Hotel Kaiserin Elisabeth in Vienna: direct reservations as the largest channel — what Bulgarian properties can take from it

What is reported

Hotel Kaiserin Elisabeth is a four-star hotel in Vienna, Austria. According to the provider D-EDGE’s page, the hotel has worked with the company since 2017. The story was published by D-EDGE on 10 June 2026, and the same account was uploaded to the CaseStudies.com site. This matters: the results are reported by the provider that sells the systems, not by an independent researcher.

According to the same source, the hotel has used a system for direct reservations on its own website, a channel manager, a tool for tracking competitors’ prices and digital marketing services. Three results are reported. Direct reservations became the hotel’s top channel with a 33% share. The hotel’s revenue grew by 8% compared with the previous year. The average daily rate grew by 23% between 2023 and 2025.

What the source does not say

An honest reading includes the gaps, too. The page does not say how large the direct share was before, so we do not know how big the jump is. It is not clear what the 33% is a share of: the number of reservations, the overnight stays or the revenue. The number of rooms, the season, the marketing costs and what else changed are not stated. This is why the case does not prove that one system leads to these numbers. It shows what one hotel with a professional team and several connected services reports, and nothing more.

Lesson 1: the direct channel does not exclude intermediaries

In the story, direct reservations become the largest channel, but the hotel has not cut its ties with the other channels. It uses a channel manager precisely to manage several sales paths at the same time. For a guest house owner, this is a useful relief from the worry that every step towards your own website means parting ways with the platforms. The goal is a larger share of your own, not a zero share for the others.

Lesson 2: first ask yourself about your share today

Before you decide whether your website works, answer one simple question: how many of the latest requests or stays come directly and how many through an intermediary? The data is in your notebook, your email, your phone notes or the reservation system. Make a simple table with columns for source, number and period, for example for the last three months and for the same period last year. That way you will know where you are starting from and whether there is real movement after a change.

Lesson 3: measure the same thing every time

The most common mistake is comparing different things: this month you count reservations, next month revenue. Choose one indicator and one period. Also record where the guest heard about you, but as a question asked when the request is made, not as an assumption. Do not expect a quick change: one season is often too short to show a trend.

What does not carry over directly

The Vienna hotel is in a big city, has international guests and works with several services from one provider. A small house in a mountain village has a different guest profile, different months of full occupancy and often one person who is responsible for both the phone and the cleaning. The numbers 33%, 8% and 23% are not targets for you. Do not use them in a business plan and do not copy them as an expected result.

What a small Bulgarian property can do as early as this week

• Gather the latest reservations and enquiries and split them into direct ones and ones that came through intermediaries.
• Review your website or page: does it have clear photos of the rooms, a “from” price, a phone number and a way to send an enquiry?
• Check how long it takes to answer a direct enquiry. A guest who waits often writes to a second property.
• Write down your number today. In three months, compare it with the same period.

Where ISKA Website fits in

If you do not have a place of your own where a guest can see the rooms and services and can write to you, ISKA Website is one way to have one. It shows the rooms with photos and, optionally, a “from” price, the services, the gallery and the offers, and it has an enquiry form. An enquiry is not a reservation and does not hold a room: you receive it and confirm it yourself, so the website is not an online reservation system and does not accept payment. ISKA Website is offered by individual quote. It is not the same as the whole system of the Vienna hotel, and the same result should not be expected.

In short, for the owner

The Vienna case is a good reason to count, not a reason to promise. Start from your own share today.