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Review Analysis 2Guest Satisfaction Drivers (Sentiment Analysis) 3Reviews by Source 4Key Takeaways and What To Watch For 5Glossary / About the Authors 6

TrustScores:

Management Responses:

Volume of Reviews:

Percentage of 5-Star Reviews: /

Will hoteliers be able to reverse the declining satisfaction with hotel Internet/WiFi?

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Written by:Margaret Ady, Marketing Director at TrustYou

2013 Europe, Middle East and Africa Review Headlines:

the standard for reputation

Inside:

Donna Quadri-Felitti, Clinical Associate Professor of Hospitality and Tourism Management at New York University, Preston Robert Tisch Center for Hospitality, Tourism, and Sports Management.

2013

TrustYou’s ANNUAL REPORT:

DESTINATION EUROPE, MIDDLE EAST, AFRICA (EMEA)

2013 2012 2013 2012 2013 2012 2013 2012 2013 2012 TrustScore Total Reviews% 5-Star Reviews

Management Response Rate

Select CountriesAustria 86.1 86.1 621920 453751 63% 63% 68 53 37% 33% 0.0% 37.1% 0.0% 14.6%Germany 79.7 79.6 2548959 1801252 52% 52% 115 84 28% 27% 0.1% 41.5% 0.0% 2.8%France 77.3 76.5 2310025 1615908 39% 39% 128 91 29% 25% 1.0% 43.0% 0.0% 16.1%Italy 81.5 80.3 2465769 1788990 52% 51% 103 76 29% 28% 1.5% 37.8% 2.0% 0.7%Spain 78.7 77.1 1835708 1494702 48% 47% 161 131 36% 30% 2.1% 22.8% 2.1% 18.1%Switzerland 81.5 81.0 436815 329102 55% 57% 125 101 32% 28% 0.6% 32.7% -3.5% 14.6%UK 82.1 80.5 2402677 1788837 47% 47% 151 113 41% 38% 2.0% 34.3% 0.0% 7.6%Major Markets: EMEAAmsterdam 76.8 74.8 202595 161274 13% 12% 804 640 16% 9% 2.7% 25.6% 6.7% 77.8%Athens 85.9 84.6 28998 17941 22% 25% 580 359 24% 15% 1.5% 61.6% -13.3% 60.0%Barcelona 89.1 89.3 44372 33973 30% 30% 887 679 19% 15% -0.3% 30.6% 1.1% 26.7%Berlin 90.0 89.9 59781 47587 35% 33% 1196 952 18% 10% 0.2% 25.6% 7.4% 80.0%Brussels 85.4 84.5 45866 31415 16% 15% 917 628 26% 16% 1.1% 46.0% 7.4% 62.5%Budapest 90.4 90.2 46121 37680 32% 29% 922 754 34% 20% 0.2% 22.4% 9.6% 70.0%Bukarest 86.4 85.8 13127 7517 18% 21% 263 150 35% 27% 0.7% 74.6% -15.4% 29.6%Cairo 81.4 79.7 7901 6532 25% 27% 161 133 47% 36% 2.0% 21.0% -5.1% 30.6%Cape Town 90.5 90.7 10782 6607 42% 52% 220 135 36% 23% -0.3% 63.2% -19.8% 56.5%Copenhagen 79.6 77.7 53877 39787 13% 16% 1078 796 8% 5% 2.4% 35.4% -15.1% 60.0%Dubai 89.6 89.8 53236 32312 35% 38% 1065 646 44% 41% -0.2% 64.8% -9.2% 7.3%Dublin 86.7 85.6 42150 33580 29% 29% 843 672 38% 29% 1.3% 25.5% 1.9% 31.0%Edinburgh 87.5 86.8 31667 22421 30% 33% 633 448 28% 19% 0.8% 41.2% -9.6% 47.4%Frankfurt 84.2 83.5 39058 28905 20% 17% 781 578 26% 23% 0.8% 35.1% 21.9% 13.0%Helsinki 81.0 80.1 49206 35491 11% 12% 984 710 7% 5% 1.1% 38.6% -8.3% 40.0%Istanbul 92.8 92.3 20722 12911 46% 58% 414 258 21% 19% 0.6% 60.5% -21.0% 10.5%Istria 86.7 86.1 15936 10613 17% 16% 319 212 42% 31% 0.7% 50.2% 7.7% 35.5%Jerusalem 79.0 78.1 14274 7106 19% 23% 285 142 25% 18% 1.1% 100.9% -17.0% 38.9%Lisbon 88.9 88.5 39978 25693 23% 25% 800 514 18% 18% 0.4% 55.6% -7.6% 0.0%London 91.9 92.3 36034 22637 44% 46% 751 472 35% 30% -0.4% 59.2% -5.1% 16.7%Madrid 88.6 87.2 39819 27670 22% 23% 796 553 38% 23% 1.5% 43.9% -6.0% 65.2%Milan 77.4 74.7 143964 110016 10% 10% 556 425 14% 11% 3.5% 30.9% 3.0% 27.3%Moscow 84.8 83.5 22400 12704 16% 18% 487 276 37% 19% 1.5% 76.3% -10.4% 94.7%Munich 78.5 78.1 138596 102187 14% 12% 517 381 16% 11% 0.5% 35.6% 17.7% 45.5%Oslo 81.6 80.2 36355 20180 9% 19% 727 404 14% 9% 1.7% 80.2% -50.0% 55.6%Paris 91.5 88.8 18855 12936 44% 45% 377 259 34% 22% 3.1% 45.8% -2.1% 54.5%Prague 93.8 93.4 25097 19803 42% 44% 502 396 28% 21% 0.4% 26.7% -3.2% 33.3%Rome 76.8 75.4 259397 204825 16% 16% 399 315 17% 12% 1.9% 26.6% -3.7% 41.7%Sofia 84.3 83.6 10182 5869 14% 15% 204 117 23% 17% 0.9% 73.5% -10.3% 35.3%St. Petersburg 87.9 87.9 16533 7928 17% 24% 337 162 27% 23% 0.0% 108.5% -26.7% 17.4%Stockholm 84.7 84.4 43357 31063 18% 22% 867 621 11% 8% 0.5% 39.6% -18.1% 37.5%Tel Aviv 85.4 83.7 20203 11618 26% 26% 404 232 28% 28% 1.9% 73.9% -1.8% 0.0%Vienna 81.3 80.2 165092 131609 15% 13% 575 459 20% 15% 1.3% 25.4% 21.7% 33.3%Warsaw 84.8 83.7 44266 26184 15% 17% 885 524 20% 10% 1.4% 69.1% -8.2% 100.0%Zurich 81.1 80.3 67392 53574 14% 11% 421 335 30% 23% 1.1% 25.8% 25.7% 30.4%

