Another mega company, Amazon, (which means big anyway), has moved into the travel industry with a new direction. It is now connected to Amazon Local but will soon be on its own.

Here is Amazon Destination’s brand focus.

• Created to solve problem-“How to easily plan and book a local getaway trip.”
• Weekend getaway within driving distances from major metro areas.
• Road Trips-Not Flights
• Moving towards including independent properties, regional groups, chains and B&B’s.
• Right now the areas they are featuring are the Pacific Northwest, Southern California and the Northeast. They plan to expand.

I like that they will include the smaller independent properties. Not just the big hotel chains. They will charge standard commissions and use published rates. Sounds like they want to differentiate themselves from the popular OTA’s that fill rooms with rock bottom rates. They say they want to be able to offer full-price inventory during peak periods to “a large qualified audience.” Sounds like a good opportunity for our industry.

I also like that vacation planners can go to the property’s  websites and view the room inventory.  No blind bookings.

Including boutique hotels and B&B’s in their inventory is encouraging. Another outlet to showcase to the traveling public what we are all about. Our small lodging industry has always been about local getaway road trips. 40% of all U.S. domestic leisure trips are short-term getaways of 1-3 nights and many of these trips are nearby, drivable distances.

I went on their website and searched for a place to stay in the Catskill Mountains of New York. Discovered two properties I would book in a heartbeat. An 18 room boutique B&B The Woodstock Inn on the Millstream and a place called The Graham & Co. A bit more remote but very intriguing, they call themselves “rough-lux”. These two properties really appeal to the “get me away from the city” getaway. Just what Amazon Destination is promoting. They also list the number of miles these Inns are from NYC.

Took a look at the Finger Lakes and found the Genesee Country Inn B&B listed with larger Hotels and Lodges. Again a great way for travelers looking in this area to compare the smaller property vs the larger ones. The B&B Team’s Eliot Dalton represents this inn for sale and knows the Inn and area very well. A beautiful location with 8 acres, a trout stream, waterfall and pond. A real country getaway. The fact that the Finger Lakes is a major B&B destination and this property is featured is tremendous.

Amazon Destination is new and work-in-progress but worth taking a look at. One thing you know is Amazon has capital to promote this brand far and wide.

Thanks for Listening,

Janet Wolf