The project dashboard is a free tool that is only available to verified hoteliers to make adopting new technology easier by streamlining their research and simplifying their communication workflow.
TLDR
We analyzed 41 verified hotelier reviews, compared feature sets, pricing, and real-world case studies to break down where each platform delivers. The right choice depends on your property type and priorities:
HotelRunner shines in ease of use and customer support , with exclusive features like Mobile optimized/responsive and Automated reporting.
Orbitz shines .
Side-by-side ratings based on 41 verified hotelier reviews on HTR.
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| Starting Price | From $100/mo | Contact sales |
| Verified Reviews | 41 | 0 |
After analyzing 41 verified reviews, HotelRunner users most value its customer support, ease of use, channel management, while Orbitz users highlight . Click any theme to see what reviewers say.
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Customer Support
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Ease of Use
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Channel Management
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Integration with OTAs
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Booking Engine
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Reporting Features
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How each product ranks among Booking Engine vendors for different property sizes, types, and regions — based on verified reviews from hoteliers in each segment.
By Hotel Size
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Orbitz |
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| Small (10-24 rooms) ▾ | #19 16 reviews | — |
| Mid-Size (25-74 rooms) ▾ | #29 9 reviews | — |
| Large (75-199 rooms) | #31 0 reviews | — |
| X-Large (200+ rooms) | #25 1 reviews | — |
By Property Type
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Orbitz |
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| Boutique ▾ | #18 22 reviews | — |
| Luxury ▾ | #28 9 reviews | — |
| Branded / Chain | #31 3 reviews | — |
| Extended Stay | #33 1 reviews | — |
By Region
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Orbitz |
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| North America | #26 1 reviews | — |
| Europe ▾ | #22 12 reviews | — |
| Asia Pacific | #20 3 reviews | — |
| Middle East ▾ | #1 16 reviews | — |
You’re trying to decide between HotelRunner’s Booking Engine and Orbitz for your hotel. Both aim to help you manage reservations and improve occupancy but serve different core needs. HotelRunner focuses on direct bookings, channel management, and hotel-centric features, while Orbitz is a broader travel platform with a focus on aggregating travel options. Which aligns better with your hotel’s priorities?
HotelRunner is a dedicated booking engine designed specifically for hotels, with a suite of features to control bookings, rates, and marketing efforts. Orbitz, on the other hand, is primarily a travel booking platform that aggregates multiple travel services, making it more suitable for travel agencies or companies seeking a broad booking system.
HotelRunner’s strength lies in its high user ratings, with a 4.5/5 overall score driven by 40 recent reviews, whereas Orbitz has no current reviews or ratings. The recent review activity on HotelRunner suggests strong, current user confidence, unlike Orbitz which lacks recent feedback. Do you want a platform with active user support and ongoing development?
If your hotel needs a comprehensive, hotel-specific booking system with powerful channel management and customization, go with HotelRunner. Its extensive feature set (40+ features unique to HotelRunner) and high user ratings make it a clear choice for hotels seeking direct control over reservations and marketing.
If your hotel or agency is looking for a broad travel booking platform that might suit larger travel agencies or corporate travel management, Orbitz would be the alternative. However, without recent reviews or a proven hotel-specific feature set, Orbitz is less suitable for independent hotels aiming to optimize direct bookings.
HotelRunner boasts a 4.73/5 ease-of-use score based on recent reviews, with users praising its user-friendly interface, quick onboarding, and straightforward navigation. Customers note, “Operation becomes much easier,” and support is available via WhatsApp, making staff onboarding smooth.
Orbitz has no recent review data, leaving usability unverified. Without user feedback or recent ratings, we can’t confirm how user-friendly Orbitz’s interface is for hotel teams. Edge: HotelRunner.
HotelRunner offers 40 features tailored to hotels, including mobile responsiveness, multi-currency support, flexible rate plans, automated emails, GDPR compliance, social media integration, booking abandonment tools, and Google Hotel Ads integration. These features help optimize both the guest experience and operational efficiency.
Orbitz provides no specific hotel-centric features, focusing instead on general travel bookings. The absence of detailed features makes HotelRunner the clear leader. Edge: HotelRunner.
Hotels praise HotelRunner’s customer support with a 4.8/5 rating, highlighting responsive, quick assistance and effective problem-solving. Review quotes include, “Support is great, even via WhatsApp,” and “They resolve issues promptly.”
Orbitz has no recent reviews or ratings, so support quality is unverified. Without recent feedback, HotelRunner’s support stands out as the safer choice. Edge: HotelRunner.
HotelRunner integrates with 17 verified partners, including major OTAs like Expedia, Airbnb, Agoda, and hotel management systems like protel and Oracle Hospitality. It offers robust connectivity options, simplifying multi-channel management.
Orbitz has no verified integrations listed, limiting its connectivity. For hotels needing multiple channel integrations, HotelRunner is clearly superior. Edge: HotelRunner.
HotelRunner’s current reviews indicate a 4.5/5 overall satisfaction, with recent reviews emphasizing ease of use, support, and feature richness. Hoteliers, especially boutique and B&B owners, rate it highly for operational control and customization.
Orbitz has no recent ratings or reviews, so no current user sentiment exists. Based on available data, HotelRunner’s ratings are significantly more reliable. Edge: HotelRunner.
HotelRunner’s pricing starts at $100/month, with no freemium or implementation fees, providing transparent, straightforward billing. Orbitz’s pricing model is not publicly available, and its platform appears more geared toward large-scale travel agencies or corporates.