2

Percentage of 5-star reviewsTrustScore

Total Number of Reviews

Avg. Number of Reviews Per Property

Review Analysis Highlights: TrustYou’s TrustScores measure review scores on a global scale, across all review sites worldwide to provide a global overview and understanding of all that is said about hotels. The scores are based on a scale of 1-100, with scores above 87 considered "excellent."

In 2013, TrustScores across major markets in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) rose 1.1%, a sign of increased traveler satisfaction during hotel visits in this region. In June 2013, TrustScores in major EMEA markets showed a slight uptick from prior months and continued to rise throughout the rest of the year. Prague (93.8), Istanbul (92.8) and London (91.9) held the highest TrustScores in 2013, while Milan (+3.5%), Paris (+3.1%) and Amsterdam (+2.7%) boasted the largest year-over-year percentage increases among all EMEA major markets in this report. Only four of the top 35 markets saw declining TrustScores from a year ago. On a country level, Austria (86.1) achieved the highest TrustScores among countries in the report, while Spain (+2.1%) saw the biggest percentage increase in score.

Likely contributing to higher TrustScores were the double-digit percentage increases in volume of reviews and management response rates across nearly all major markets. The volume of reviews increased by 49.1% and management response rates improved nearly 42% compared to 2012. Cairo (47%) and Dubai (44%) respond to the highest percentage of reviews, far ahead of the industry average response rate of around 20%, according to TrustYou data.

Keep in mind that some review sites delay publicly showing management responses until up to 72 hours after a review was written. The data within this report only reflects management responses that were public at the year's end. When looking at changes in the data after 72 hours, management response rates may improve, on average, 1%.

Despite higher TrustScores, the percentage of five-star reviews dropped from a year ago among two-thirds of major markets in EMEA. Increases in consumer trust in reviews may account for this decline, as consumers adjust expectations based on the reviews they read prior to booking. Some destinations, however, have still managed to delight and impress guests in 2013. Zurich (+25.7%). Frankfurt (+21.9%), Vienna (+21.7%) and Munich (+17.7%) have all seen double-digit percentage increases in 5-star reviews in 2013. On a country level, destinations (with the exception of Switzerland) were able to maintain or improve nearly the percentage of five-star reviews compared to a year ago, suggesting that destinations outside of major markets may be delivering more five-star experiences to travelers.

