Agoda has introduced EasyCancel that allows participating partner hotels and properties worldwide to offer their guests greater booking flexibility and the option to cancel up to 24 hours before arrival. This initial phase will relate to all bookings made until 30 June 2020 through the digital travel platform.

The OTA unveiled its new product in response to demands for broader flexible booking solutions. It reduces guest concerns by assuring them that if they book an EasyCancel room, there will be no issues cancelling their booking if they need to do so.

This differs from Agoda’s Book Now, Pay Later option because hotels, which normally only offer non-refundable options, can also join the new programme. Hoteliers subscribing to this new product benefit from its ability to capture what demand there is currently available, helping improve productivity. The programme, launched in March, targets hotels in the US, the UK, all countries in Southeast Asia plus China, Japan, South Korea, and India.

Errol Cooke, vice president of partner services at Agoda said: “We want to help all our partners by attracting customers that still want to book a hotel but are perhaps reluctant to do because of uncertainty around evolving travel restrictions.”