Why Booking Direct Matters More Than You Might Think

If you’ve traveled in the last few years, chances are you’ve used a website like Booking.com, Expedia, Hotels.com, or another online travel site to search for a place to stay. They’re convenient. You can compare properties, look at photos and reviews, and see what’s available all in one place.

As travelers ourselves, we understand why people use them.

But there’s something many guests don’t realize: when you reserve a room through one of those sites, you aren’t actually booking directly with the destination inn.

And sometimes, that matters more than you might expect.

Online travel agencies—usually called OTAs in the hospitality world—act as a middleman between you and the property where you’ll be staying.

When you book through an OTA, your reservation comes to us through their system. Depending on the site and reservation, your payment, confirmation, cancellation request, special requests, and even some of your communication may pass through that company rather than coming directly to us.

Most of the time, everything works just fine.

It’s when something doesn’t go according to plan that the difference becomes very noticeable.

Maybe your plans change and you need to cancel. Maybe you need to adjust your dates. Perhaps you have a question about your room or need to let us know you’ll be arriving late.

When you’ve booked directly with us, you simply contact us.

When an OTA is involved, it isn’t always that simple.

One of the more difficult situations we encounter is when a guest believes they have been communicating directly with us when they have actually been communicating with the company through which they booked.

It’s an easy mistake to make.

You search for our inn online, click a reservation link or phone number, and reasonably assume you’re dealing with us. Sometimes you aren’t.

That can become especially frustrating when a guest believes they have canceled or changed a reservation, but the reservation is still showing as active in our system. We may have never received the phone call or message the guest thought was going to us.

No one wants to discover that after the fact.

Booking directly removes that extra layer. You know exactly who you’re talking to—and so do we.

This may be the biggest reason we encourage direct reservations.

When you book through a third party, we have agreements with that company and rules surrounding that reservation. There may be things we simply cannot change on our end, even when we would like to help.

Book directly, and we have much more ability to work with you.

Need to adjust something? Have a special circumstance? Want to add something to your stay? Not sure which room would suit you best?

Call us.

You’re not reaching a call center hundreds or thousands of miles away. You’re talking to the people who live here, make your breakfast, prepare your room, and will greet you when you arrive.

We know our inn better than any booking website ever could.

Another common assumption is that the big travel websites must have the lowest price.

That isn't necessarily true.

Third-party sites can have different rate structures, restrictions, cancellation terms, packages, or promotions. They also charge lodging properties significant commissions for reservations made through their platforms.

For a small independent inn, that matters.

When you book directly, more of what you spend on your stay remains right here at the property. It helps us maintain this historic home, employ local businesses and tradespeople, purchase from local vendors, make improvements, and continue creating the kind of experience that brought you here in the first place.

Booking direct is a surprisingly simple way to support a small business.

We should probably make this clear: we aren't telling you never to use online travel sites.

They serve a purpose, particularly when you're researching a destination. They introduce travelers to independent properties they might never have discovered otherwise—and we're grateful for that.

Our suggestion is simply this:

Use them to search. Then, before you click “Book,” take a moment to visit the property's own website.

See what is available directly. Compare the terms as well as the price. And if you have questions, pick up the phone.

For a small inn like ours, the person answering is the same person who will be cooking your breakfast the next morning.

One of the things we love most about running a bed and breakfast is that hospitality begins long before you walk through our front door.

It might begin with a phone call about which room has the features you're looking for. An email asking about restaurants. A question about something special you're planning while you're here.

Those conversations help us get to know you—and help us prepare for your visit.

When you book directly, that relationship starts from the very beginning.

So the next time you're planning a getaway, by all means, do your research. Read the reviews. Compare your choices. Find the place that feels right for you.

But once you've found it, find their website too.

Book local. Book small. And whenever you can, book direct.

We promise there are real people on the other side of that reservation who appreciate it more than you know.