06 November/ 2004
PRESS RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

And offers discounted dive and vacation rates

Online booking and payment for dive vacations to the BayIslands has never been easier. A new online reservations company, TropicalREZ.com, recently launched its Roatan-based operation, offering discounts on all hotels, vacation rentals, dive resorts, tours and car rentals on Roatan, Utila and Guanaja.

“Our aim was to create a website that would offer vacationers a really easy and efficient way to book their vacations to the BayIslands.Divers and vacationers can shop by hotel type, price, area or amenities, and we have ensured that the booking and payment system is easy to use,” says Sandra Sampayo, reservations director for TropicalREZ.com.

TropicalREZ.com is the first online booking system based on the BayIslands, and is expected to become an important part of the overall reservations process.

“The fact that we are based on the islands has been very good for us.We personally know every resort, hotel, vacation rental and dive shop on the islands, so we are in a unique position to offer our clients the best information and advice.Our location, and relationships with our accommodation partners, has also allowed us to negotiate the lowest rates, which is another advantage of booking through TropicalREZ,” adds Sampayo.

Last year, more than 64 million online travelers – 30% of the US adult population, used the Internet to get information on destinations or to check rates.Of that group, 42.2 million actually booked travel online during 2003.Although airline tickets continued to be the most purchased travel product, 71% of online travel bookers made hotel reservations online, a dramatic increase from 57% in 2002.

Online reservations companies are a growing trend and offer a tremendous support system for the tourism industry.Internationally, companies such as Orbits, Travelocity and Expedia dominate the global reservations market, and provide online travelers with an enormous database of destinations, choices and prices.The main advantage to good central reservations websites is that they offer a one-stop shop for online bookings and easy payments, thereby decreasing the time we spend searching for the right product.

Smaller, destination focused online reservations websites, such as TropicalREZ.com, offers travelers a wider choice and discounts on products for one destination.Area-focused websites are growing in number and popularity, and are successful because they provide intimate knowledge of the destination and its products and are also providing an online booking avenue for small and mid-sized hotel operators that are not normally listed on the international sites.

Ends

For more information:

Sandra Sampayo
Reservations Director
TropicalREZ – http://www.tropicalrez.com
US phone: 702 920-8861
Roatan phone: +504 455-5841
Sandra@tropicalrez.com