Without transparent Orbitz pricing, HotelRunner’s cost structure offers better clarity for hotels evaluating ROI. Edge: HotelRunner.
Not ideal if you’re a large corporate chain seeking a broad travel platform or if you don’t need direct control over bookings.
Not ideal if your hotel’s primary goal is to boost direct reservations or if you need a hotel-specific booking platform with detailed control.
HotelRunner is a hotel-focused booking engine with a proven track record, supported by recent reviews, extensive features, and active user support. It excels in driving direct bookings, managing multiple channels, and offering customizable tools.
Orbitz, while a major travel platform, lacks recent review data and hotel-specific features, making it a less suitable choice for hotels aiming for direct control over their reservations. If your priority is direct bookings and operational control, HotelRunner is the clear winner.
For hotels that want a dedicated, feature-rich booking engine with high user satisfaction, HotelRunner is the safer, more reliable choice. Orbitz might suit larger travel agencies or corporate travel managers, but for independent hotels, it falls short in comparison.
Booking Engine pricing is rarely straightforward. Here is what we know from each vendor's public pricing data. Always request a custom quote for your property size.
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Orbitz | |
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| Starting Price | From $100/mo | — |
According to HTR's product database, Booking Engine by HotelRunner and Orbitz share 0 features. Here are the key differences — features one has that the other lacks.
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Orbitz |
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| Automated reporting | ||
| Mobile optimized/responsive | ||
| Pooled inventory | ||
| Post-stay emails | ||
| Pre-stay emails | ||
| Tariffs |
Showing top differences. 28 more features differ between these products.
What hoteliers love
Customer support receives accolades for being responsive and efficient. Users appreciate the prompt assistance via various communication channels, inc... Customer support receives accolades for being responsive and efficient. Users appreciate the prompt assistance via various communication channels, including WhatsApp.
The platform is noted for its user-friendly interface and ease of navigation, making set-up and management straightforward for hoteliers of varied tec... The platform is noted for its user-friendly interface and ease of navigation, making set-up and management straightforward for hoteliers of varied technical expertise.
Users praise Hotelrunner for its strong channel management capabilities, allowing seamless synchronization with numerous OTAs. This eliminates double... Users praise Hotelrunner for its strong channel management capabilities, allowing seamless synchronization with numerous OTAs. This eliminates double bookings and simplifies inventory management.
Where hoteliers push back
The integrated booking engine is highly regarded for driving direct bookings and allowing customization of packages. Many users appreciate the ease of... The integrated booking engine is highly regarded for driving direct bookings and allowing customization of packages. Many users appreciate the ease of creating OTAs listings, contributing to increased occupancy and revenues.
Users highlight the need for more robust and customizable reporting tools to aid in rate strategy decisions, reflecting a critical area for future imp... Users highlight the need for more robust and customizable reporting tools to aid in rate strategy decisions, reflecting a critical area for future improvement.
Unique capabilities
Where the ratings diverge most
It depends on your requirements. Booking Engine by HotelRunner and Orbitz share many core Booking Engine features, but each has unique capabilities. Booking Engine by HotelRunner offers 17 verified integration partners, while Orbitz offers 0. Review the feature comparison above to see where they differ before switching.
Small hotels should prioritize ease of use and fast onboarding. Booking Engine by HotelRunner leads in ease of use at 4.7/5 vs 0.0/5. Look for transparent pricing and a trial or demo option. Filter reviews on each product page by property size to hear from hotels like yours.
Booking Engine by HotelRunner: No. Orbitz: No. Neither product currently offers a free tier. Most Booking Engine vendors offer demos or trials — request one from each to evaluate before committing.
The HT Score is a composite ranking that considers 4 criteria groups and over a dozen variables to help hoteliers objectively compare hotel technology products. HotelRunner has an HT Score of 74 and Orbitz has 0. Here is how the score is calculated.
| Criteria Group | Weight | What It Measures |
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| Customer Ratings & Reviews |
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How highly do users recommend this product? Ratings Score, Review Volume, Share of Voice, Review Depth, Review Recency, Success Stories ▾ The most heavily weighted factor. Analyzes average satisfaction ratings (likelihood to recommend, ease of use, support, ROI), total review count relative to category peers, review recency (at least 20 reviews in the trailing 6 months), and share of voice across unique hotel clients to detect selection bias. |
| Partner Ecosystem |
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How highly do tech partners recommend this company? Partner Recommendations, Integration Quantity, Integration Quality ▾ Evaluates partner recommendations as expert votes of confidence, the number of verified integrations, and ecosystem quality — the average HT Scores of integration partners. Products with higher-quality integration ecosystems are more likely to deliver a connected tech stack. |
| Customer Centricity |
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How customer-centric is this organization? Certified Support, Review Consistency, Profile Completeness ▾ Assesses whether the company has earned HTR Customer Support Certification, maintains consistent review collection over time (an indicator of feedback-driven culture), and keeps product profiles complete with capabilities, screenshots, pricing, and features. |
| Reach, Staying Power & Resources |
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How extensive is this company's reach and resourcing? Geographic Reach, Staying Power, Company Resources, Trending Score ▾ Measures global presence (countries and regions served), years in business as a stability proxy, team headcount as a resource proxy, and a trending score based on trailing-twelve-month buyer inquiries, reviews, partner recommendations, and press activity. |
Customer ratings and reviews are by far the most important factor in the HT Score algorithm. HTR does not accept payment for higher rankings. All reviews are verified — only hotel industry practitioners with confirmed affiliations can submit ratings. View full HT Score methodology →
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