Orbitz

has announced that the number of participating hotels in its expanding
merchant program has surpassed the 7,000 mark, enhanced by new
partnerships with Choice Hotels International, Destination Hotels &
Resorts and Kimpton Hotels that all offer discount OrbitzSaver(SM) rates.
“Our new agreements with these major players in the hotel industry give
travelers even more reasons to book their lodging arrangements on
Orbitz.com, where they can save up to 70 percent off retail rates at
popular hotels and resorts,” said John Samuel, executive vice president of
Consumer Travel at Orbitz. “The addition of Choice Hotels, with its family
of well-known economy and mid-scale brands, enhances Orbitz’ selection of
affordable hotel options. In addition, Destination and Kimpton expand our
assortment of luxury resorts and upscale boutique properties.”

“Distributing our hotel rates and inventory via a strong partner like
Orbitz allows Choice Hotels to further expand our online reach and to
lower costs for our franchisees worldwide,” said Mary Beth Knight, vice
president, e-commerce for Choice Hotels.

OrbitzConnect, a virtual pipeline between Orbitz and its merchant hotel
partners’ central reservations system, offers hotels a more flexible
approach to managing online inventory. OrbitzConnect allows hotels to
update their content displayed on Orbitz.com from reservation
confirmations and room rates to amenity information and enhanced room
descriptions, seamlessly and in real- time.

By helping hotels reduce labor and operating costs, Orbitz is able to
enhance its breadth of OrbitzSaver rates and help consumers increase their
savings opportunities through more discount hotel rates.

These new, desirable OrbitzSaver rates add to Orbitz’ existing wide
selection of merchant and published rates at 45,000 independent hotels and
brand name chains worldwide.
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