2013 vs. 2012Management

Response RatePercent Change, 2013 vs. 2012

84

84.2

84.4

84.6

84.8

85

85.2

85.4

85.6

85.8

86

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Trus

tSco

re

Major Markets EMEA TrustScore Monthly Trending

2013

2012

2013 2012 2013 2012 2013 2012 2013 2012 2013 2012 2013 2012 Service Room Location Internet Food PriceSelect CountriesAustria 90.4 90.6 74.2 76.5 90.7 91.9 56.0 63.1 82.1 82.7 75.1 77.1 -0.2% -3.0% -1.3% -11.3% -0.7% -2.6%Germany 86.0 86.4 58.8 62.6 85.3 87.3 48.2 52.9 76.4 77.8 67.9 70.9 -0.5% -6.1% -2.3% -8.9% -1.8% -4.2%France 85.2 84.4 59.1 60.1 85.2 85.2 56.5 62.2 68.8 69.5 72.5 74.5 0.9% -1.7% 0.0% -9.2% -1.0% -2.7%Italy 90.0 89.3 71.3 71.6 89.2 89.1 61.5 64.6 76.7 76.6 77.5 77.5 0.8% -0.4% 0.1% -4.8% 0.1% 0.0%Spain 84.9 84.6 66.3 66.7 88.0 87.9 57.9 61.2 71.1 71.0 80.4 81.0 0.4% -0.6% 0.1% -5.4% 0.1% -0.7%Switzerland 87.8 87.2 67.1 67.4 89.0 89.7 61.4 62.8 76.1 77.5 65.5 67.3 0.7% -0.4% -0.8% -2.2% -1.8% -2.7%UK 86.5 86.3 69.2 69.7 88.4 88.3 58.1 59.4 79.7 79.8 79.9 79.7 0.2% -0.7% 0.1% -2.2% -0.1% 0.3%Major Markets: EMEAAmsterdam 84.4 84.5 58.4 59.1 91.1 91.3 65.3 66.8 71.5 72.0 63.6 66.3 -0.1% -1.2% -0.3% -2.1% -0.7% -4.0%Athens 90.5 90.8 72.1 73.6 91.1 90.9 59.7 60.1 82.8 83.2 81.1 82.1 -0.4% -2.0% 0.2% -0.7% -0.5% -1.2%Barcelona 90.7 89.6 76.5 76.4 93.2 93.0 67.2 71.6 78.8 78.2 73.2 74.4 1.3% 0.0% 0.2% -6.0% 0.8% -1.6%Berlin 89.9 89.6 77.8 78.9 93.2 93.3 57.0 61.5 80.2 81.0 71.6 75.0 0.3% -1.3% -0.1% -7.4% -1.0% -4.5%Brussels 84.9 83.0 72.6 72.3 89.4 90.4 66.4 67.2 72.4 71.2 72.9 70.2 2.3% 0.5% -1.0% -1.2% 1.7% 3.8%Budapest 91.8 91.5 78.8 79.3 92.8 93.4 70.8 72.1 83.3 82.5 81.8 82.6 0.4% -0.7% -0.7% -1.7% 0.9% -1.0%Bukarest 89.5 89.2 74.1 75.4 85.8 86.8 76.0 73.0 79.3 82.0 78.8 81.3 0.3% -1.7% -1.2% 4.2% -3.3% -3.1%Cairo 84.2 80.8 72.7 72.2 86.5 85.7 52.8 55.4 79.1 77.8 68.3 67.8 4.2% 0.8% 0.9% -4.6% 1.7% 0.8%Cape Town 87.4 88.9 80.1 83.3 92.8 92.6 62.3 59.6 86.0 87.0 79.6 83.2 -1.7% -3.9% 0.1% 4.6% -1.2% -4.3%Copenhagen 82.3 82.0 54.5 55.1 90.7 90.7 74.7 74.5 75.2 75.7 63.5 69.1 0.4% -1.1% -0.1% 0.3% -0.7% -8.1%Dubai 86.2 86.6 81.6 81.6 88.5 89.8 61.4 68.0 82.9 83.2 65.3 69.0 -0.5% 0.0% -1.5% -9.8% -0.4% -5.3%Dublin 89.2 88.0 71.6 71.2 91.7 91.2 72.1 67.5 79.4 77.7 76.7 78.5 1.4% 0.6% 0.5% 6.9% 2.1% -2.4%Edinburgh 89.6 90.1 72.9 75.9 91.7 91.6 61.5 66.2 79.1 79.5 75.8 74.1 -0.5% -3.9% 0.1% -7.0% -0.5% 2.3%Frankfurt 84.1 83.3 65.5 67.0 87.0 88.1 58.9 64.2 75.7 75.3 66.8 71.3 0.9% -2.2% -1.3% -8.3% 0.5% -6.3%Helsinki 80.4 79.0 58.9 60.2 89.0 89.0 65.2 72.7 74.6 75.4 67.2 68.2 