Online Hotel Booking Platform Yatra Deepens Inventory Through Partnership With OYO

Gurugram-headquartered online travel and hotel booking company Yatra Online, Inc. has partnered with budget hotel booking marketplace OYO to expand its total hotel inventory to over 70,000 hotels in the country. Having recently raised $15.4 Mn debt from Innoven Capital, Yatra so far has access to 65,000 hotels in India. The partnership with OYO will help deliver a unique proposition by extending the pool of accommodation options for customers.

Dhruv Shringi, Co-founder & CEO, Yatra said, “Customers seek newer and more interesting ways to make their travel bookings seamless and cost-effective. And, our partnership with OYO is a firm step in that direction and enables us to deliver a unique proposition to our customers allowing them to choose from an unmatched variety of travel and accommodation options in India.”

Yatra With OYO: Partnership In Perspective

According to Google India-BCG forecasts, Indian online hotel market is set to touch $4 Bn mark by 2020, and amid facing tough competitions from MakeMyTrip, the partnership will help them enhance their ecosystem against MMT. OYO caters to a market base where there is a huge demand for budget hotels.

Budget hotel booking marketplace OYO has already registered a 12x growth since 2015. Yatra’s portal will provide them, an access to customers seeking rooms at Yatra. Ritesh Agarwal, Founder & CEO, OYO said, “Through this partnership, OYO’s quality-assured hassle-free offerings will be accessible to millions of discerning travellers who book on Yatra.com. We welcome them to avail our economy and mid-market offerings that deliver the right balance of price, location and quality.”

OYO which claims to have 8,500 hotels with 70,000 rooms under its reach has recently raised $260 Mn in a Series D funding round led by SoftBank through SoftBank Vision Fund and China Lodging Group. The company has so far secured over $552 Mn.

Responding to the Ibibo-MMT merger, Yatra has recently acquired corporate travel service provider Air Travel Bureau (ATB) for an undisclosed amount strengthening its presence in India’s burgeoning corporate travel sector. Since being founded in 2006, the online travel plus hotel booking portal has diversified its product offerings manifolds. The company has also started to offer self-drive car rental service on its platform in partnership with Revv Cars, enriching comprehensive travel solutions.

The Indian online travel cum hotel booking sector witnessed a major consolidation in 2016, with MakeMyTrip and Ibibo joining hands. The partnership between Yatra and OYO is likely aimed at tackling competition in this fast-growing market.