Expedia Names Dominican Republic 2014 Leader in Caribbean Travel Demand

Expedia Names Dominican Republic 2014 Leader in Caribbean Travel Demand
Punta Cana, April 22, 2015

The Expedia group, one of the world’s largest online travel companies, reported today a banner year for the Dominican Republic in 2014 with a 45 percent increase in travel demand year over year. Furthermore, Punta Cana was the top producing market in 2014 in the Caribbean region with a travel demand growth of more than 50 percent, while the country’s capital city of Santo Domingo was among the top ten producing markets in the Caribbean for 2014.

“With robust flight inventory, a strong hospitality foundation and sunny year-round weather, the Dominican Republic has consistently led travel demand and been recognized as a popular Caribbean destination for travelers from major markets including the United States, United Kingdom and Canada,” said Demetrius Canton, Director of Lodging Partner Services for the Caribbean, Expedia group.

The Expedia group’s market management team is attending the Dominican Annual Tourist Exchange (DATE), from April 28-30, 2015 in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. The Expedia group will be hosting a press conference on April 29th at 10:30 a.m. at the “Santo Domingo” room of the Barcelo Bavaro Convention Center where Demetrius Canton will be sharing market data, company announcements and product launches. Throughout the conference the team will liaise with valued travel partners to discuss the successes in the region and provide counsel on increasing visibility and incremental demand using Expedia group’s powerful technology and marketing tools.

A further testament to the company’s commitment to the Dominican Republic, Expedia group recently expanded its presence in the country by opening the first local offices in Punta Cana and Santo Domingo in early 2015. Staffed with an expert team of market managers, the local offices provide an opportunity for Expedia to further enhance the company’s ability to effectively serve partners and support the continued growth of the destination.

“Through our new local offices, Expedia can better understand the objectives of our valued hotel partners on a local level in order to develop a strategic and effective plan for them,” said Miriam Hernandez, Area Manager for the Caribbean, the Expedia group. “While demand continues to grow for both the Dominican Republic and the Caribbean region, competition among hoteliers will also increase. Expedia is keen on providing partners the ability to stand out and ultimately generate revenue and exposure to new relevant audiences.”

The Expedia group is also pleased to announce an increase of more than 60 percent in total demand generated to the Dominican Republic via mobile devices in 2014 when compared to the previous year. Expedia group’s mobile applications were designed to allow travelers to plan their trips and book in a convenient, flexible way. Expedia group consistently provides expert advice to hotel partners on how to take advantage of mobile platforms and participate on exclusive mobile promotions, flash sales and more, creating opportunities for both the consumer and the hotelier. Expedia seeks to continue to add more properties to its portfolio in 2015, with 150 new partners contracted in 2014 alone, to support tourism growth in the Dominican Republic and the region. By working with the Expedia group, hotels in the Dominican Republic gain exposure to the more than 150 websites in more than 70 countries worldwide, in addition to a myriad of mobile sites and apps, from brands such as Expedia.com®, Hotels.com®, Hotwire®, Egencia®, Travelocity®, Expedia Affiliate Network® and Venere®.

About the Expedia group

The Expedia group (NASDAQ: EXPE) is one of the world’s largest travel companies, with an extensive brand portfolio that includes leading online travel brands, such as:

• Expedia.com®, the world’s largest full service online travel agency with localized sites in 31 countries
  
• Hotels.com®, the hotel specialist with localized sites in more than 60 countries
  
• Hotwire®, a leading discount travel site that offers opaque deals in 12 countries throughout North America, Europe and Asia
  
• Travelocity®, a pioneer in online travel and a leading online travel agency in the US and Canada
  
• Egencia®, the world’s fifth largest corporate travel management company
  
• eLong™, a leading mobile and online travel service provider in China
  
• Venere.com™, the online hotel reservation specialist in Europe
  
• trivago®, a leading online hotel metasearch company with sites in 49 countries
  
• Wotif Group, a leading operator of travel brands in the Asia-Pacific region, including Wotif.com ®, lastminute.com.au®, travel.com.au, Asia Web Direct®, LateStays.com, GoDo.com.au and Arnold Travel Technology
  
• Expedia Local Expert®, a provider of online and in-market concierge services, activities, experiences and ground transportation in hundreds of destinations worldwide
  
• Classic Vacations®, a top luxury travel specialist
  
• Expedia® CruiseShipCenters®, a provider of exceptional value and expert advice for travelers booking cruises and vacations through its network of 180 franchise locations across North America
  
• CarRentals.com™, the premier car rental booking company on the web

The company delivers consumers value in leisure and business travel, drives incremental demand and direct bookings to travel suppliers, and provides advertisers the opportunity to reach a highly valuable audience of in-market consumers through Expedia® Media Solutions. Expedia also powers bookings for some of the world’s leading airlines and hotels, top consumer brands, high traffic websites, and thousands of active affiliates through Expedia® Affiliate Network. For corporate and industry news and views, visit us at www.expediainc.com or follow us on Twitter @expediainc.