1.8% -2.1% 0.0% -10.3% -1.2% -1.5%Istanbul 94.8 95.1 79.3 79.8 91.0 91.1 76.2 82.6 87.8 88.9 81.1 84.2 -0.4% -0.6% -0.1% -7.7% -1.2% -3.7%Istria 87.8 85.4 71.9 70.3 87.7 87.8 49.0 59.9 78.1 78.9 65.0 69.5 2.8% 2.2% -0.1% -18.3% -1.0% -6.5%Jerusalem 79.3 77.5 61.4 60.9 77.9 80.0 59.0 58.7 79.1 77.9 69.1 67.2 2.4% 0.8% -2.7% 0.5% 1.6% 2.8%Lisbon 91.8 90.6 74.8 74.4 92.1 92.4 69.4 65.7 83.7 82.3 79.2 77.5 1.3% 0.6% -0.3% 5.7% 1.7% 2.2%London 91.2 90.4 77.2 77.9 94.7 94.4 79.6 77.6 83.1 82.3 74.7 73.7 0.8% -0.9% 0.3% 2.5% 1.1% 1.3%Madrid 90.6 90.0 75.3 75.7 93.2 93.9 70.7 78.9 78.6 80.0 84.5 82.8 0.6% -0.5% -0.7% -10.4% -1.9% 2.0%Milan 84.4 83.8 63.7 63.4 88.3 89.1 53.2 54.2 74.9 75.0 72.0 75.3 0.8% 0.4% -0.9% -1.9% -0.1% -4.4%Moscow 80.1 80.7 69.1 72.2 85.5 86.6 71.1 77.6 73.2 73.5 64.7 63.7 -0.7% -4.2% -1.3% -8.4% -0.5% 1.6%Munich 84.5 84.0 56.5 58.6 86.1 88.0 49.9 52.0 78.5 79.4 66.1 68.7 0.6% -3.7% -2.1% -4.1% -1.1% -3.8%Oslo 80.7 80.9 56.9 57.3 90.9 90.7 75.9 81.2 80.9 81.2 75.3 75.2 -0.3% -0.8% 0.2% -6.5% -0.4% 0.1%Paris 93.3 93.0 76.7 76.8 94.3 93.8 82.3 82.5 82.5 82.4 75.3 74.7 0.3% -0.1% 0.5% -0.2% 0.1% 0.8%Prague 93.5 93.5 82.6 82.9 89.4 89.1 81.9 81.0 88.7 88.9 83.7 85.3 0.0% -0.4% 0.4% 1.1% -0.2% -1.8%Rome 86.3 85.6 63.0 63.0 90.2 90.2 55.2 58.1 74.9 74.7 74.6 75.4 0.9% 0.0% 0.0% -5.1% 0.3% -1.0%Sofia 86.2 86.3 69.2 72.3 89.6 89.5 68.8 65.4 72.9 74.2 78.8 80.8 -0.1% -4.3% 0.1% 5.3% -1.7% -2.5%St. Petersburg 86.1 85.6 69.6 71.1 87.4 89.2 69.7 71.4 74.3 75.8 67.3 71.3 0.6% -2.1% -2.0% -2.3% -2.0% -5.6%Stockholm 86.3 86.0 62.9 64.9 92.3 92.7 70.4 76.9 82.0 82.4 70.5 73.1 0.3% -3.0% -0.5% -8.5% -0.5% -3.6%Tel Aviv 85.6 84.2 67.5 69.5 88.8 88.7 65.1 75.1 82.1 83.3 63.9 66.6 1.7% -2.8% 0.1% -13.3% -1.5% -4.1%Vienna 85.9 85.1 63.5 63.7 89.3 89.8 56.3 58.5 78.0 78.3 73.9 75.4 0.9% -0.3% -0.6% -3.8% -0.3% -1.9%Warsaw 84.9 84.3 75.0 74.2 87.7 88.3 55.4 54.3 78.6 79.6 75.2 74.4 0.7% 1.1% -0.6% 2.1% -1.2% 1.0%Zurich 86.2 85.0 63.7 64.3 89.0 89.0 66.0 67.0 73.5 73.5 67.1 68.2 1.4% -0.9% -0.1% -1.6% 0.0% -1.7%

3

Guest Satisfaction Drivers (Sentiment Analysis) Highlights: Sentiment scores are generated using TrustYou’s proprietary semantic technology, which detects positive, negative and neutral sentiments for various categories within review text to understand what is driving guest satisfaction and overall review scores. The technology was developed using 50+ combined years of research and development, together with the best university researchers, trained linguists and developers and works in 23 languages. Scores are based on a 1-100 scale.

