorts. Flights are not included in this cost. Launched in 2011, the company has 13,250 members, a number that has continued to grow during the pandemic.

"We have seen a steady month-to-month increase in subscription sales, with December, January and February exceeding our forecasts. We attribute it to the general demand for travel, but also to the desire for a safe and private vacation," Inspirato CEO and co-founder Brent Handler tells. "We've already heard from many new partners that we were their first call after getting vaccinated."

With subscriptions invading so many parts of consumer life, there is a chance that businesses will face subscriber fatigue in the process of deploying these programs.

Kaufer, at least, is optimistic that that will not happen. Compare Tripadvisor Plus with other popular subscription services like Amazon Prime, Netflix and Spotify.

"We think we have the combination of traffic and value proposition that travelers will look at the same way they look at other subscription products that they may now feel is a requirement," he explains. "I'm not worried that people will stop traveling. It's just not on the horizon of things to worry about."

# Millions world travelers return vacations industry confident #