Booking.com is a strange partner: it brings you guests you'd never find on your own, but every year it takes a bigger slice of your revenue. Many hoteliers would love to "leave Booking", but they're (rightly) afraid of ending up with an empty hotel.

The good news: you don't have to choose all or nothing. Reducing your Booking.com dependency means gradually moving to the direct channel the guests who can book with you, while still using the portal for those who otherwise wouldn't come. Here's how.

How dependent are you? Do the maths

Calculate the share of room revenue that came from Booking.com in the last 12 months. As a reference:

  • under 30%: healthy, focus on optimisation;
  • 30–50%: significant dependency, room to shift;
  • over 50%: your revenue depends on another company's rules (and algorithm).

A Cloudbeds study of 90 million bookings found that OTAs account for more than 60% of bookings at independent hotels on average. So if you're above 50% you're not an exception — but it's still a risk.

Why "pulling the plug" doesn't pay

  • Booking.com brings new guests, often international, who would never have found you.
  • Thanks to the billboard effect, being on the portal also boosts searches for your hotel and direct bookings.
  • Last-minute bookings and those from distant markets come mostly from there.

The realistic goal isn't zero Booking.com. It's less Booking.com on the bookings you could have made yourself: regular guests, people searching for you by name, high-demand periods.

The strategy in 6 steps

1. Make direct more attractive

With rate parity banned under the EU Digital Markets Act, you can offer better conditions on your website than on Booking.com. Not necessarily a lower price — exclusive perks work too. Details in how to make booking direct worthwhile without always lowering the price.

2. Capture people searching your name

Anyone typing your hotel's name into Google has already chosen you. Make sure they find your website first, with a complete Google profile, free booking links switched on and — if OTAs advertise on your name — consider a brand campaign. See should you advertise on your own hotel name?.

3. Win back guests who come via Booking.com

Every Booking.com guest who returns the following year with a direct booking is a commission saved. Welcome them well, collect their contact details with consent and remind them that next time they can book with you and get a perk. Full guide: how to turn an OTA guest into a loyal customer.

4. Manage availability intelligently

In high-demand periods, when you know the hotel will fill anyway, you can limit availability on Booking.com or apply restrictions (minimum stay, less flexible rates) while keeping better conditions on direct. Do it carefully: portal visibility also depends on the availability you offer.

5. Evaluate paid programmes carefully

Genius, Preferred, promotional campaigns: they can increase visibility, but they also increase cost per booking. Always calculate what you actually keep. Deep dive: Genius discounts and Booking.com promotions: how much does the hotel keep?.

6. Diversify your channels

Having a second and third channel (Expedia, a niche portal for your target, deals with local companies or agencies) reduces the risk of depending on a single platform.

A realistic target

Don't try to halve Booking.com in a single season. A sensible goal for an independent hotel is to shift 5–10 percentage points of revenue from OTAs to direct over 12–24 months. It sounds small, but for a hotel turning over €500,000 it means tens of thousands of euros in commissions saved.

How to measure progress

Check every month:

  • revenue share from Booking.com, other OTAs and direct;
  • commissions paid in euros;
  • how many returning guests booked direct;
  • direct bookings coming from searches for your hotel name.

Frequently asked questions

If I reduce availability on Booking.com, will I lose ranking?

It can happen: the algorithm also considers availability and conversion. That's why it's best to reduce gradually, mainly in periods when demand is high.

In the EU, yes: since 2024 the Digital Markets Act has banned Booking.com from using parity clauses. Outside the EU, check local rules and your contract.

How long before I see results?

The first effects (parity, direct perks, Google profile) show within weeks. Growth in returning guests takes at least a season.

Want a plan to cut your commissions?

With our free marketing audit we analyse your hotel's channel mix and show you how much you can move to direct, with which actions and how fast. We do it every season at our own hotels in Rimini.

Sources: Cloudbeds/PhocusWire (2025), Cornell University – Billboard Effect, European Commission – Digital Markets Act.