Orlando-based Tourico Holidays, whose officials have loudly and sharply protested the hotel industry’s practice of rate parity, is pre-purchasing huge blocks of room nights at major properties in international gateways. Read the details in this Travel Weekly item: http://www.travelweekly.com/
INBOUND INSIGHT: This move reiterates a Tourico practice announced earlier this year in which it started pre-buying massive blocks of tickets/admissions to attractions and activities—its inventory comprises 5,400 activities and attractions in more than 900 cities worldwide—enabling it to offer dynamic packaging. Also, one can’t help but feel this may be a subtle response to the IHG hotel chain, which tried to publicly humiliate Tourico by blacklisting them from buying rooms from any of its brands.
