Expedia Group and Booking Holdings halt Russia travel sales: Travel Weekly

The two largest travel sellers in the United States — Expedia Group and Booking Holdings — have stopped selling travel to and from Russia.

“In response to recent acts and government-imposed sanctions weighed against Russia, we have ceased the sale of travel into and out of Russia,” Expedia said in a statement. “We are saddened by what continues to unfold in Ukraine and will continue to do what we can to support impacted travelers, partners, and our team members with families and friends in the affected areas.” 

Booking Holdings has suspended bookings in both Russia and Belarus.

“We are deeply concerned about the devastating events unfolding in Ukraine and stand with all those who are suffering,” the company said Tuesday in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. “Our top priority is ensuring the safety and security of our employees and their families who are directly impacted. We are also in the process of complying with all applicable global sanctions, including significant restrictions imposed from a number of countries.”

According to the filing, bookings in Russia and Ukraine combined are “a low single digit percentage” of total gross bookings, while bookings to Eastern Europe including the two countries represent “a high single digit percentage” of gross bookings.

While Booking Holdings’ room nights booked in February were about on par with 2019 levels, the company said in the past week through March 6 room nights were down around 10% compared to 2019. It attributed the drop to the war in Ukraine.

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