Business modelsCopy link

Properties or chains can use one of three different business models with Expedia Group, and this will be specified in their contract. Providers need to know which business model their properties use in order to develop their interface accordingly.

For example, if a developer codes to and tests Expedia Collect (EC) bookings only, their properties using Expedia Traveler Preference (ETP) or Hotel Collect (HC) business models will not be able to use that interface.

For details about which elements or entities are impacted by business model, consult the detailed element descriptions in the Reference section.

Expedia Collect

In this business model, Expedia Group collects payment from travelers at the time of booking. This model is sometimes called "Pay Now" and is sometimes referred to as "EC" or "Merchant," depending on context.

The reservation is paid for and funds are sent to Expedia Group. After the traveler's stay, the property sends an invoice to Expedia Group or charges an Expedia Virtual Card to collect monies owed for the provided services. The net rate reflected in bookings that integrate into the property's system should not be disclosed to guests.

Hotel Collect

In this business model, the property collects payment from the traveler. This method is also known as "Pay Later" and is sometimes referred to as "HC," "Agency," or "Property Collect" depending on the context. This business model may allow travelers to book same-day and next-day reservations on Expedia.com and Hotels.com without a credit card.

The reservation is confirmed, but the payment is not collected until the traveler checks out after their stay. Expedia Group subsequently collects commission from the property.

Expedia Traveler Preference

This business model allows travelers to choose whether to pay online during booking with the Pay Now (EC) feature or pay the property directly during their stay with the Pay Later (HC) feature. This enables properties to accept reservations from more travelers.

Expedia Traveler Preference (ETP) is the business model preferred by both Expedia Group and travelers. Partners using the Expedia Traveler Preference model receive both Hotel Collect and Expedia Collect reservations. Depending on context, Expedia Traveler Preference (ETP) is also referred to as "Dual" or "Flex."

Accounting should be completed for each reservation based on the payment type, which will be either Hotel Collect or Expedia Collect.

For more information or to switch to Expedia Traveler Preference, contact us.

Pricing modelsCopy link

Expedia currently supports three main pricing models:

Occupancy-based pricing

The occupancy-based pricing (OBP) model is a property-level pricing model that is based on the number of travelers staying in the room. Expedia Group recommends that properties define a rate for each applicable occupancy. If a rate is not defined for a given occupancy, the rate for the next higher occupancy will be charged (see below for exceptions related to children).

For example, when a rate is specified for an occupancy of two, but not for an occupancy of one, the rate for double-occupancy will be applied automatically when a traveler wants to book a stay just for one person.

Any number of guests over the highest specified occupancy rate (up to, but not exceeding, the maximum occupancy allowed for the room), will be charged extra-person fees. Extra-person fees can be configured in Partner Central, using the Product API, or using the createFeeSet mutation.

By default, children are always charged an extra child fee and do not factor in to the occupancy being charged, with one exception: the extra child fee is waived if there is a gap in the defined occupancy rates and it costs less to treat the child as an adult.

For example, if one adult and one child are booking a room on dates where a double occupancy rate is defined, but single occupancy rates are not, rather than charge a double occupancy plus the extra child fee, the extra child fee is waived for that first child.

Per-day pricing

The per-day pricing (PDP) modelis a property-level pricing model; a room is assigned a rate each day for a base number of occupants. Though commonly configured for two occupants, the base number can be customized by rate plan in Partner Central, using the Product API, or using the createRatePlan and updateRatePlan mutations. A single traveler will always be quoted the rate for the base number of occupants, whereas travelers above that base occupancy number are charged extra-person fees if configured.

For example, a room has a price assigned each day for a base occupancy of two guests. In this case, a single traveler would be quoted a base double rate for each day at the property, while four guests would be quoted the base rate plus extra-person fees for two of the occupants.

Room rates are based on the number of adults in a booking, while children are charged an extra-person fee. Children are only charged an adult guest rate if there are not enough adults to fill the base occupancy for a booking.

For example, a booking for one adult and two children at a property with per-day pricing and a base occupancy of two will only charge an extra person fee for one child.

