BYHOURS, the hotel booking online platform and mobile-app which allows users to book hotel rooms in city centers and travel hotspots in sets of three, six, and twelve-hour time-slots, is launching in the MENA region.
BYHOURS is the first and only international online booking platform and app that offers micro-stays in more than 3000 hotels across Europe, America and the Middle East and North Africa. This innovative start-up has introduced a disruptive model in the international travel and hospitality industry, bringing micro-stays in the global hotel sector, enabling customers to choose the hotel check-in and check-out time, and pay only for the hours they need. The platform is largely aimed at international business travelers in-between meetings and for travelers during layovers.
With its international appeal, BYHOURS has the support of global investors, including receiving local support from Super Business Angels from the region who recently raised capital for the app, and with this expansion into the MENA region, the start-up continues with an ambitious growth plan.
BYHOURS was founded in 2012 by Christian Rodriguez and Guillermo Gaspart and uses the concept of pay-per-use is applied to the hospitality market powered by time flexibility for customers and hotel owners. Using their previous hotel experience and a strong entrepreneurial drive, the founders invented the winning BYHOURS formula that today enables hotels to increase their RevPAR (Revenue Per Available Room) while acquiring new customers.
BYHOURS hopes to capture the market as many hoteliers in the region are looking to tap into the micro-stay market and open their rooms for as little as three hours. By moving away from the traditional ‘per night’ model with apps such as BYHOURS, hoteliers are looking for creative and resourceful strategies to compete with Airbnb.
Guillermo Gaspart, Chairman of BYHOURS said, “We are very pleased to officially launch the BYHOURS app in the region. Being a tourist hotspot as well as a key business hub, we believe the app will help many international business travelers coming to the region for a conference or a short meeting. MENA business travelers can now book a 3, 6, or 12-hour stay in a choice of hotels located in the city hotspots, or close to the airport.”
Guillermo also added, “Since launching BYHOURS in 2012, we have increasingly witnessed a strong demand for micro-stays in hotels. We believe that this is not a temporary trend; it is a growing sector for the hotelier market. Our ambition is that BYHOURS begins to be recognized as a must-have travel and lifestyle tool.”
To do this, BYHOURS has partnered with the best hotels in the GCC region, including Jumeirah Creekside Hotel, Warwick Hotels and Resorts and the Louvre Hotels Group in the UAE, plus individual hotels such as the Novotel Bahrain Al Dana Resort and the Elite Resort & Spa in Bahrain.
In addition to entering new markets, BYHOURS is focusing on improving the user experience and on technological development. In 2017 the company released a remastered version of its mobile app – which is free and available on iOS and Android – and now has more than 200,000 users worldwide.