How to Reduce OTA Commission for Your Hotel in India (A Realistic Plan)
OTAs typically take 15 to 25% of each booking, plus GST. A realistic plan to move part of your bookings direct, with worked numbers and what to avoid.
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Direct booking optimization for hotels
Turn website visits, Instagram DMs and WhatsApp enquiries into bookings on your own site, so you keep the commission you'd otherwise pay an OTA.
Who it's for
Hotels and resorts that get most of their bookings through OTAs, even from guests who already know them: repeat guests, people who found you on Instagram or Google, people who messaged you first.
If guests visit your website and then book you on an OTA, or WhatsApp enquiries go quiet after you send a rate, this is where we start. Each of those bookings commonly costs 15 to 25% in commission, plus GST. Our OTA commission calculator shows what moving some of them would mean for your hotel.
What's included
- An audit of your website and booking flow, on a phone, the way guests use it
- A faster, simpler mobile booking flow, working with your existing booking engine or channel manager
- Clear book-direct offers that respect your OTA contracts
- WhatsApp and Instagram DM flows that turn enquiries into bookings
- Follow-up for bookings that were started but not finished
- Tracking your direct booking share every month
How it works
Walk the path to booking
We go through your website, booking engine and enquiry channels as a guest would, on a phone, and note every point where someone could give up.
Fix the biggest leaks first
Speed, prices and availability that are easy to find, fewer steps to pay, and a quick way to ask a question.
Give guests a reason to book direct
Direct-only perks such as breakfast or a room upgrade, designed around what your OTA contracts allow.
Turn enquiries into bookings
WhatsApp and Instagram DM flows with quick answers, a booking link and a follow-up when someone goes quiet.
Measure and repeat
We track conversion and direct booking share every month, and keep fixing what the numbers point to.
What we measure
- Website conversion rate: the share of visits that become bookings
- Enquiry-to-booking rate on WhatsApp and Instagram
- Direct booking share: direct bookings as a share of all bookings
- Commission saved, worked out the same way as our OTA commission calculator
Honest limits
- What we can change depends on your booking engine: what it allows, and the access we're given. Some engines can't send follow-ups for unfinished bookings or report every booking.
- We don't change or renegotiate your OTA contracts. Book-direct offers are designed around what your contracts allow, and you confirm that before anything goes live.
- OTAs will still bring you guests. The goal is to move the ones who already chose you, not to replace OTAs.
Questions about direct booking optimization
Do we need to change our booking engine?
Usually not. We work with your existing booking engine or channel manager. If it's holding you back, we'll show you where, and you decide what to do.
Can we offer a lower price on our own website than on OTAs?
That depends on your OTA contracts, so check them first. If your contracts require the same price, you can add direct-only perks instead, such as breakfast or a room upgrade.
This is general information, not legal advice. Last reviewed: 3 October 2026.
Will this replace OTAs?
No, and it shouldn't. OTAs bring you guests you might not reach otherwise. The goal is to move guests who have already chosen your hotel to your own website, where you keep the full amount.
Do you take a commission on direct bookings?
No. A one-time setup, then a fixed monthly retainer. No commission, ever.
How do the WhatsApp and Instagram flows work?
We set up quick replies to common questions, a clear way to send a booking link, and a follow-up when a guest goes quiet. Your team stays in the conversation and can take over at any time. Meta charges for some WhatsApp business messages; we explain what applies to you before anything goes live.
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