Day-of-arrival pricing

Day-of-arrival (DOA) pricing is an optional pricing attribute on a rate plan that can be enabled by Expedia upon request by the property, through the Product API, or using the createRatePlan and updateRatePlan mutations. With this pricing attribute, whatever day guests arrive, they are charged the price for that day on all the days that they stay at the property. To make an exception, the property can set a "rate change flag" that forces a particular rate starting on a particular day and continuing through the rest of the stay. Day-of-arrival pricing can be enabled for rate plans using any of the above pricing models (PDP or OBP) and can be enabled without the length-of-stay (LOS) model, but this is not common.

Per-day length-of-stay pricing

The per-day length-of-stay pricing (LOS) model is currently only available in conjunction with Per-Day pricing (PDP) and is also a set on the rate plan. Length-of-stay pricing allows properties to define rates for lengths of stay from 1 to 28 days, per arrival date. For each date of a year, properties can send up to 28 rates. The price guests will pay depends on the number of days they will stay at the property. Each date has a price for a 3-day stay, a 7-day stay, etc. If LOS pricing is enabled, day-of-arrival (DOA) pricing must be enabled because length-of-stay pricing is based on the traveler’s day of arrival.

minLOSDefault and maxLOSDefault can be configured using the Product API. See the RatePlan resource definition under Product API, or refer to the createRatePlan and updateRatePlan mutations. Also, note that minimum and maximum lengths of stay can be defined for each day or period with the Availability and Rates API. More specifically, the rate to be sent for each length of stay is the rate for one night. If a rate of $100 is sent for LOS=7, the base rate total for 7 nights will be 7x$100.

Expedia Group recommends that the first time a property sends rates for a specific day, they send rates for all supported lengths of stay per day. For example, for arrival on September 1st, Expedia Group should receive up to 28 different rates, for lengths of stay from 1 to 28 days, assuming the property supports 28-day stays.

Subsequent updates should only be made when the length-of-stay rates change. Example: If rates for LOS=7 and above are changing, the update message should only contain the rates for LOS=7 and above. Rates for shorter stays should be excluded since those rates will remain the same.

If a rate is not defined for a length of stay, it will not be available for sale on Expedia Group points of sale. This is true for both gaps between two defined lengths of stay or any lengths of stay after the maximum defined. For example, if, for arrival on September 1, rates for LOS 1, 3, and 5 are defined, it will not be possible for travelers to book for 2, 4, and 6 or more nights when arriving on that date.

Expedia Group recommendations

Expedia Group recommends that partners use occupancy-based pricing (OBP) because this pricing model offers the most flexible pricing solution.

Properties currently using the per-day pricing model can convert to occupancy-based pricing by requesting a migration from their Market Manager.

Pricing model information can be confirmed in Partner Central from the overview page, with the Product API, or using the property query.

You should contact your Expedia Group Technical Relationship Manager with any questions about pricing models or potential discrepancies with your properties’ pricing models.

Pricing model comparison

The following example compares the different pricing models for a room with different numbers of guests in the reservation.

This table illustrates how children and infants are charged in a reservation based on pricing model and number of guests, both adults and children, in the booking reservation.

Rate acquisitionsCopy link

Net rates received from the partner are the amounts displayed on Expedia Collect booking notifications. This is the cost of the room rates, which means this is the total amount you get after taxes and Expedia Group commissions are paid. (Lowest available rates and net rates mean that the Expedia Collect path of a dual rate plan needs to be mapped so that rate updates can come through.)

Sell rates received from the partner are the amounts displayed on Hotel Collect booking notifications. It is the room rate including Expedia Group commission; taxes may or may not be included. This is the total cost to travelers. (Sell rates means that the Hotel Collect path of a dual rate plan needs to be mapped.)

Note that each ETP product consists of a primary product and a derived product. Partners should send rate updates for primary products only; a derived product will have the same availability as the primary product and the derived rate is calculated by Expedia.

It is critical that you define the right type of rate to upload because no validation is done to confirm the rate and type. If you send the wrong rate, the Expedia rate will be much lower than the desired rate (when sending a net rate for a sell rate or LAR-based product) or much higher (when sending a sell rate or LAR for a net rate).

