HRS Adds ‘Longstay’ Option to Platform

Corporate lodging platform HRS has added a “longstay” hotel segment for stays of eight or more nights to its product offering, alongside shorter transient and meetings options, the company announced this week. HRS noted that 39 percent of its corporate bookings through the first three quarters of 2021 were for stays of at least eight nights, compared with just 8 percent in 2019.

HRS acknowledged that 2021 metrics obviously were derived from smaller volumes, but the company also spoke with procurement leaders and hotel partners to identify that longer stays are a “critical new element” to buyer-supplier negotiations for 2022 and beyond.

“The longstay segment is a noteworthy new reality for buyers and suppliers as our industry looks towards recovery,” said HRS CEO Tobias Ragge in a statement. “Making the entirety of the longstay experience—from initial procurement and rate loading, on through to everyday shopping and virtual payment—easy for procurement leaders, travelers and hoteliers is vital as business travel re-emerges.”

Donna M. Airoldi www.businesstravelnews.com