Consumer satisfaction with hotel Service in EMEA has improved slightly from a year ago, while Internet, Price and Room Scores are generally on the decline. A closer look at some of the categories shows destinations’ unique challenges and successes:

Service: Service Scores improved in 25 of the 35 major EMEA markets in this report. The highest Service scores were in Istanbul (94.8), Prague (93.5) and Paris (93.3). These destinations also held the highest TrustScores for the year, indicating that Service Scores have a strong influence on a review’s overall score. The biggest year-over-year percentage growth for Service Scores was in: Cairo (+4.2%), Istria (+2.8%) Jerusalem (+2.4%) and Brussels (+2.3%).

Internet: Internet, a topic of much debate among hoteliers, posted the largest year-over-year satisfaction declines in EMEA, dropping 3.4% in major markets. Despite the declines, some markets got it right: 10 of the 35 major EMEA markets saw improvements in this semantic category. This disparity in scores may suggest overall confusion about Internet and pricing. Guest expectation for access and high functioning Internet connections is not waning but growing.

Food: Two of the 35 major markets achieved excellent Food Scores among reviewers in 2013, namely Helsinki (87.8) and Prague (88.7). 11 markets improved their Food Scores over 2012, with Dublin having earned the greatest positive percentage change (+2.1%). Bukarest led the remaining markets with the largest drop in Food Scores (-3.3%) in 2012. Destinations have opportunities to better understand and focus on improving food expectations and satisfaction among travelers.

Price: Overall, travelers became less accepting of hotel price in EMEA, with Price Scores declining 2%. Markets with lower Price satisfaction Scores over 2012 were Istria (-6.5%), Frankfurt (-6.3%), and St. Petersburg (-5.6%). However, some destinations, like Brussels (+3.8%), Jerusalem (+2.8%) and Edinburgh (+2.3%) saw improvements in the price sentiment category, suggesting an opportunity for pricing adjustments in those markets.

2013 vs. 2012Service Room Location Internet Food Price Percent Change 2013 vs. 2012

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Service Room Location Internet Food Price

