Online travel agencies (OTAs) and metasearch providers (Metas) both aggregate vacation rental listings across multiple sources and distribute them to users through travel booking websites. While OTAs and Metas don’t directly own or manage physical listings, they make the inventory, rates, and availability searchable and bookable online.
OTAs act as the Merchant of Record on all transactions that take place on their websites, providing booking and reservation management support to guests before, during, and after their stays.
Metas refer reservation queries to the Merchant of Record for the booking transaction. In some cases, the Meta may act as the Merchant of Record for stays booked directly on the Meta’s own site.
Benefits of becoming a vacation rentals on Google partner
Hundreds of millions of travelers around the world search for vacation rentals and other lodging on Google every day. As a Google's vacation rentals partner, you’ll:
- Expand your reach: Easily engage with more customers.
- Widen distribution channels: Display your aggregated vacation rental listings on Google Search, Maps, Assistant, and other services on both desktop and mobile.
- Promote your listings at no cost: Becoming a Google's vacation rentals partner is free, with no advertising spend required.
- Gain performance insights: Learn more about listing performance and user interactions, and apply data insights to boost bookings.
- Broaden your audience: Share vacation rentals with Google to reach new travelers who are interested in lodging options beyond hotels.
- Own your customer relationships: Support your customers throughout the transaction, and maintain customer relationship touchpoints.
OTA and Meta benefits
| Support your suppliers | Expand your reach | Differentiate your offering |
| Enable your vacation rentals inventory partners to connect with new and returning users. | Reach millions of users who utilize Google services to research travel. | Highlight the benefits of booking with your OTA or Meta service. |
Learn more about why users book vacation rentals through Google
Getting started
The integration process typically takes between 8 and 12 weeks after we receive your property list, but some partners have taken as little as 4 weeks to complete their integration and go live on Google.
- Review the steps required to integrate vacation rentals inventory, rates, and availability with Google.
- Complete the vacation rentals interest form, and a vacation rentals specialist from Google will be in touch.