While the last hotel negotiating season was challenging for most corporate travel buyers, their efforts ultimately led to lower-than-expected rate increases in most regions, reports Business Travel News. The article quotes Advito hotel industry expert Marwan Batrouni, who said negotiations are “playing a fairly big role” in the 2016 rates the business travel consultancy now is evaluating.
“We compare the initial bids that come in, which would be indicative of how suppliers feel about the situation in their specific markets, with where we end up at the end of the RFP season,” explained Batrouni, senior director and practice area leader for Advito, the consulting arm of BCD Travel. “In all cases, the initial offer is higher than where we actually end up.”
Batrouni told BTN that tighter cancellation terms emerged as a trend during last year’s tough deal-making sessions; hoteliers attempted to withhold same-day-cancellation agreements as they once might have withheld free Internet. “There was a lot of negotiation and back-and-forth to make sure that we have same-day cancellation for our clients,” Batrouni said, adding that he expects cancellation terms will be an even bigger issue in future RFP seasons.