Guest Satisfaction Drivers vs. Year Ago

Austria

Germany

France

Italy

Spain

Switzerland

UK

2013 2012 2013 2012 2013 2012 2013 2012 2013 2012 2013 2012 TripAdvisor Booking.com Hotels.com Expedia Holidaycheck Google+Select CountriesAustria 61835 48217 381991 254568 14799 12843 16561 13111 90762 90019 4698 3580 28.2% 50.1% 15.2% 26.3% 0.8% 31.2%Germany 184734 153838 1460072 1085166 82653 68835 92612 71612 184336 165075 19367 14391 20.1% 34.5% 20.1% 29.3% 11.7% 34.6%France 427817 328354 1611830 1045490 92781 92280 122925 106471 5517 6881 9985 6714 30.3% 54.2% 0.5% 15.5% -19.8% 48.7%Italy 656207 504219 1489737 998889 89645 87513 116885 97378 54434 53766 12057 8269 30.1% 49.1% 2.4% 20.0% 1.2% 45.8%Spain 434775 347904 1102754 866402 62741 64657 82397 65575 81421 89055 15016 10824 25.0% 27.3% -3.0% 25.7% -8.6% 38.7%Switzerland 56882 41214 283413 206363 12806 10200 12192 9350 14726 13427 2413 2121 38.0% 37.3% 25.5% 30.4% 9.7% 13.8%UK 826678 656998 1189267 814608 124415 110142 159136 119768 5594 4375 10990 9486 25.8% 46.0% 13.0% 32.9% 27.9% 15.9%Major Markets: EMEAAmsterdam 33928 26721 118499 98627 14946 12656 16158 12879 1292 937 914 792 27.0% 20.1% 18.1% 25.5% 37.9% 15.4%Athens 7224 4390 16722 9471 1570 1982 2755 1594 107 69 139 92 64.6% 76.6% -20.8% 72.8% 55.1% 51.1%Barcelona 12672 10020 21655 16069 3622 3008 4334 3035 287 206 213 240 26.5% 34.8% 20.4% 42.8% 39.3% -11.3%Berlin 11079 9233 26415 21997 5980 4922 6540 4935 2794 2318 299 240 20.0% 20.1% 21.5% 32.5% 20.5% 24.6%Brussels 8636 6046 28924 19682 3105 2233 3169 2228 340 179 155 133 42.8% 47.0% 39.1% 42.2% 89.9% 16.5%Budapest 12258 8962 23962 20892 2924 2909 3989 3263 551 377 261 200 36.8% 14.7% 0.5% 22.2% 46.2% 30.5%Bukarest 2581 1859 9004 4483 342 426 657 494 151 56 152 88 38.8% 100.8% -19.7% 33.0% 169.6% 72.7%Cairo 2675 2517 4022 2834 297 389 330 370 44 40 310 176 6.3% 41.9% -23.7% -10.8% 10.0% 76.1%Cape Town 5329 3907 3854 1466 501 486 650 480 92 65 76 45 36.4% 162.9% 3.1% 35.4% 41.5% 68.9%Copenhagen 8648 6068 30633 19838 5367 6316 7453 6480 379 331 215 157 42.5% 54.4% -15.0% 15.0% 14.5% 36.9%Dubai 16950 11529 25966 13771 2405 1836 2577 1678 1028 989 1041 419 47.0% 88.6% 31.0% 53.6% 3.9% 148.4%Dublin 13948 10766 17733 12880 3584 3698 4588 3821 186 182 220 318 29.6% 37.7% -3.1% 20.1% 2.2% -30.8%Edinburgh 11413 7861 14300 9339 2013 2031 2725 2170 73 54 143 158 45.2% 53.1% -0.9% 25.6% 35.2% -9.5%Frankfurt 5141 3952 21987 17946 2196 1871 2503 1782 1259 784 229 181 30.1% 22.5% 17.4% 40.5% 60.6% 26.5%Helsinki 4557 3373 34637 23998 4511 3423 3848 3678 318 261 244 148 35.1% 44.3% 31.8% 4.6% 21.8% 64.9%Istanbul 9798 7805 8120 3151 205 345 1966 1240 155 116 106 68 25.5% 157.7% -40.6% 58.5% 33.6% 55.9%Istria 2779 1611 10770 7228 553 330 551 291 816 806 96 63 72.5% 49.0% 67.6% 89.3% 1.2% 52.4%Jerusalem 4801 3149 8180 3007 169 216 877 561 63 53 141 73 52.5% 172.0% -21.8% 56.3% 18.9% 93.2%Lisbon 9506 5978 23949 14346 1701 2105 3411 2302 349 297 167 86 59.0% 66.9% -19.2% 48.2% 17.5% 94.2%London 16363 10976 13688 7621 1728 1234 2058 1302 120 75 377 259 49.1% 79.6% 40.0% 58.1% 60.0% 45.6%Madrid 8446 5622 23352 14834 2547 2472 3330 2682 164 101 470 196 50.2% 57.4% 3.0% 24.2% 62.4% 139.8%Milan 22827 16701 100436 76617 7743 6325 8141 6687 830 681 616 391 36.7% 31.1% 22.4% 21.7% 21.9% 57.5%Moscow 4733 3065 14772 7622 797 685 998 651 234 162 196 157 54.4% 93.8% 16.4% 53.3% 44.4% 24.8%Munich 14841 12615 84406 65075 7039 5890 7046 5584 3822 3401 898 784 17.6% 29.7% 19.5% 26.2% 12.4% 14.5%Oslo 4893 3887 25456 9526 1968 2059 3247 4263 208 162 170 95 25.9% 167.2% -4.4% -23.8% 28.4% 78.9%Paris 8824 6378 6752 4119 956 803 1217 841 54 33 216 66 38.4% 63.9% 19.1% 44.7% 63.6% 227.3%Prague 8272 6947 10460 7953 2005 1918 2526 1889 153 166 145 98 19.1% 31.5% 4.5% 33.7% -7.8% 48.0%Rome 62337 48076 144623 109618 18137 17939 23200 19826 2056 2193 1081 748 29.7% 31.9% 1.1% 17.0% -6.2% 44.5%Sofia 1606 1105 7180 3777 446 377 465 358 122 60 147 84 45.3% 90.1% 18.3% 29.9% 103.3% 75.0%St. Petersburg 3580 2367 11412 4364 433 442 774 509 91 75 73 65 51.2% 161.5% -2.0% 52.1% 21.3% 12.3%Stockholm 5624 4860 25181 15658 4231 4003 6726 5534 305 239 274 173 15.7% 60.8% 5.7% 21.5% 27.6% 58.4%Tel Aviv 6318 4046 10715 5665 1175 793 1251 721 90 62 218 109 56.2% 89.1% 48.2% 73.5% 45.2% 100.0%Vienna 18402 14682 107292 88039 8226 7422 8865 7235 4965 5100 858 652 25.3% 21.9% 10.8% 22.5% -2.6% 31.6%Warsaw 5388 3489 31253 17650 2438 1834 2595 1823 705 397 294 196 54.4% 77.1% 32.9% 42.3% 77.6% 50.0%Zurich 8951 6749 38861 29538 4021 3277 3607 3103 978 665 450 462 32.6% 31.6% 22.7% 16.2% 47.1% -2.6%

