Hotel vs Alternative Accommodation Preference Survey
Map how leisure and business travellers evaluate, compare, and choose between hotels and alternative accommodations across price, location, and experience, so you can sharpen acquisition targeting, refine pricing tiers, and fix conversion gaps by segment.
CONTEXT & RELEVANCE
Why run this survey now
Most hospitality brands don't lose bookings purely on room rate. They lose them due to shifting loyalty triggers, blurred value perception, platform-driven discovery, segment-level trade-offs, and post-stay switching intent, none of which fully show up in OTA booking data or occupancy reports.
If you are...
- Hotel brand vs short-term rental
- Serviced apartment positioning team
- Revenue and distribution head
- Brand or product strategy lead
- Portfolio growth and pipeline team
You're likely facing...
- Hotel vs Airbnb value confusion
- Loyalty drop: repeat vs platform
- Hotels = safe/expensive perception
- Alternatives = flexible/inconsistent perception
- Segment fit gaps: leisure vs business
This will help answer...
- Preference drivers beyond nightly rate
- Booking stage drop-off triggers
- Segment split: hotel vs alternative
- Willingness to pay by stay type
- Switching intent and loyalty signals
RESEARCH THEMES
What This Survey Investigates
Eight interconnected research themes that map the complete traveller journey from accommodation search to post-stay advocacy.
Discovery & Search
- First channel consulted at trip planning
- OTA vs direct booking entry points
Preference Drivers
- Hotel vs alternative accommodation decision factors
- Trip purpose influence on accommodation type
Pricing & WTP
- Nightly rate thresholds by accommodation type
- Fee transparency vs headline price sensitivity
Booking & Friction
- Drop-off triggers across booking funnel stages
- Cancellation policy impact on final selection
Stay Experience
- Service touchpoints rated against expectations
- Amenity gaps by accommodation category
Trust & Safety
- Host verification and property accuracy concerns
- Brand trust vs peer review reliance
Loyalty & Switching
- Hotel loyalty programme retention vs platform switching
- Repeat booking triggers by accommodation type
Segment & Context
- Solo, couple, family, and group booking patterns
- Destination type influence on accommodation choice
SAMPLING STRATEGY
Tell us about your ideal sample
Help us understand your target respondent profile. Select what applies, we'll design the optimal sample plan based on your inputs.
METHODOLOGY
Survey approach
For the Hotel vs Alternative Accommodation Preference Survey, we recommend a quant-first design with flexible data-collection modes to balance reach, depth, and verification across traveller segments and booking contexts.
EXECUTION PROCESS
How we execute
A proven 9-step process from scoping to delivery, designed to ensure quality, speed, and actionable insights.
Define the decision frame
Confirm objectives, target cohorts, geographies, and reporting cuts
Define the decision frame
Design the instrument
Build workstream modules mapped to outputs (drivers, friction, pricing, retention, trust)
Design the instrument
Lock the questionnaire
Review wording, sequencing, LOI, and competitive context; approve final version
Lock the questionnaire
Pilot and calibrate
Test comprehension and ease quality; refine quotas and remove friction where needed
Pilot and calibrate
Run fieldwork
Execute collection with active quota management and feasibility controls
Run fieldwork
Assure quality
Dedupe, attention checks, speed/consistency rules, removals with audit trail
Assure quality
Prepare the dataset
Clean data and deliver codebook/variable definitions
Prepare the dataset
Analyse and synthesise
Driver ranking, leakage diagnostics, pricing bands, segment insights
Analyse and synthesise
Deliver and align
Executive deck (optional dashboard) and leadership readout with recommendations
Deliver and align
COMMERCIAL TERMS
Request a Commercial Proposal
Pricing depends on cohort, geography, sample size, approach, LOI, and deliverables. Configure below for an indicative estimate.
Select Sample Size
Geography
Select Mode of Survey
Length of the Interview
$0.00
+ applicable taxes
Cost Breakdown
Note: Estimate is indicative only. Final pricing is subject to scope finalization after discovery call.
REFERENCE CASELETS
Reference
Real-world examples of survey work in the accommodation preference space.
Traveller segment pricing sensitivity & stay format (India)
OBJECTIVE
WHAT WE DID
DELIVERED
Traveller segment pricing sensitivity & stay format (India)
Short-stay rental trust & friction audit (Southeast Asia)
Traveller segment pricing sensitivity & stay format (India)
OBJECTIVE
A mid-scale hospitality brand needed to quantify how leisure travellers and bleisure travellers weigh nightly rate thresholds , amenity bundles , and cancellation flexibility when shortlisting stay formats across tier-1 and tier-2 cities.
WHAT WE DID
Ran a structured quant survey across 480 respondents in 6 cities, capturing price sensitivity bands , booking channel preference , amenity trade-off rankings , and stated willingness to pay for room-type upgrades across three stay-duration brackets.
DELIVERED
A pricing corridor map by traveller segment, a ranked amenity trade-off framework across stay durations, and a set of channel levers identifying where rate perception shifts most sharply during the booking decision.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Common Questions
Answers to frequently asked questions about this survey mandate.
What decisions will this survey enable?
Who is the buyer vs who are the respondents?
Can we see differences between solo travelers, group travelers and business travelers?
How will you measure accommodation preference beyond simple ratings?
Will the survey map the full accommodation booking journey and drop-offs?
Can this survey inform product and pricing strategy?
How will findings improve our direct booking and retention performance?
Still have questions?
Schedule a discovery call to discuss your specific needs and get a custom quote.