Travel industry giants Marriott and Expedia Inc have teamed up to form a ‘next generation’ partnership.
Marriott has tapped Expedia’s technology to power the Vacations by Marriott hotel and flight package service in the US.
Customers can book tours, activities and transportation along with flights from Expedia airline partners at Marriott.com.
We believe there is considerable untapped opportunity between our two companies to drive value to hotel owners and travelers alike by strengthening our Vacations by Marriott’s offering," said Marriott CEO Arne Sorenson in a statement.
"We are thrilled to launch this new product with Expedia’s technology, and to explore new areas of partnership beyond our existing distribution relationship."
The partnership took effect on September 1.
The tie-up has been in development for months, the companies said.
"We’re going through an exciting period where we are evolving how we think about our business, and especially how we think about and work with our partners," said Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of Expedia.
It follows hot on the heels of another equally revolutionary move by Expedia.
The OTA joined forces with Red Lion Hotels to offer Red Lion member-only rates and enrolment into the Red Lion Hello Rewards program via the Expedia.com and sister site Hotels.com.