4 *Reviews from sources labelled "Other" come from one of the other 250+ sources that TrustYou tracks

Reviews by Source Highlights: Reviews for sources labeled “Other” come from 250+ sources that TrustYou tracks across the review ecosystem, including Priceline, Orbitz, HRS, Yelp/Qype and others.

Booking.com remained the largest player in EMEA in terms of volume of reviews, accounting for 58% of all reviews written about EMEA hotels in this report. Booking.com, TripAdvisor, Expedia and Priceline all grew by double-digit percentages in 2013.

In German speaking countries like Germany and Austria, TripAdvisor and Holidaycheck battled for the number two largest review source, behind Booking.com.

Despite its lower volume of reviews, Google+ posted double-digit percentage gains in 2013 across the majority of EMEA major markets.

2013 vs. 2012TripAdvisor Booking.com Hotels.com Expedia Holidaycheck Google+ Percent Change, 2013 vs. 2012

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Major Markets EMEA Number of Reviews by Top Sources vs. Year Ago

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5

Key Takeaways and What to Watch ForTrustScore Growth Suggests Higher Satisfaction Among Travelers Who Visited EMEA Hotels in 2013

With millions of reviews written throughout EMEA during 2013, hotel management was under pressure to constantly monitor and improve review scores of their hotel portfolios. TrustYou’s TrustScores provide a global overview of review scores and sentiments across all review sites and social platforms worldwide.

Throughout EMEA, TrustScores were on the rise in 2013 compared to a year ago. The destinations with the top five TrustScores in EMEA were Prague (93.8), Istanbul (92.8), London (91.9), Paris (91.5), and Cape Town (90.5). The markets with the most improved TrustScores, year-over-year, were Milan (+3.5%), Paris (+3.1%), and Amsterdam (+2.7%). STR’s Global Hotel Review showed that there was also increased demand and revenue per available room (RevPAR) in Europe and the Middle East/Africa during January-November of 2013 compared to a year ago.

Hoteliers Succeeded in Encouraging More Guest Feedback and Engaging Travelers Online

Hoteliers across EMEA have took heed of the consumer’s voice, embracing reviews and engaging guests online. This focus on travelers’ opinions, coupled with growing popularity and consumer trust in reviews contributed to a 49% increase in volume of reviews compared to a year ago. The average number of reviews per hotel in major markets increased from 441 reviews in 2012 to 633 reviews in 2013.

Along with an increase in volume of reviews, hoteliers in most destinations were much more active, significantly increasing management response rates compared to a year ago. 32 of the 35 major markets in this report posted double-digit percentage gains in management response rates this year. Engaging guests directly helps build credibility and trust among travelers in the public review environment.

Despite Higher TrustScores, Hotels In Major Markets Saw a Decline in Five-Star Reviews

There was a trend towards a lower percentage of five-star rated reviews. This trend also held true in major markets across EMEA; nearly two-thirds of major markets in this report saw a decline in percentage of five-star reviews. The decline in percentage of five-star reviews may be a symptom of increased consumer trust in reviews. As consumers read and trust the reviews of fellow travelers, they may likely adjust their expectations based on the feedback they read prior to staying in a given hotel, creating greater demands on hotel management to exceed expectations, to delight and surprise guests, and to differentiate their product and service delivery on what are increasingly high traveler expectations.

Despite this trend, countries in this report have been more resilient; Spain, Italy and the UK all registered a slight increase in percentage of of five-star reviews, suggesting that hotels outside of major markets successfully gained more five-star reviews.

Sentiment Analysis Behind the TrustScores: Service Drove Hotel Satisfaction Growth, While Internet Continued Its Downward Spiral

When it comes to satisfaction drivers, hotel Service appears to be contributing positively to the increase in TrustScores for EMEA hotel guests, while Internet, Price and Room were generally on the decline.

