Trying to keep up to date with what’s going on in the hostel industry? We give you a rundown of the latest news and offer our insight.
THE WAITING IS OVER – CULTURE TRIP LAUNCH BRAND NEW OTA
It’s been on the cards for a while but it’s finally here – Culture Trip have launched their brand new OTA platform this week.
Known to travellers as the place to get inspired about the world’s culture and creativity, Culture Trip is now moving into the world of online travel agents. The initial release features 10 hotels per city across 12 cities and will expand to over 10,000 properties in 40 cities in the next few months.
The site will continue to work with affiliates and partners it has in the past including Expedia, Airbnb, and Hostelworld. The expectation is for flights to also be added in the future.
Andy Washington, Culture Trip’s Senior VP of Travel who has been overseeing the development of the platform, has ensured they are not simply replicating a ‘bog standard’ OTA. Instead, they have spent a lot of time researching and understanding their customer’s true needs.
He said: “A lot of people will tell you how to book a destination but very few tell why you should go there in the first place. Everything is about the customer journey and understanding for the next stage of that funnel.”
He adds that Culture Trip wants to help customers find all the elements they would traditionally have had to scroll the internet for.
“It’s all about what can I do, show me how I can do and experience all these things. That inspires the reader and then they will go and book their travel needs.”
While the site will provide general information like check-in times and Wi-Fi availability, the online content platform – which insists it is built off ‘relationship and trust – is aiming to give ‘a more human touch’ and tell a story about each individual property.
Combining inspiration with practical information on the right properties or trips for the user, Culture Trip are aiming to transform the booking experience for travellers.
IS THIS THE BEST NIGHTS SLEEP IN JAIL YOU WILL EVER HAVE?
CODE Hostels has transformed a former historic courthouse and jail into a world-class boutique hostel on Edinburgh’s Royal Mile and welcomed its first guests last week.
The CoURT sees CODE bring their innovative pod concept to a second Edinburgh location, replicating the success of their original hostel – The LoFT. CODE were actually the first to bring the pod hostel trend – which originated in Asia – to the UK.
Boasting industrial interiors, slick social spaces and a centuries-old underground tasting room for local craft beer and whiskey tasting, The CoURT could easily be mistaken for a boutique hotel.
With 200 state-of-the-art pod beds and 12 private cell rooms set over 5 floors, the new opening will cater to the increasing number of tourists visiting Edinburgh.
The latest opening comes after CODE acquired an existing hostel – Jacob’s Inn in Dublin – following significant investment from Patron Capital back in 2018.
Up next, CODE have their sights set on major destinations including London, Amsterdam, Paris, Madrid, Lisbon and Warsaw as they look to expand into key tourist hot-spots across Europe.
GEN-Z TRAVELLERS INFLUENCED MORE THAN EVER BY SOCIAL MEDIA
Another day, another study reporting that Gen-Z travellers are more influenced than ever before by what they see on social media.
A new report released by Booking.com has found that almost half of Gen-Z travellers trust recommendations from people they don’t know, like Instagram travel influencers.
The findings from the study – which aimed to understand how this generation of young people travel and their ambitions for future ventures – come as no surprise with social media once again coming out as having a huge impact on how young people go about their travels.
We cannot stress enough the importance of investing time and money into your hostel’s digital marketing, in particular your website and social media. Without it, there is little doubt that you are losing out on bookings and occupied beds.
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