Marketing and Comms
New Booking.com API Highlights Properties’ Sustainability Credentials

BeCause — an enterprise software startup transforming how the hospitality, travel and tourism industries manage their sustainability data — has partnered with global online travel platform Booking.com. Through a dedicated API (application programming interface), the partnership will make it possible for Booking.com to receive updated data in real time about accommodations that have earned any of more than 40 recognized third-party sustainability certifications. This will enable the travel platform to more efficiently present reliable, up-to-date information about those accommodations with a third-party certification; so travelers can make more informed choices for their next trip.

The ability to transparently communicate credible sustainability information is increasingly crucial for travel companies, as a growing number of people continue to indicate that they prefer more sustainable travel choices. In fact, according to Booking.com's latest Sustainable Travel Report, 57 percent of global travelers say they would feel better about staying in a particular accommodation if they knew it had a sustainable certification; and 81 percent say sustainable travel is important to them.

A bespoke sustainability solution

Image: Booking.com

BeCause helps organizations collect, coordinate and communicate their sustainability data — reducing redundancies and creating efficiencies that translate to positive revenue and ecological impacts. BeCause's solution connects certification entities and travel providers and distributors, enabling over 17,000 hotels and online travel platforms to provide travelers with accurate and reliable sustainability data. These processes, traditionally handled via spreadsheets, emails and unconnected systems, are ripe for transformation; and the need to manage them efficiently to ensure compliance and competitive advantage is fueling BeCause’s growth.

Based on its Sustainability Management Hub platform, BeCause developed an API solution specifically for Booking.com's needs. As one of the world's leading digital travel platforms, Booking.com sought an efficient, scalable way to receive data from accommodations certified according to the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC)-recognized standards, among others. It also wanted that data to be automatically updated in their database, so Booking.com customers would always have access to up-to-date sustainability information about the available accommodation options.

"Working with Booking.com — which, beyond having an extensive global reach, has an equally considerable reputation for being a leader in sustainability issues and efforts — is a significant deal for our startup," says Frederik Rubens Steensgaard, CEO and co-founder of BeCause. "It's an ideal fit in terms of vision, needs and capability; and we look forward to helping Booking.com expand its sustainability data-management capabilities even further as our partnership continues."

BeCause's bespoke solution addresses both needs first by replacing manual update processes, which are time-consuming and occur only periodically, with automated sustainability data transfers. The BeCause solution also maps standards from 40+ certifications that align with GSTC criteria to the data provided by tens of thousands of individual properties worldwide, providing a more complete and accurate picture of the sustainability information for those accommodations available on Booking.com.

"Through our partnership with BeCause and the technical solutions they have created specifically for our platform, we've streamlined how we receive sustainability information from our accommodation partners that have invested in achieving a credible, third-party certification — allowing us to focus our efforts internally on those areas where we can further innovate and have the most impact," says Thomas Loughlin, Sustainability Manager at Booking.com. "We get the accurate, trustworthy data that we need in real time, which we can then automatically present to our customers — enabling them to make more informed decisions about how they choose to travel."

Thanks to the aforementioned rise in those interested in a more intentional approach to travel, more and more industry partnerships are being aimed at not only reducing negative impacts such as emissions associated with travel and tourism, but also making the industry a force for creating positive change around the world — by engaging and supporting local communities; improving ecosystems at destinations; and broadening travelers’ awareness and appreciation of the breadth and depth of cultural and natural capital they can interact with and help preserve around the world.