Satisfaction scores for Internet took the biggest hit in 2013, with a 3.4% decline across major markets in this report compared to a year ago. The confusion about pricing for wireless access as well as the actual cost were sore spots for many travelers perhaps more so for the leisure guest who may travel less frequently. A recent survey of 650 travel agents by TravelClick reported that free Internet (79%) is a top priority to driving agency bookings.

Reviews by Source: Booking.com Held The Largest Market Share

Booking.com was the largest player in EMEA in terms of volume of reviews. Nearly all major review platforms, including Booking.com, TripAdvisor, Hotels.com, Expedia, Holidaycheck and Google+ posted gains in volume of reviews compared to a year ago, signaling that hoteliers may have found the right formula for encouraging reviews. We will continue to track this trend.

ConclusionAll in all, the outlook seems positive for hotels in EMEA. Distinctive consumer trends have emerged, including an increase in volume of reviews, increased TrustScores and Service Scores, a decline in the percentage of five-star reviews in major markets, a drop in Internet Scores and only a few markets posting improved Food Scores. With measurable success in driving more guest feedback, hoteliers in EMEA saw improved TrustScores, management response rates and service scores during 2013. Improving hotel WiFi/Internet services, pricing and food and beverage offerings may be areas to focus on for improvement for many hoteliers. Stay tuned for more insights in our next report summarizing the first quarter of 2014.

Average Number of Reviews Per Property ReviewsThe average number of reviews received for each property for the year. The number of reviews found across all global review and social media sites for that particular hotel

group during the year.

Major Markets: EMEA Select Countries: EMEAReviews and semantic analysis from a randomly selected sample of 50 hotels in each major market within Europe and the Middle East. These scores take into account all reviews written about the sample of hotels within this group, across 250+ review and social media sites in 23 languages worldwide.

A sample of reviews and semantic analysis from throughout select countries. Scores and analysis take into account major markets as well as smaller destinations for a country-level view of trends.

Management Response Rate TrustScoreThe percentage of reviews that have received management responses from websites that allow hotels to post public responses. [Reviews with responses / total amount of reviews on websites that allow public responses]

The TrustScore is a global picture of what is being said about a hotel, boiled down into one simple score. It is based on all reviews written in 23 languages across 250+ review and social media sites worldwide. The score takes three main factors into account:

Method for Semantic Analysis calculations (Service, Room, Internet, Food, Price): 1. All individual reviews: By taking every individual review into account, we can get to the most TrustYou’s proprietary semantic technology was developed using 50+ combined years of research and development, together with the best university researchers, trained linguists and developers. It is uniquely tailored for social media and the hospitality industry, detecting positive, negative and neutral sentiments for various categories within review text. TrustYou’s semantic technology works in 23 languages with an accuracy of around 90% for most languages.

objective score possible. A site with more reviews will naturally have more impact on the TrustScore than sites with only very few. 2. Sentiment: TrustYou’s semantic analysis algorithm is able to detect positive, negative and neutral sentiments written within each review. These sentiment scores are weighted into the TrustScore 3. Date: Calculations go back two years, with older reviews carrying much less weight than newer ones to ensure that the score always represents the best up-to-date reputation of a hotel.

Donna Quadri-Felitti Margaret AdyDonna Quadri-Felitti is a Clinical Associate Professor of Hospitality and Tourism Management at New York University, Preston Robert Tisch Center for Hospitality, Tourism, and Sports Management in New York City. Donna completed her Ph.D. at Iowa State University in Hospitality Management where she received a USDA-funded Sustainable Community Development grant for her research in wine tourism destination marketing and the experience economy. She was named one of the Top 25 Extraordinary Minds in Hospitality and Tourism Sales and Marketing by Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International for the year 2012. Donna has earned certifications as a Hospitality Educator from American Hotel & Lodging Association, a Hospitality Digital Marketer from Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International, and wine captain from the Sommelier Society of America.

Margaret Ady is based in Munich, Germany where she serves as Marketing Director at TrustYou, an online reputation management company specializing in the hospitality industry. She graduated from the University of Southern California with degrees in Economics and Psychology, and where she was awarded the Annenberg Communications Pathway Grant in 2004 for her research in new technology and its impact on health and healthcare decision-making. Margaret has extensive experience in research, marketing and branding strategy, having served in leadership positions at The Walt Disney Company (where she was appointed to the company’s Peer Advisory Board), and The Oprah Winfrey Network. She has also provided research and strategic consulting services to 20th Television (Fox), Nielsen and many other companies in FMCG/Entertainment/IT industries.

6

Glossary

About the Authors