Background:
Essque Zalu Zanzibar, a luxury resort in Zanzibar, partnered with Revstar Consultancy to address challenges related to room type alignment and OTA (Online Travel Agent) integration during the migration to Opera Cloud PMS (Property Management System). Misalignment across systems caused inconsistencies, affecting booking efficiency and guest experience.
Revstar’s consultants, led by Katja Ruethemann and operationalized by Rawiporn Oonyankowit (“Give”), were engaged to streamline and realign room types, rate plans, and distribution channels.
Challenges Identified:
- Room types across Opera PMS, GuestCentric (Booking Engine), and OTAs (e.g., Booking.com, Expedia, Agoda, Trip.com, Hotelbeds, Dnata) were inconsistent.
- Rate plan offering was narrow and inconsistent across platforms.
- Siteminder mapping between Opera Cloud, GuestCentric, and OTAs was incomplete.
- Ongoing migration to Opera Cloud required additional integrations and audits.
- Additional requirements, such as the inclusion of Hotelbeds, were not previously planned.
Actions Taken:
1. Room Types & Naming Alignment:
- Audit Conducted: Full audit of Opera PMS room types to ensure accuracy.
- Creation & Adjustment: Revised and created corresponding room types on all major OTAs.
- Coordination with OTAs: Worked with OTA support teams to align and rename room types to match Opera PMS.
- GuestCentric Update: Audited and adjusted GuestCentric to ensure room types were consistent with Opera.
2. Rate Plans Setup:
- Expansion of Rate Plans: Created new rate plans (Room Only, Bed & Breakfast, Half Board, Full Board, and All-Inclusive).
- Mapping Confirmation: Verified proper mapping of rate plans across OTAs (except Hotelbeds – pending).
- GuestCentric Coordination: Adjusted occupancy settings (single/double configurations).
- Trip.com Issue Resolution: Addressed issues with Trip.com’s single rate plan setup; pending Siteminder final mapping.
3. Siteminder and Hotelbeds Mapping:
- Hotelbeds: Contacted Hotelbeds to support new rate plan creation and mapping.
- GuestCentric and Siteminder: Requested mapping adjustments to ensure all platforms integrate through Siteminder.
- Expedia and Booking.com Mapping: Initiated process to move connectivity from GuestCentric to Siteminder.
Next Steps:
- Finalize mapping between Siteminder and Expedia/Booking.com.
- Complete integration of Siteminder with Opera Cloud.
- Validate all connections across OTAs to ensure seamless booking experiences.
Results Expected:
- Operational Efficiency: Centralized management of room types and rate plans across all sales channels.
- Consistency: Guests will see the same room types and offers across all booking platforms.
- Revenue Optimization: Expanded rate plan offering will attract a broader customer base (from budget travelers to luxury seekers).
- Improved Integration: Strengthened system connectivity will reduce manual errors and update delays.
Key Stakeholders:
- Client: Essque Zalu Zanzibar Hotel
- Consultancy: Revstar
- Lead Consultant: Katja Ruethemann
- Execution Specialist: Rawiporn Oonyankowit (Give)
Diagram showing the integration process between Opera PMS, GuestCentric, OTAs, and Siteminder
