Amazon to Launch Travel Service Featuring Hotel Booking: Report

E-commerce giant Amazon is reportedly planning to enter the travel segment with the launch of a new service called Travel.

As per a report by Skift, Amazon Travel will feature booking of independent hotels and resorts near major cities. The initial roll out of the service is said to include select hotels at a few hours driving distance from New York, Los Angeles, and Seattle. The service is likely to be officially announced on January 1, the report added.

Skift, which reportedly spoke with some hotel representatives, added that out of three hotels, two had already enrolled for the service and the third one was planning to join-in soon. One of the representatives explained that properties would show detailed information including types and availability of rooms, pricing information, and photos. Hotels would also pay the e-commerce giant 15 percent commission for prepaid bookings, the representative added.

The executive is selecting hotels for its venture based on their TripAdvisor ratings. Only properties rated four stars or above would be accepted.

When a booking is done from the Amazon's website, the properties would be notified they can set their calendars. The hotels would also be free to put discounts on the rates of their properties. Interestingly, the hoteliers would receive payments from Amazon in two instalments.

While the e-commerce giant did not respond to Skift's request for a response, it did somewhat confirm the plans by recently listing an employment advertisement for travel market managers for Amazon Local, Boston. "We are actively seeking a tenacious Market Manager to drive the sales efforts for Amazon Local's travel category in the greater Boston area," states the job listing.