CASE STUDY

Disney resorts attract guests with packages and ad campaigns

Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resorts experienced a significant increase in room nights booked when they used our powerful solutions to boost their booking volume.

Hotels Inventory distribution Advertising
39%

increase in reservations at the Dolphin Resort*

42%

increase in room nights across both resorts*

Challenge: Increase guest confidence — and bookings

The Walt Disney World Swan Resort  and the Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort reside within one of the most popular vacation destinations in the world.
 

The family-friendly properties offer restaurants, lounges, and complimentary transportation to Disney World attractions. Kids love the game room and pools. Parents enjoy the spas and advance tee times at Disney’s famous golf course.
 

But when the pandemic hit, park attendance dropped — and so did the resorts’ bookings.
 

The director of revenue management, Kushan Abayasekera, was responsible for driving bookings for their 2,267 rooms. He had to figure out how to adapt to this changing demand — fast. Kushan reached out to his market manager, Vicki, to see how we could help.

A boat traveling down a river surrounded by palm trees

Solution: Use packages and ad campaigns to boost bookings

Vicki recommended Kushan use Partner Central to set up travel packages that combined air, hotel, and park entrance tickets bundled at a discount. Guests who book packages tend to stay longer, book earlier, and cancel less, which was important to his goals.**
 

Kushan also set up a series of TravelAds and display ads to promote the properties across our travel websites. He tailored campaigns to the distinct clientele of the two resorts, knowing that some strategies would work better for one property over the other.
 

In addition to these campaigns, the resorts’ listings showcased their flexible cancellation policies and COVID-19 protocols, which helped boost traveler confidence.

“The Expedia Group partnership is really important to us. Our ability to talk to our market manager as a strategic partner and then use Expedia Group marketing tools to drive demand where and when we need it is key.”

Kushan Abayasekera

Director of Revenue Management, Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resorts

Results: Hotel advertising success

These combined strategies helped the Walt Disney World Swan Resort and the Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort to not just survive the pandemic, but to thrive.


The Dolphin Resort saw a 39% increase in reservations year-over-year, and the combined properties saw a 42% increase in room nights. The ROI on Kushan’s first ad was an impressive 32 to 1.*

Future: Maximizing hotel marketing efforts as travel recovers

To make sure he’ s adapting to the evolving demand, Kushan will continue to meet regularly with Vicki to discuss his business needs, market dynamics, and, of course, the solutions we offer that can help him achieve his goals.
 

His partnership with Expedia Group and his market manager are key elements of his strategy moving forward. 

*Expedia Group internal data, 2021

**Expedia Group internal data, 2022

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