NEWS FROM HOTELS.COM

Bed jumping and mini-bar raiding – Brits’ hotel rituals revealed

A study into Brits’ most popular hotel rituals by Hotels.com reveals that 19% of men check out adult TV channels as one of their top priorities arriving in their hotel room whereas 29% of women look at the toiletries on offer.

The most common ritual by both men and women alike is taking in the view, which 51% of Brits said they do on arriving in their hotel room. The next most popular hotel ritual is making full use of the hotel facilities including trying out any gyms, pools and spas that may be on offer. Jumping on the bed was another of the things that 15% of travellers do, whilst one in ten (10%) also raids the mini bar to check what’s on offer.

Hotel rituals split according to gender:

Activity	Brits	Men	Women
Taking in the view	51%	47%	54%
Making full use of hotel facilities	46%	40%	50%
Looking for toiletries	21%	10%	29%
Checking out (adult) TV channels	17%	19%	15%
Jumping on bed	15%	13%	16%
Checking  mini bar is well stocked	10%	8%	11%
Using hotel loo	10%	8%	10%

The Hotels.com survey also examined what  gives people the special ‘holiday feeling’ and revealed that almost half of travellers (48%) get this buzz when they first board the plane, while 43% experience the joy upon entering their hotel room and 38% when they pack their bags before leaving for their holiday.

Kate Hopcraft from Hotels.com said: “It appears that men and women have very different priorities when it comes to their hotel rituals, with men preferring to see the ‘full’ selection of TV channels and women more likely to check out the toiletries on offer. Despite a couple of questionable hotel rituals it’s clear that the top priority for Brits is checking out their surroundings, with the majority rushing to take in the view on offer when entering their hotel room.”

For more information please contact:

Emma Pritchard or Jennifer Murdoch at Frank PR on 020 7693 6999 or email hotels.com@frankpr.it

Alternatively contact Kate Hopcraft, khopcraft@hotels.com, 020 7019 2165 or Laura Watts, lwatts@expedia.com, 020 7019 2761

About Hotels.com

Hotels.com is a leading online accommodation booking website with almost 155,000 properties around the world, ranging from international chains and all-inclusive resorts to local favourites and bed & breakfasts, together with all the information needed to book the perfect stay. Hotels.com benefits from one of the largest hotel contracting teams in the industry, negotiating the best rates for its customers, and offers frequent sales, special deals and promotions. Regular customer e-newsletters provide exclusive offers and advance warning of up-coming sales. There are more than 6.5 million reviews on the site from users who have actually stayed in the hotels to ensure customers can make an informed choice when booking. Through its industry-leading loyalty programme Welcome Rewards, customers can earn a free night for every 10 nights stayed at more than 85,000 hotels. Under its Price Match Guarantee, if a customer can find the same deal for less on a prepaid hotel, Hotels.com will refund the difference. Travellers can book online or by contacting one of the multilingual call centres. Special apps for mobile phones and tablets can also be downloaded at www.hotels.com/deals/mobile enabling customers to book on the go with access to 20,000 last minute deals. For the last nine years, Hotels.com has published an award-winning twice-yearly review of international hotel room price trends called the Hotels.com Hotel Price Index which is now produced in 30 individual country editions. Follow Hotels.com on Facebook at facebook.com/Hotels.comUK, on Twitter at @HotelsdotcomUK and YouTube at www.youtube.com/HotelsEU. Hotels.com is part of Expedia Inc., the largest online travel company in the world with an extensive portfolio that includes some of the world's best-known brands.

Notes to Editors

The research was carried out in August 2012 by Censuswide.

Sample: 1,406 UK Adults