#BookDirect Movement
Skip Airbnb, Booking.com and VRBO.
The 40% markup is yours to keep.
Our manifesto
directbooking.direct is run by property owners, for travellers who understand that Airbnb, VRBO and Booking.com take a cut from the owner and another cut from you. Add them together and the markup approaches 40% — money that funds their platforms, their algorithms, and their shareholders. None of it reaches your holiday.
By booking direct you pay what the property is actually worth. And our hope as owners is this: that by paying less, you might stay a little longer — long enough to truly savour a place, its people, its rhythm. We are proud members of the global #BookDirect movement.
Market research 2023–2025
Six structural fractures are reshaping the relationship between platforms and property owners. Every owner who books direct withdraws from this system.
For years Airbnb and Booking.com imposed price parity clauses: owners could not offer lower prices on their own website. The EU Court of Justice declared them anticompetitive in 2024. A hotel alliance (HOTREC) is now seeking damages for the two decades this clause was in force. Booking.com is the main target.
In force from May 2026 across all 27 EU member states: platforms must transmit each host's data to local authorities in real time. In Italy the CIN has been mandatory since January 2025 and those without one are delisted — with bookings already paid and guests on their way.
June 2024, Wisconsin: six people die in a fire at an Airbnb. The family sued Airbnb claiming the platform does not verify fire safety certifications. If courts establish co-liability for safety, the entire model changes.
January 2025: an American jury awards $45 million against a host for covert recordings in a bedroom. Vrbo was dragged into the lawsuit for failing to prevent the incident. The platform's liability remains legally murky.
Scott+Scott has opened an investigation into an alleged agreement between hosts and dynamic pricing software (AirDNA, PriceLabs) to artificially inflate rates in a coordinated way. A potential antitrust class action that could affect tens of thousands of hosts.
From 31 May 2025 Florence bans all new tourist rentals in its historic centre. The same dynamic is underway in Barcelona, Amsterdam, Venice, Cinque Terre. Platforms do not defend owners before administrative bodies — every host faces local councils alone.
Join the #BookDirect movement. List your property for free and connect directly with travellers who value authentic hospitality.
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