Castries, Saint Lucia – The Expedia group, one of the world’s leading travel companies, saw significant increase in travel demand for properties of all star levels on the island of St. Lucia. Overall, demand increased more than 20 percent in the first quarter of 2015 when compared to the same time last year. Demand is even more significant for four and five star properties, with an increase year over year of approximately 25 percent.
St. Lucia saw nearly 25 percent increase in package bookings in the first quarter, and currently has a package share of 50 percent. Package bookings combine travel components like flights and hotel and are a boon to hotels as they generally feature twice the length of stay, twice the booking window and half the cancellation rate of a standalone (i.e. hotel only) booking.
Mobile bookings, which have been growing in nearly all of the Expedia group’s markets, allow travelers to make their bookings on the go. In St. Lucia, mobile share is now at nearly 25 percent. The Expedia group continues to make technology investments to enhance mobile technology for travelers and hotel partners. Most recently, they launched Real Time Feedback, which sends Expedia.com travelers a fun, three-question survey shortly after check-in asking them about their check-in experience and the room. The guest’s feedback is not made public, and is instead transmitted in real-time to the hotelier through Expedia® Partner Central, giving them the opportunity to act upon the feedback and avoid a potentially negative trip review.
“St. Lucia has always been an important Caribbean destination for the Expedia group, and to highlight that we now have a dedicated team member based locally in St. Lucia,” said Demetrius Canton, Director of Lodging Partner Services for the Caribbean, the Expedia group. “Between our global reach, technology investments and our local market presence, we’ve enhanced our ability to effectively serve our partners and support the continued growth of this destination.”
The Expedia group’s presence continues to grow within the St. Lucia market with more than 130 partners on the island, nearly 50 of them acquired this year. With the dedicated team member on the island, the Expedia group provides valuable market insight, at both a global and local level, to hotel partners so they can set their distribution strategy. They can also identify opportunities to better fill rooms at the right rate by suggesting targeted promotions, as well as help hoteliers understand market forces at play, like the growth of mobile, so that hoteliers can make adjustments to get at least their fair share of demand.
The Expedia group’s market management team is attending the Saint Lucia North American Showcase July 31 – August 2, 2015 at Sandals Grande Saint Lucian Spa & Beach Resort. Throughout the conference, the team will liaise with valued travel partners to discuss the successes in the region and provide counsel on increasing visibility and incremental demand using the Expedia group’s powerful technology and marketing tools.