You can use the Product API or ratePlan query to determine which rate plan to send with availability and rates data. Using the Product API, the rates plans will be included in the response messages for active rate plans that indicate ("manageable": true). For more information, refer to the distributonRule resource definition.

PSD2 and SCACopy link

Starting in September 2019, the revised Payment Services Directive (PSD2) went into effect across all EEA countries. This regulation is related to authentication of consumer credit card transactions. It is designed to make electronic payments more secure and reduce credit card fraud for consumers. This change will have the most impact when charging guest cards without having the guest physically present – for pre-stay deposits, or for cancellation or no-show fees. It will now be necessary to use Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) to validate credit card transactions.

For more information, please visit Partner Central or contact your Technical Relationship Manager.

Virtual credit cardsCopy link

Two types of virtual cards can be used to pay for Expedia reservations:

• Expedia Virtual Card (EVC)
• Affiliate virtual credit card

Expedia Virtual CardCopy link

Expedia Virtual Card (EVC) allows direct-contracted properties to receive payment from Expedia Group with a virtual credit card. At the time of booking, Expedia Group generates a distinct virtual credit card number authorized for the transaction, and the virtual credit card details are provided electronically to the property to be used for payment. Expedia virtual cards are supported by the Booking Notification, Booking Retrieval, and Lodging Supply GraphQL APIs, and they are activated at the check-in time or booking creation time based on eligibility.

Steps for success

For a successful EVC rollout, your implementation should support communication of credit card information as described in the API’s schema.

The property’s internal system must support changing existing bookings from the original billing method to EVC payment method and vice versa, if the need arises.

After activation on the EVC program, the property can ask its market manager to include EVC payment information in all pending bookings. In this case, booking modifications will be created that include a special request section containing this information. The property’s system must be able to change the payment type of existing bookings in such cases. It must also support a change in payment type if the property switches from EVC back to invoice billing.

You need to ensure that all new bookings or pending updates for EVC are communicated to the property effectively.

During traveler check-in

When a traveler checks in, the property uses a credit card as a payment guarantee for the stay. If the EVC is not available at the time of check-in, the property should not attempt to swipe the traveler's credit card or delay check-in. Instead, properties should access Partner Central or the property management system to find the EVC number so they can charge the EVC for the stay. If necessary, you can contact EVC support to request the EVC number by fax.

• Modified bookings - In most cases, the EVC number will remain the same for modified bookings. Card parameters may be adjusted to reflect the new booking rate and check-in/checkout dates. In rare cases, the EVC number may be changed in modified bookings.
• Cancelled bookings - Cancellation booking responses do not include EVC details. In order to bill applicable property cancellation fees, properties need billing information and the original check-in date as provided in the booking’s last notification prior to cancellation.

Billing process

The EVC billing process allows properties to get paid for their reservations when the traveler checks out. Expedia Group generates an EVC for every booking.

1. The property retrieves the EVC number as follows:
   • If using the Booking Notification API, the property retrieves the EVC number for the booking from the Booking Reservation Notification request message.
   • If using the Booking Retrieval and Booking Confirmation APIs, the property can retrieve the EVC number for the booking from the Booking Retrieval response message.
2. The property charges the stay to the EVC at the time of checkout.

How the process works

If using the Booking Notification API or Booking Retrieval and Booking Confirmation APIs, a notification from the API is sent when a reservation is booked through any Expedia Group point of sale. The notification includes the credit card details will be available to the partner for update in the property’s reservation system. If using the Lodging Supply GraphQL API, a webhooks notification is sent that includes the property and reservation IDs, which can be used to query for reservation details and a payment token.

