Top 10 B2B FAQ

Hotels sales to China - first-hand market insights provided by Oliver Sedlinger

A question I often get asked is: 'What matters to Chinese B2B buyers when sourcing hotel rooms for their groups abroad?'.

In this article, I attempt to answer this question and share with you the Top 10 FAQ posed to us by Chinese travel agents, based on our experience with more than 2000 hotel group bookings.

Despite the visible rise of FIT travel from China as well as the growing influence of OTA distribution in the market, for many global tourism suppliers B2B sales to Chinese outbound travel agencies remains a vital part of their sales and market strategy.

As a sales representation company positioning and selling our client's products in the Chinese outbound travel market, including major international hotel groups, we can not help but notice certain demand patterns over the years that go beyond just location and price.

While these patterns vary to a certain extent among different segments of the market, and while feedback is, of course, partly influenced by the specific hotel portfolio presented to the buyer in each case, there are certain requests and questions beyond that repeatedly come up in sales conversations - and which I want to share with you here.

Over the last 10 years, our team has generated and handled more than 2000 hotel group booking inquiries for our clients, both for business and leisure travel, and we were able to convert a very high percentage of those inquiries.

In 2025, for example, our sales team generated 543 booking inquiries for groups between 10 and 50 pax. The total value of these bookings was more than 12 million Euro of which 3 million Euro could be confirmed, resulting in a conversion rate of 25%.

Based on this real-life experience, here are 10 of the most frequently asked questions raised by the majority of agents that we have engaged over the years. The list is somewhat - but not strictly - in order of frequency and priority, and it is influenced by our specific experience.

1) What is the hotel's brand?

It will come as no surprise that this is usually one of the first considerations. A hotel brand that is well known - maybe even physically present - in China, will make it easier for the Chinese buyer to explain your offer and sell it to their guests.

Brand recognition and a good image are helpful, especially in the economy and mid-scale market, while introducing a not so familiar brand always needs more explaining and convincing. Having said that, agents are also open to independent hotels and smaller regional or local hotel groups provided the overall package fits.

This is especially true when it comes to tailor-made groups for high-end or luxury travel, as well as in business travel, where agents are often looking for something unique and special.

In general, our experience is that Chinese buyers are very well informed and aware of the international hotel brands and their positioning.

2) How many stars does the hotel have?

This is indeed very important and comes up in practically every sales conversation - does the hotel have an official star-rating? And is the rating displayed prominently in the hotel lobby, so guests can see it right at arrival. If the hotel is officially classified, the case is quite straightforward and you can move on to the next topic.

If the hotel is not officially rated, however, it becomes a question of establishing its quality level by other indicators, for example ratings in hotel booking platforms. Booking.com is an example that is often referenced by Chinese agents. If, for example, the hotel is presented as 4-star level there, this can make up for a missing official 4 star-classification.

The reason why this is so important is that Chinese agents often need to comply with very specific requirements raised by their guests or clients and the category expected for the hotel booked is almost always part of that. There is a certain flexibility in the sales process but the agent definitely needs to be confident that the hotel offered will match the guest's expectations.

3) Do the rooms have twin-beds?

Another very important topic that comes up practically in any group request, no matter for business or leisure groups: Does the hotel have twin-bed rooms, how many are available, will all group members have them, are they actually separated beds or only separated mattresses - and how big is the distance between them?

While this is less of a topic for private groups, it matters very much for larger groups where two people have to share a room, which could be work colleagues in the best scenario, but very often are total strangers.

In our experience, separated beds are definitely the preferred option. The rule of thumb in the Chinese travel industry is that there should be at least a distance of 25 - 30 cm between them, while both guests still need to have their own bedside table, plus overall enough space to be comfortable in the room.

If no or only a limited number of twin-bed rooms are available in the hotel or twin-rooms cannot be guaranteed in advance, it is crucial to communicate this to the buyer so as to avoid disappointments later.

This point is indeed so important that I would recommend to any hotel to double-check what can be actually guaranteed to the buyer at the booking, and also to notify the buyer before arrival in case a room becomes unavailable unexpectedly - ideally with an amicable solution at hand already.

4) What is the size of the rooms?

Speaking of space, the rule of thumb standard size expected by a Chinese agent sending a group to a hotel is about 20 square meters, which is also considered a reasonable size for a twin-bed setting.

Again, clear communication in advance as well as flexibility later is key here. For economy groups, a smaller room is often acceptable if that is made clear beforehand. Private groups have different needs, but it also wise to communicate very clearly.

Ideally, the size of the rooms to be allocated to a group is already stated in the booking confirmation or contract, but in practice we only see room categories mentioned. While this is understandable from the hotel point of view and allows it some flexibility, for Chinese groups it can be cause for concern later if the guests feel their room does not have the expected size and then complain to their booking agent.

5) How is the breakfast setting?

