Travel, hospitality & leisureFlagship industry

Hospitality. Direct booking is a product, not a discount.

From first search to the day after checkout.

Hotel groups, resorts and serviced-living brands, where the guest compares you on an aggregator before they ever see your site. We build direct-booking experiences, guest data and lifecycle programmes, and portfolio brands that feel the same in a search result and in the lobby.

Talk about hospitality Read the rulebook
The number we move
Direct booking share
Where we work in hospitality
  • Hotel groups & brands
  • Resorts
  • Independent & boutique hotels
  • Serviced apartments
  • Villas & homestays
Rules mapped
7 rules · 5 areas
Disciplines that lead
ProductMarketing
Frameworks we build to
PCI DSS v4.0.1 — Payment Card Industry Data Security StandardDPDP Act 2023 — Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023GDPR — General Data Protection Regulation (EU) 2016/679WCAG 2.2 AA — Web Content Accessibility GuidelinesCore Web Vitals — Loading, interactivity and visual stability
A hotel lobby with a marble reception desk, wood panelling, pendant lights and armchairs
HospitalityThe lobby promise has to match the booking screen.

Where the rules biteMap of all forty-one industries

  • Claims Advertising & claims: Often shapes the work
  • Regulator Sector regulator: Often shapes the work
  • Payments Payments: Shapes most of the work
  • Data Personal data: Shapes most of the work
  • Security Security & incidents: Often shapes the work
  • Access Accessibility: Often shapes the work
  • AI AI governance: Sometimes shapes the work

What is shifting

The guest compares you before they ever see your site.

Assistants and aggregators now sit between the first search and the stay, and pricing rules reach the booking flow. Each shift names what it demands, with a signal you can check.

A brass service bell on a wooden reception desk
Recognition starts before the bell is rung.

  1. Travellers plan with AI assistants and compare on aggregators before they ever see your site.

    It demandsA booking experience that beats the aggregator on clarity and speed.

    SignalAssistants compare rates, reviews and policies across sites in a single answer.

  2. Guests expect the app, the front desk and the email to know who they are.

    It demandsGuest data joined across property systems, with consent.

    SignalHotels must report foreign guests through Form C within 24 hours of arrival, so identity is captured anyway.

  3. Price transparency rules reach the booking flow: no hidden fees at the last step.

    It demandsAll-in prices from the first screen, with optional charges marked optional.

    SignalIn March 2025 the Delhi High Court upheld the CCPA’s ban on adding a service charge by default.

  4. Groups grow by adding properties, segments and sub-brands.

    It demandsA brand that feels the same in a search result and in the lobby.

    SignalEach new property adds a site, a booking engine and a guest list to keep in step.

The rulebook

All-in prices, consented guests, and a card step that holds.

Pricing and dark-pattern guidelines, guest registration, card security and the data law, read for a typical hotel group. Your counsel keeps sign-off; rate cards and check-in flows carry what the rules require.

Frameworks we build to

  • PCI DSS v4.0.1 — Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard
  • DPDP Act 2023 — Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023
  • GDPR — General Data Protection Regulation (EU) 2016/679
  • WCAG 2.2 AA — Web Content Accessibility Guidelines
  • Core Web Vitals — Loading, interactivity and visual stability

Frameworks we design and build to — not a claim of certification.

Advertising & claims

Often shapes the work

  1. Central Consumer Protection Authority

    CCPA dark-patterns guidelines, 2023

    Drip pricing and false urgency (“only 1 room left”) in booking flows are named unfair trade practices.

    We designAvailability messages come from live inventory, and totals never grow at the last step.

    CCPA · Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns, 2023 Official text: CCPA dark-patterns guidelines, 2023

Sector regulator

Often shapes the work

  1. Central Consumer Protection Authority

    CCPA service-charge guidelines, 2022

    Hotels and restaurants may not add a service charge to a bill by default; the Delhi High Court upheld the guidelines on 28 March 2025.

    We designBills and booking totals show optional charges as optional.

    CCPA · Guidelines on service charge, 4 July 2022 Official text: CCPA service-charge guidelines, 2022

  2. Ministry of Home Affairs

    Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025 — Form C

    Hotels report every foreign guest through the online Form C portal within 24 hours of arrival; the Act has been in force since 1 September 2025.

    We designCheck-in captures what Form C needs once, with consent, and hands it to your filing process.

    Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025

  3. Department of Consumer Affairs

    Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020

    Total price with its breakdown, and the cancellation and refund terms, shown before payment.

    We designRate cards carry the breakdown and the policy from the first screen.

    Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020 Official text: Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020

Payments

Shapes most of the work

  1. PCI Security Standards Council

    PCI DSS v4.0.1

    Card data in booking engines, deposits and stored payment methods, including the payment-page script controls in force since 31 March 2025.

    We designBooking engines keep card data with the processor and inventory every script on the payment step.

    PCI SSC · PCI DSS v4.0.1 Official text: PCI DSS v4.0.1

Personal data

Shapes most of the work

  1. Government of India · European Union

    DPDP Act, 2023 and GDPR

    Guest data from many markets, with purpose-bound consent and withdrawal as easy as consent.

    We designProfiles hold consent per purpose, and marketing never sees what the guest did not agree to.

    DPDP Act, 2023 · Regulation (EU) 2016/679

Accessibility

Often shapes the work

  1. W3C

    WCAG 2.2 AA

    Accessible booking for every guest; the EU Accessibility Act has applied to e-commerce services in the EU since June 2025.

    We designDate pickers, room selectors and payment steps are tested with assistive technology.

    W3C WCAG 2.2 · Directive (EU) 2019/882 Official text: WCAG 2.2 AA

Compiled 2 October 2026. Our reading of typical programmes, not legal advice. Rules change; your counsel confirms how each one applies to you.

Challenges

Recognised on arrival, not only by the aggregator.

What guests expect from the first search to the day after checkout, and what it takes your teams to see one guest across many systems.

Your customers

  1. Clarity on price and policy

    Guests compare all-in prices and cancellation terms before they book.

  2. Recognised on arrival

    Preferences and history should follow the guest to the desk and the room.

  3. Help without a queue

    Requests in chat, in the app and at the desk should end in the same place.

A made-up hotel room with a padded headboard, a patterned bed runner and light through sheer curtains
The stay is the product the booking flow sells.

Your operation

  1. Many systems, one guest

    Property, channel, booking and loyalty systems each hold part of the picture.

  2. Commission and dependence

    Aggregator bookings carry commission and keep the guest relationship.

  3. Compliance at check-in

    Identity, Form C details and consent must be captured once, and correctly.

What we build

Direct booking as a product, with the guest record behind it.

Product and CRM lead a hospitality programme; brand, platform and content support them. Every line links to the capability that does the work.

Leads Core Supports Share of a typical programme, by role · illustrative
  1. 01

    Product & Experience Design

    Leads

    Booking and stay journeys designed and tested with guests.

  2. 02

    Marketing Technology

    Leads

    Guest profiles, lifecycle messaging and loyalty on one data layer.

  3. 03

    Brand Design

    Core

    Brand architecture for portfolios with many properties and sub-brands.

  4. 04

    Technology & Intelligence

    Core

    Fast booking sites, integrations with property and channel systems.

  5. 05

    Campaign & Content Design

    Core

    Destination and property content produced for every channel and season.

  6. 06

    AI Design

    Supports

    Concierge assistants that answer from the property’s own facts.

Programmes

Book your own rooms first, the way your guests do.

The way in books your rooms on your site, on aggregators and through assistants, then ranks the gaps in price clarity, speed and policy. Lengths are typical, never promised.

The way in

Direct-booking diagnostic

We book your rooms the way guests do — on your site, on aggregators and through assistants — and rank the gaps in price clarity, speed and policy.

Package
Sprint · Fixed fee
Typical length
2–3 weeks
It sets
Booking-flow conversion by step, as a baseline
  • Product experience audit
  • Technical & code audit

What it hands over

  • A side-by-side of direct and aggregator booking
  • A fix list for price clarity, speed and policy
  • A plan for the guest data the booking should capture
Start here

  1. 02Milestone · 4–8 months

    Direct-booking experience

    Search, rates and checkout rebuilt to beat the aggregator on clarity and speed, integrated with your booking engine.

    MovesDirect share of bookings

    Services: End-to-end UX & UI design · Website · System integration

    Enquire about Direct-booking experience

  2. 03Milestone · 4–9 months

    Guest data and lifecycle programme

    One consented guest profile across properties, with the messages that come before and after the stay.

    MovesRepeat-stay rate

    Services: Customer data & identity foundation · Lifecycle marketing programme · Loyalty strategy & programme design

    Enquire about Guest data and lifecycle programme

  3. 04Project · 8–12 weeks

    Portfolio brand architecture

    How the group, its brands and each property relate — named, ordered and drawn so guests can follow it.

    MovesRecognition of the parent brand across properties

    Services: Brand architecture · Naming & nomenclature

    Enquire about Portfolio brand architecture

  4. 05Project · 8–12 weeks

    Pre-stay and in-stay digital services

    Pre-arrival messages, digital check-in and requests in chat, ending in the same queue as the front desk.

