Loading up the wish list… with discounted hotel rooms. Amazon teamed up with travel-booking site Priceline in its first-ever Prime Day partnership with an online travel agency. The move comes as consumers are increasingly choosing experiences over material splurges like air fryers, and it’s a (small) way for Amazon to get in on the travel-palooza.
Ring up room service: During Prime Day(s) — yesterday and today — Amazon’s US members can get 20% off Priceline’s Hotel Express deals, which offer discounts of up to 60%.
Mystery book: With Express deals you don’t know which hotel you’ve booked until after you pay (and it’s non-refundable). But you’ll know details like star rating and location.
Fewer Dyson Airwraps, more airports… Amazon’s sales growth has cooled from pandemic highs as retail spending has slowed. But consumers have kept shelling out for travel, which Amazon doesn’t offer (it shuttered the hotel-booking site it launched in 2015 after just two months). The ecomm giant is expecting to set fresh records this Prime Day (which runs through today), but analysts expect economic jitters will slim down online carts. Even hotel demand fell below pre-pandemic levels in May, as consumers looked for cheaper getaway options.
Prime Day is like Groundhog Day… for retailers eager to see a long spending spring. Stubbornly high inflation and rising interest rates have made discounts more important than ever, with consumers starting to rein in spending and seek bargains for everything from groceries to plane tickets. Prime Day should be a temp check for demand, especially as competitors like Walmart and Target run their own sales events.