GOING OUT FOR DINNER?
Dinner at Penalva da Graca
WANT TO GO FOR A SWIM?
A busy day during the high season.
WE LOVE RIDING THE TRAM 28
Lisbon's popular Tram 28 is only 3 minutes from Tins Lisbon. Here is all you need to know.
Why Direct Booking is better for you
You get better prices when you book directly!
One good thing about Booking.com: The platform is a super medium to reach potential hotel guests. If we suddenly get last-minute cancellations, we can 'sell' the rooms as Last Minute Deals, Weekend Deals etc. instead of losing money. When that happens, we guarantee that you still get better prices by contacting us directly.
We left the corporate world to do things we like and be in charge. Annette’s first ideas for Tings Logo got an instant GO. So did our decision of increasing the rates on Booking.com. That way you have a low direct booking rate: And we can afford doing what we like: making your stay nice.
Booking.com and similar OTAs (Online Travel Agencies) didn’t exist in 2009 when we moved to Nepal to open our first hotel. But nobody used them – people who wanted to stay with us either called us or dropped us an email. Until Covid forced us to close Tings Kathmandu, we had stayed in the top 10 without having anything to do with any Online Travel Agencies. Only Direct Bookings.
Today things have changed. If people can’t find a hotel on Booking.com, it doesn’t exist. So we’ve been ‘forced’ to be present on Booking.com, but only with a few rooms so people who find us and like what they see can do like we do when we find a hotel we like: Go to the website of the hotel and either book directly OR call/email them.
60% of all our guests do that today – book their rooms directly with us. And that’s not a coincidence but something we’ve worked on since we opened Tings Lisbon in 2017.
Why our Direct Booking Rates are always cheapest!
Like everything else we do, we only involve people we love and like to work with. Like Line Krüger who turned Annette’s logo-idea into exactly the logo Annette was imagining.
When the travelling world suddenly agreed to book their rooms online overnight, the accommodation industry got an extra cost that didn’t exist before: the commission Booking.com charges all us hotel owners.
For a hotel our size in our category, it’s the same as 2-3 staff in one year. Which we can’t afford unless we cut down on our services, amenities and all the activities we enjoy doing to create the ambiance we – and our guests – appreciate.
The reasons why they like to stay with us.
One day I was talking about something completely different with one of our regular guests from our Kathmandu days – she had booked via Booking.com.
“Why didn’t you book directly?” I suddenly burst out.
“It’s just so convenient,” she replied.
I got it!
From our more than 25 years working with high-end products & services all over the world, we know that convenience is a parameter people are willing to pay for.
So we instantly increased our prices on Booking.com and continue running Tings as we want – with different rooms with original art, AC, with homemade, home-cut and plentiful breakfast, with 24-7 staff and where business travellers like us meet backpackers – that’s only possible if our guests book rooms directly with us!
Our direct booking guests are happier than other guests
How was your piss today? Constant demands for reviews—from Uber trips to airport lounges to bathroom visits—are driving people to the brink. This incessant need for feedback is exhausting, infuriating, and creates negative motivation
It may sound strange. But guests who book directly enjoy their stay with us better than Booking.com guests.
While guests who book directly only write reviews if they feel motivated – guests who book via Booking.com get harassed/motivated to place a review whether they are motivated or not.
This difference in motivation has an impact on their reviews. Our ranking on Tripadvisor and Google is not only higher compared to Booking.com – the reviews on Google & Tripadvisor are content-wise much more useful and interesting to read.
Another reason could also be that you have more rooms to choose from on our website compared to Booking.com where we only place a few rooms to show the world that we exist!
Finally, communication could explain it. A lot of our guests call us on WhatsApp, phone or messenger – or they email us. That way we get a chance to describe our rooms, recommend alternatives or even recommend people to find another hotel which may not be the best business for us – BUT it prevents us all from having unhappy people staying at a place they don’t like.
And by communicating directly we get a chance to share important information we can’t through Booking.com’s platform.
Like not to take public transport from the airport, that the price by taxi is only 8-10 €, and that the Triangle Room they’ve booked is very alternative… And if we – through our communication – get an idea about interests, we generously share inspiration from our blog. Like how to get to the best beaches which the Guide Books don’t mention. OR how to find Lisbon’s secret street art OR how to apply for NHR tax yourself.
So our communication directly with you may not only surprise you positively. Sometimes it will prevent disappointments 🙂
The human aspect
We do not discriminate between our guests – we treat you all the same way.
Saying that, we do have situations where we tend to spoil guests who book directly. Like when the rooms are getting cleaned. Of course, we start with the ones that are booked directly which means these guests get the room first.
And guests who book directly get upgrades more frequently than others.
Wouldn’t you do that yourself, if it was your hotel?
Looking forward to hearing from you.
Annette & Thomas
