A new online hotel booking platform, JustTonite, is launching February 1 out of its Malaysia home base, specialising in same-day, room-only bookings with a late check-in at 18.00.
Unlike other booking platforms, rooms retailing on JustTonite fall into four rate tiers: Platimum at RM200 (US$49.45) nett, Gold at RM150 nett, Silver at RM100 and Bronze at RM50.
According to Hanley Chew, founder of JustTonite, hotels retailing on the platform are able to choose the tiers they wish to participate in as well as the number of rooms to be allocated for the night. This, along with the one-night-only booking, allows hotels to protect their rates.
“I understand what hoteliers need, especially in these trying times. Besides filling up distressed inventory, they also need immediate payment to ease their cashflow. While hotels are aggressively adopting cost reduction programmes, JustTonite is the platform for them to drive revenue,” explained Chew, who is a hospitality veteran with 28 years of experience, having worked with major brands and companies such as Marriott, Sunway, Berjaya and Theme Attractions Hotels & Resorts.
Prior to establishing his company, JustTonite, Chew headed the hospitality arm of Vietnam’s largest conglomerate, Vingroup, which operates 47 Vinpearl Hotels across Vietnam.
For an extended stay of more than one night, guests will use the same platform to book the next day or choose to book directly with the hotel at their prevailing rate.
“Our platform does not focus on regular room bookings which are available on all OTAs and Airbnb platforms,” Chew added.
The ongoing first phase features hotels in Kuala Lumpur and Petaling Jaya – area which are badly hit by travel restrictions. There are plans to include hotels in the rest of the country and to go beyond Malaysia in the second half of the year, revealed Chew.
JustTonite targets transient travellers at the moment. Chew said Malaysians are craving for staycations, daycations and workcations, and have a clear budget for a night’s stay at a hotel.
“In the future, we are also looking at flashpackers or immersive travellers who travel on-the-go and transit in cities,” he said.
