Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

US hotel sales surge ahead of international reopening

Exclusive: ‘I can tell what’s happening second by second’ says Booking.com CEO

Simon Calder
Travel Correspondent
Friday 05 November 2021 08:00 EDT
Comments
In demand: The Benjamin Hotel in New York City, selling for £279 per room on Monday night, 8 November
In demand: The Benjamin Hotel in New York City, selling for £279 per room on Monday night, 8 November (Booking.com)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

With the US set to open up to travellers from the UK and the rest of Europe from Monday, demand for rooms in America is surging, according to Glenn Fogel, chief executive of Booking.com.

The boss of the online organisation told The Independent: “When the US government announced they would accept vaccinated visitors I saw immediately a jump.”

From 8 November, fully vaccinated British travellers will be able to visit the US with merely a negative result from a lateral flow test, taken in the three days before departure.

Mr Fogel said that changes to travel restrictions have immediate results.

“I can tell what’s happening second by second by watching our bookings. I don’t need to read an announcement.”

He expressed some concern in the short term about rising infection rates in Europe, particularly Germany. On Thursday the country reported 34,000 new infections, a record – and one-third up on the figure a week earlier.

“We’re going to see ups and downs,” said Mr Fogel. “As I said at the start of the crisis, it will not be quarters – it will be years.”

Earlier his company, Booking Holdings Inc, reported third-quarter results for the summer months between July and September.

“We are encouraged by the signs of recovery we saw in many parts of the world in the third quarter,” he said.

The firm’s financial report said its results “have been materially and negatively impacted due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the resulting economic conditions and government restrictions”.

Booking.com has been criticised for the amount of commission it takes as an intermediary – typically 15 per cent of the room price.

Mr Fogel said: “Our job is providing value to each party.” He said Booking.com helps hotels tap into incremental demand, and also provides customer service in 40 different languages.

“We do it for free – if you get revenue we just want a small commission,” he said.

“We are paid an appropriate amount of money for what we can provide.”

Demand for flights in the week the US opens up is intense.

Some flights for next week have sold out, while fares have soared on others. The cheapest British Airways one-way flight from London Heathrow to New York on Monday is £1,731.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in