Within the Chinese outbound travel industry, the standard expectation for groups is that of a breakfast buffet with at least some hot dishes, even if these are Western. Chinese or Asian items are certainly appreciated but rarely expected.

Agents also often double-check that their group will be served breakfast in the same way and in the same facilities as the other guests, so as to not feel them like second-class guests. If different arrangements are provided, I again highly recommend to communicate this wit the agent in advance.

6) What price can the hotel offer?

Why is the price point so far down the list? In fact, I have deliberately placed it lower just to show that while it is a very important and decisive factor, it is by far not the only one to consider.

Yes, in the end the price must be competitive but how high or low it can be depends on the overall package. If many of the other needs listed here are already met, the pricing becomes more flexible and the hotel might achieve a higher rate or at least win the business over their competitor next door.

B2B agents will always try to get the lowest price possible, either to improve their margins or to just have better chances when bidding for a group - which is quite common in China. While it might seem pushy to bargain about a price reduction of 3 Euro per night, it is very well possible that this concession is what gets the agent the group - and ultimately the group into the hotel.

7) Does the hotel offer agent commission?

This is a request that comes up often, especially for individual groups both in leisure and business travel, when it is crucial to the agent that their mark-up is never revealed to their guests.

In our experience the majority of requests work without it, but when it is brought up it matters a lot to the agent and it is good when the hotel knows how to respond and handle it.

8) What contract terms can you offer?

Beyond price and agent commission, there are other crucial terms that can make or break a deal, for example deadlines for down-payments or cancellation policies.

Some agents have rather complicated internal procurement processes, which combined with a rigid and slow process for international bank transfers from China, can make it hard for them to fulfill the agreed terms to the letter, despite their best efforts. Equally, we have also seen cases when the hotel was unnecessarily strict which put the booking and future business in danger.

It is also good to remember that Chinese travelers need a visa and that not every application may be successful, which can cause last-minute changes to a group and force the agent to adapt unexpectedly. Again, this can be a deal breaker but also a moment for the hotel to shine and invest in the long-term business relationship.

In our experience, these difficulties can be overcome with some good will and trust, and it helps of course if there is a experienced mediator involved who understands both sides and can help to find an acceptable middle ground and practical solution.

9) Does the hotel have China Ready services?

Being able to provide dedicated services or amenities that take into consideration Chinese traveler's specific needs, e.g. specific breakfast items or disposable slippers, is always a plus and an effort worth making. Part of our own work for clients over the years has been to design China Ready programmes together with them and help them implement it.

Having said that, at least in our sales experience, it has rarely been a decisive factor in the actual booking process, rather an add-on feature that might improve the guest experience and feedback to the agent, therefore helping repeat business. In some cases it might have tipped the scale in favor of one hotel over another when the offers were very comparable, but in most cases it was not a decisive factor.

Still, as a little caveat, China Ready is likely to be more important when it comes to high-end and luxury travelers, since expectations and requirements by the guests are higher here.

10) How soon can I get the offer?

This is not a product feature as such, but if you have dealt with Chinese buyers before you will know that it matters a lot. The agents here work on high-speed, partly because they are used to it, partly because their own clients expect it, but mostly due to the very stiff competition - if you are not fast enough to produce an offer, you might loose the business.

That is why a potential buyer might often seem a bit pushy and would like to get an offer ideally on the same day.

Given the difference in time, work hours and decision making between international supplier and Chinese buyer, this is in fact very hard to fulfill, and if there is still no offer on the second day you can be sure to hear from the agent - let alone there is a holiday or a weekend in between. It is a gap that is hard to bridge but at least you should be aware of it.

There would be much more to say on each of these topics, but to keep this article short enough it will have to do for now.

Are these the only points that matter, then?

No, of course not, there are many other aspects that might influence an agent's request. Some of those are considered before they will even discuss a specific group request with you, say hotel location, air-condition or online reviews, others come into play during and after the sales process, e.g. troubleshooting, flexibility or guest feedback after returning to China.

Again, the needs and their relative importance may somewhat differ depending on the market segment you are targeting, and they also very much depend on the specific agency - their business model, their internal processes, their resources and of course their clients.

Also, the buyer's needs are constantly evolving based on market trends and such a list will always be a work in progress. One simple example is air-conditioning, which is also often asked for and might become more and more sought after due to climate change.

Still, as a general guideline for this market it should not be far off, and at least the list reflects our own hands-on, real-life experience over more than two decades. Hopefully then, this real-life example will be helpful to you and give you a certain guidance on what to expect when engaging in sales with your Chinese buyers and how to be better prepared.

It is, of course, well possible that your experience in the hotel sales process in the Chinese market is different to ours, in which case I would be happy to hear about it.

PS: Why am I sharing this know-how?

Because our motto is #InsideOutboundChina and we believe that if our clients are well informed and understand the market, we can work out a better and more effective strategy with them in order to drive their business and sales from China ... makes sense?