Singapore,
21
March
2018
|
10:00
Europe/Amsterdam

Booking.com Champions Travel Stories from Three Incredible Partners as Winners of #BookingHero Competition

Accommodation partners from Scotland, New York and Sri Lanka take centre stage in new digital campaign from Booking.com showcasing acts of extraordinary hospitality

SINGAPORE — MARCH 21, 2018 — What do a dream wedding in New York, an adventure through the mountains of Sri Lanka and a family’s search for their roots in Scotland all have in common? A hospitality professional went out of their way to make or save someone’s trip and today Booking.com, the global leader in connecting travellers with the widest choice of incredible places to stay, is sharing their stories with the world as the winners of its first-ever Booking Hero competition.

Booking.com received thousands of submissions via social media and have selected the three most touching and inspiring accounts of hospitality professionals going above and beyond to create unique and unforgettable travel experiences for our customers. The customers were then flown back to surprise their Heroes in person and to say thank you for making (and saving) their trips, with all the emotional reunions caught live on camera.

Booking.com is now showcasing these stories and sharing them with the world: including a B&B owner in Scotland who helped a Canadian customer find the house where his father was born before immigrating to North America; a hotel receptionist who came to the rescue and saved a Belgian bride’s dream photo shoot in Central Park; and a pregnant host about to give birth in Sri Lanka who kept her homestay open to care for an injured hiker from the Netherlands.

 

Booking Hero grand prize winners of €25,000 in travel credit on Booking.com

Karen, Owner of Blackburn Villa B&B in Ayr, Scotland

Nominated by David and Virginia from Canada

https://youtu.be/qtQiC2CnBiA

Booking Hero runners-up winning €5,000 in travel credit on Booking.com

Sudarshi, Owner of Tunnel Gap Homestay in Ella, Sri Lanka

Nominated by Harry and Nienke from the Netherlands

https://youtu.be/syDo8QjI-14

Booking Hero runners-up winning €5,000 in travel credit on Booking.com

Alina, Receptionist at citizenM Hotel in New York City, USA

Nominated by Els and Kevin from Belgium

https://youtu.be/pDKOOB8MUxs

“We are so appreciative of the outstanding commitment and dedication of our partners around the world. They pour so much of themselves into their business and into creating truly extraordinary experiences for travellers each and every day,” said Peter Verhoeven, Vice President of Partner Services at Booking.com. “These three amazing stories perfectly capture the unique and personal moments that make travel so special. Outstanding acts of kindness and generosity like this really are the backbone of the entire hospitality industry. We couldn’t be more proud of our exceptional partners around the globe and are looking forward to surfacing even more incredible stories like this in the future.”

According to recent research conducted by Booking.com across 25 markets in 2017, a personal connection is essential for many travellers with 29% saying that an accommodation feeling like home is key and 24% sharing that a welcoming host is a make or break factor during the first 24 hours of their trip.

“Staying with Karen is like staying with your new best friend. You feel welcome the moment you walk in the door. She works hard to make your breakfast special and gives you more than the comforts you would get at home. We felt truly pampered,” said Virginia Persson, Booking Hero nominator from Vancouver Island, British Columbia in Canada. “Even more incredibly, just as we were losing hope towards the end of our stay, Karen helped us find Dave’s Scottish family which was the true purpose of our trip to Scotland. In this respect, she changed our lives.”

“What I enjoy most about what I do is meeting people from all walks of life from lots of different places, all coming to stay for different reasons,” said Karen McClelland, Booking Hero and Owner of Blackburn Villa B&B in Ayr, Scotland. “As I am welcoming people into my home, I want them to feel relaxed and able to ask anything of me. To be recognised as a Booking Hero is the ultimate confirmation that I am doing things right! But nothing compares to seeing the joy on Dave and Virginia’s faces when I was able to help them with their research and connect them with their Scottish roots. They’re more than just guests now, they’re friends.”

Booking.com is launching these winning Booking Hero stories today as the heart of a new campaign on social media with long-form video content that extends the #BookingHero message, with TV to follow.

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CONTACT DETAILS

Nicole Verghese

nicole.verghese@booking.com / +65 6645 0500

About Booking.com

Established in 1996 in Amsterdam, Booking.com B.V. has grown from a small Dutch start-up to one of the largest travel e-commerce companies in the world. Part of Booking Holdings (NASDAQ: BKNG), Booking.com now employs more than 17,000 employees in 198 offices in 70 countries worldwide.

With a mission to empower people to experience the world, Booking.com invests in digital technology that helps take the friction out of travel. At Booking.com, we connect travellers with the world’s largest selection of incredible places to stay, including everything from apartments, vacation homes, and family-run B&Bs to 5-star luxury resorts, tree houses and even igloos. The Booking.com website and mobile apps are available in over 43 languages, offer over 1.7 million properties, and cover more than 125,000 destinations in 228 countries and territories worldwide.

Each day, more than 1.5 million room nights are reserved on our platform. So whether travelling for business or leisure, customers can instantly book their ideal accommodation quickly and easily with Booking.com, without booking fees and backed up by our promise to price match. Via our customer experience team, customers can reach Booking.com 24/7 for assistance and support in 43 languages, any time of the day or night.

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