    MovesGuest satisfaction after digital touchpoints

    Services: Web or mobile app · AI assistant experience design

    Enquire about Pre-stay and in-stay digital services

How success is measured

The number we moveDirect booking share

  • Direct share of bookings
  • Booking-flow conversion by step
  • Repeat-stay rate
  • Guest satisfaction after digital touchpoints

AI, under the rules

A concierge that answers from your facts, never from its imagination.

Each use case answers only from approved property data, flags rather than changes, and sends anything that needs a person to the front desk.

Use case 01

Concierge assistant

Measured byRequests resolved without a call

Tested forOWASP LLM09 · Misinformation

agent / concierge-assistant Guarded
  1. TaskAnswers pre-stay and in-stay questions from the property’s own facts.
  2. GuardrailAnswers only from approved property data: no invented amenities, prices or policies.
  3. HumanRequests that need a person join the front-desk queue.
  4. LogRequests and answers stored against the booking, with consent.

Ships only with its evaluation set, its guardrail and an owner

Use case 02

Rate and content parity checks

Measured byParity issues found and fixed per week

Tested forOWASP LLM06 · Excessive agency (it cannot act)

agent / rate-and-content-parity-checks Guarded
  1. TaskCompares your rates, photographs and policies across every channel each day.
  2. GuardrailFlags differences; changes nothing on its own.
  3. HumanThe revenue manager decides what to change.
  4. LogA daily snapshot of what each channel showed.

Ships only with its evaluation set, its guardrail and an owner

Use case 03

Review replies in the brand’s voice

Measured byReply time and repeat stays among reviewers

Tested forOWASP LLM05 · Improper output handling

agent / review-replies-in-the-brand-s-voice Guarded
  1. TaskDrafts replies to guest reviews in the brand’s voice.
  2. GuardrailNever promises compensation; escalates any complaint about safety or discrimination.
  3. HumanThe general manager approves each reply.
  4. LogReplies stored with their approvals.

Ships only with its evaluation set, its guardrail and an owner

A deliverable, in working code

Move the direct share and count what comes home.

Drag the share of bookings that come direct and see, per thousand bookings, how many guests you would know by name and how much commission you would keep. Illustrative figures.

Guest journey · directIllustrative
  1. InspireSearch and AI answers
  2. BookDirect, all-in price
  3. Pre-arrivalA message three days out
  4. StayRequests in chat
  5. AfterA review, then an offer

Direct share of bookings

34% nowTarget 50%
Booked with you, per 1,000
340
Through intermediaries
660
Commission paid (bookings’ worth)
118.8

Bookings by channel · direct against online travel agents

What it shows

An illustrative direct-booking guest journey in five steps from inspiration to after the stay, with direct bookings at 34 percent against a target of half. Move the direct share to see, per thousand bookings, how many guests book with you and how much commission stays with the hotel at an illustrative 18 percent.

Built by

Figures

Every number here is an illustration of how the deliverable reads, never a client result.

Work and insights

Direct bookings and returning guests, anonymised.

Hospitality projects, anonymised until each client approves the write-up, and what we have written on pricing, consent and accessibility.

All work in hospitality

A typical programme · composite

A hotel group treated direct booking as a product, redesigning search-to-checkout and the messages that follow the stay.

Anonymised and illustrative: the shape a programme takes, never a named client.

Insights

Questions

What revenue, digital and brand leads ask us first.

Something else on your mind? Ask us directly

Q.01Can you integrate with our property management and channel systems?

Yes. We integrate booking, property, channel and CRM systems through their published APIs or the connectors you already use, so one guest record follows the stay.

Q.02How do you handle Form C and guest identity?

Check-in flows capture what is needed once, with consent, and pass it to the process you use for Form C filing. Your team stays responsible for the filing itself.

Q.03Will a direct-booking programme hurt our aggregator relationships?

The programme improves your own channel’s clarity and speed. How you balance channels stays your commercial decision.

Q.04Do you design for accessibility?

WCAG 2.2 AA is our floor for every booking flow, and the EU Accessibility Act has applied to e-commerce services offered in the EU since June 2025.

Keep exploring

Next in travel, hospitality & leisure, then every sector we cover.

All forty-one industries

Let’s build what happens next.

Tell us what you’re building. We’ll answer straight.

Book a discovery call

Three ways to start

  1. 01About 2 minutes

    A quick question

    You get A reply from a lead, not a sales queue

  2. 02About 8 minutesMost useful

    A project brief

    You get Options and a first scope after one call

  3. 03About 15 minutes

    A formal RFQ or RFP

    You get Receipt confirmed and a named bid lead

Every engagement starts with a written scope and a quote agreed before work begins. How each package is priced

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