Bed bank Medhotels.com hopes to persuade online travel companies to flag up benefits of booking its accommodation so it can compete with cheaper rivals.
The “quality stamp” would appear alongside details of its properties on websites of travel partners or agencies, said head of sales Teresa Walsh.
Currently the bed bank often does not appear at the top of accommodation search lists online. The company claims having principal status, which entails offering full financial protection to customers, means it cannot offer rock-bottom prices and pushes its hotels down the search list.
Walsh said consumers booking through agents’ websites do not know why certain hotels are more expensive.
“Travel agents know the benefits of booking with us but customers would not know the hotel has been health and safety checked to Federation of Tour Operators’ standards, they just look for the cheapest hotel,” she said.
The company hopes to launch its “quality stamp” to online travel companies in the next couple of months. “The challenge will be trying to get our trade partners to buy into this as it will involve some technology development at their end,” she added.
The company already flags up hotels with spas or golf courses.