• The property has the option to authorize the card when the traveler arrives.
• Cards cannot be charged before guest arrival. No pre-authorizations or deposit charges should be charged on the card before check-in.
• All incidentals should be charged to the traveler’s personal credit card.
• The EVC will be loaded for either the net or sell rate for nights booked plus applicable taxes and fees depending on the configuration and location in which a property is located.
• EVC must only be used for the booking provided on the reservation confirmation.
• The property should charge the EVC when the traveler checks out.
• All charges must be made within 180 days of checkout. EVC will expire within 180 days of checkout for fraud protection. If the card has expired, the partner can contact the Expedia support team for assistance.
• After the traveler checks out, the EVC is processed and payment is made using the property’s existing credit card processing system.

Guidelines for properties

• EVC is for room reservations only. Properties using the system will need travelers to provide a personal credit card at check-in to cover any incidental charges or on-site fees during their stay.
• EVC should only be used once a traveler has checked out; no pre-authorizations or deposit charges should be charged to the card before check-in.
• Expedia charges no additional fees to partners who use EVC; however, normal merchant fees for processing the credit card transaction will apply.
• EVC expires 180 days from the date of guest checkout. The partner can contact Expedia support for assistance if the card has expired.
• Cancellation penalties can be charged upon the original arrival date. When a property is first enabled on EVC, all of its new bookings will henceforth include EVC card information in the special request section of the booking response notification or payment object of the reservations query response. It is also possible for the property to request that Expedia Group modify all pending booking to add EVC details. The property’s system must be able to change the payment type of existing bookings in such cases. It must also support a change in payment type if the property switches from EVC back to invoice billing. Properties can refer to section "11.1.1 Expedia Virtual Card special requests" of their Lodging Agreement for additional information.

Support

To troubleshoot credit card information, refer to Partner Central's Support page.

Phone support is available 24/7 in English and Spanish. Times vary for other languages based on business hours regionally. Support hours subject to change. For assistance in implementing EVC, contact your market manager orcontact us online.

Affiliate virtual credit cardsCopy link

Travelers can book and pay for Hotel Collect reservations using either a personal credit card or a virtual credit card (VCC). VCCs are digital credit cards that are often used in corporate travel to pay for travel expenses. VCCs used to pay for Hotel Collect reservations are not issued by Expedia, though they are provided by an Expedia affiliate partner.

When managing these payment methods, charge VCCs according to instructions as detailed in the authorization form, which will be sent to you by email or fax from the affiliate partner or third-party provider. The authorization form will indicate whether incidentals should be charged to the VCC or to the traveler's personal card.

If an issue arises with a VCC payment before a traveler’s arrival, during check-in, or after checkout, contact the Expedia affiliate partner before cancelling the reservation.

• When a Hotel Collect reservation is booked through an affiliate partner website, the affiliate partner collects payment for the reservation.

• For charges that are not included in the total booking amount, check the authorization form to determine if they should be charged to the VCC or to the traveler's personal card.

Note: Pre-authorization is not required for the virtual credit cards.

Value add promotionsCopy link

Value add promotions (VAP) are different from value adds. Value adds are rate plan-level amenities offered to travelers that book specific rate plans. Each rate plan can have up to three value adds.

VAPs can be created by properties for a target book/travel window, and applied to specific rate plans in order to provide guests with an additional value (i.e.: early check-in, free breakfast) instead of a discounted rate that traditional promotions support. If a property is connected with a system provider that has completed VAP certification (details below), properties can access this feature in Partner Central under the Marketing section, "Promotions." From there, Partner Central’s interface guides you through the process of creating your promotions.

Example: A rate plan can have the value add "Free Breakfast" or "All Inclusive," meaning if a guest books that rate plan, they will receive that amenity.

VAPs require a unique certification before a system provider's connected properties will have access to this feature. Properties should consult with their connectivity system provider to determine whether or not they support VAPs. To complete certification, system providers must provide the Expedia Group Integration team with:

• Confirmation that the VAP details are consumed and passed on to the Property Management System (PMS) (if the PMS is not the system connected to Expedia Group directly)

• Confirmation that the PMS consumes the VAP details and integrates the VAP details into a test reservation (this is to ensure a property’s front desk/operations team is aware of guest reservation inclusions).

Properties with questions about value add promotions should contact their Market Manager. System providers should contact your Technical Relationship Manager (TRM) or contact us to complete certification.