Online hotel bookings are gaining popularity in the Middle East, with the GCC region recording about $160 million, or 10 per cent of all hotel bookings during 2012, in Internet booking, a report said.

In Abu Dhabi, the newly-launched Nehal Hotel reported that nearly half of their rooms were now booked online.

Samer Al Kabalan, general manager of the Nehal said, “The online travel industry in the Middle East is growing at a rapid pace. So far this year we have seen 45 per cent of our bookings come from online sites.”

Wael El Behi, general manager, Ramada Downtown Dubai, a property situated near the Burj Khalifa said: “Year to date as of end of June, 39 per cent of our business mix is coming from the online segment which represent 46 per cent of our revenue mix.”

Amer AlHalabi, regional manager of Mena for HotelsCombined.com, a meta-search engine, said: “With so many websites available for online hotel booking, it’s hard for the consumer to know offhand where the best rate available is posted. A hotel room will always have different rates on different booking sites. Thanks to HotelsCombined, travelers can find the best room rate in just a single search.”

HotelsCombined.com instantly searches and compares room availability and prices from hundreds of major travel booking websites, he added.

By using HotelsCombined.com, travelers can find the best room rate available at any given point of time in their desired destination. The site provides one all-embracing set of search results so that the consumer can make a quick and informed decision.

Once the user determines the hotel rate and room type they want, they can then complete their booking on the site where that room offer is available, said AlHalabi.

HotelsCombined.com is the major search engine that combines all hotel deals from major travel sites into one free, quick and easy search. The site is available in Arabic as well as 38 other languages. The site is also available as a smart phone app. – TradeArabia News Service