Booking.com honours more than 1700 New Zealand accommodation partners with the 2014 Award of Excellence

New Zealand – 04 February, 2015 – More than 1700 Kiwi accommodation providers are being honoured with a Booking.com 2014 Award of Excellence, an important symbol of the company’s commitment to work together with its global network of accommodation partners to facilitate incredible experiences for customers from every walk of life. Internationally, Booking.com is honouring 200,776 properties in 176 countries with the Award.

The average score amongst properties receiving the award this year is a record 8.7 out of 10, with New Zealand rated as some of the best in the world with an average score of 8.8. (Top spot was shared by Austria and Belgium at 8.84.)

The Award of Excellence is given out by Booking.com to properties on an annual basis in honour of their achievements over the past year as measured by their overall guest review score. To receive an award, partners of Booking.com must have an average review score of 8 or higher, based on at least 10 guest reviews as of 11:59pm on 31 December 2014 CET.

“Connecting travellers of all backgrounds with the world’s best places to stay is at the core of our mission at Booking.com,” says Gillian Tans, President and Chief Operating Officer at Booking.com. “We take this mission very seriously and are exceptionally proud of our global network of partners who consistently deliver on providing the best possible experience for our customers. Our Award of Excellence is presented to a select group of partners in recognition of our shared commitment and passion for getting it right for each and every guest.”

Leading the pack in terms of the sheer number of awards this year is Italy, with 27,766 properties being honoured. Other countries at the top of the list include the United States (18,393), France (14,096), Germany (12,171), Spain (11,819), and the United Kingdom (11,225).

An impressive 66 properties are being awarded for having a perfect score of 10 this year, including 15 in the United Kingdom, 7 in Italy, and 5 in Canada. Nearly a third of all properties being honoured in 2014 (64,846) have an average review score of 9 or higher.

Booking.com currently features more than 42 million guest reviews on its website and mobile apps, and in 2014, the company received an average of 104,669 guest reviews per day. The five most prolific countries in terms of guest reviews submitted in 2014 were the United Kingdom (3,925,802), Germany (3,569,200), France (3,478,905), Italy (3,119,369) and the United States (2,705,377).

Brazilian, British, Russian, American, and Australian guests commented more frequently about food and beverages compared to other review topics in 2014, while German, Dutch, and Spanish customers talked mostly about the staff and location. In contrast, one of the most frequently mentioned review topics by French guests was the in-room facilities, while Italian customers focused more on transportation and parking.

All of Booking.com’s guest reviews are from within the last 14 months and are written by real guests after they have stayed and checked out of the accommodation. There are a number of safeguards in place to guarantee that each review is current and authentic. Booking.com’s guest reviews are never edited in any way. However, reviews containing profanity, and/or political, religious, and racist remarks (amongst other content that is flagged for additional review) are not displayed.

CONTACT DETAILS

For further information, contact the Booking.com New Zealand Press Office;

ianb@thisismango.co.nz / +64 9 354 1315

About Booking.com:

Booking.com is the world leader in booking hotel and other accommodations online. It guarantees the best prices for any type of property – from small independents to five-star luxury. Guests can access the Booking.com website anytime, anywhere from their desktops, mobile phones and tablet devices, and they don’t pay booking fees – ever. The Booking.com website is available in 42 languages, offers over 590,000 hotels and accommodations including more than 200,000 vacation rental properties and covers over 70,000 destinations in more than 200 countries worldwide. It features over 42 million reviews written by guests after their stay, and attracts online visitors from both leisure and business markets around the globe. With over 17 years of experience and a team of over 8,300 dedicated employees in 150+ offices worldwide, Booking.com operates its own in-house customer service team, which is available 24/7 to assist guests in their native languages and ensure an exceptional customer experience.

Established in 1996, Booking.com B.V. owns and operates Booking.com™, and is part of The Priceline Group (NASDAQ: PCLN). Follow us on Twitter, Google+ and Pinterest, like us on Facebook, or learn more at http://www.booking.com.