InslyStayA common piece of advice in South African hospitality is "reduce OTA dependency". It sounds smart, but it's often wrong. OTAs bring visibility you cannot buy directly at the same cost. The real question is not "direct vs OTA" — it's "what mix gives me the most take-home revenue per room night?"
The commission cost is real
Booking.com charges 15% in South Africa, Airbnb around 3% from the host plus 14% from the guest, Expedia 15-18%. On a R1,200 room night, a Booking.com booking nets you R1,020 after commission. A direct booking on your own site nets you R1,200 — minus a ~2.5% payment gateway fee, so R1,170.
The cost of direct isn't zero
Running direct requires a website, a booking engine, Google ads or SEO, and time spent answering enquiries. If you spend R2,000 a month on these combined, and you get 20 direct bookings a month, your direct cost is R100 per booking — still cheaper than R180 commission, but not free.
The mix that usually works
For small guest houses, a healthy mix is roughly 40% direct, 40% Booking.com + Airbnb, 20% other (walk-ins, repeat guests, phone bookings). Above 60% OTA dependence you're giving away too much margin; above 70% direct is rare and usually means you're under-using OTAs as a visibility channel.
How to grow direct without cutting OTA
- Keep OTA listings active — they are your billboard.
- Give direct bookers a small perk: free early check-in, welcome drink, flexible cancellation.
- Ask every checkout guest to book direct next time. Provide a business card or flyer with your domain.
- Run Google Hotels via your PMS (see our earlier post) — it's direct traffic at almost no cost.
The goal is not to beat the OTAs. It's to make sure every guest who already knows you chooses to book direct next time.
Written by InslyStay Team