Expedia will start excepting Bitcoin for online hotel bookings, becoming the highest profile travel brand so far to embrace the virtual currency.
Expedia will use Coinbase to process payments and initially it will be available only for hotel bookings.
On the Expedia payment screen, customers choosing the Bitcoin option will be redirected to the Coinbase website to complete the transaction.
The company will expand the Bitcoin feature to other products if it proves a success.
“When we’ll start expanding to other lines of business really all depends on how well it goes with hotels,” said Michael Gulmann, vice president of global product.
“We think there’s growth potential for Bitcoin as a currency and in many ways, we view this as a way to empower customers to transact how they choose to transact,” Gulmann said.
Hoteliers will continue to be paid in local currency just like a conventional online booking, the company said.
Gulmann doesn’t expect an avalanche of new business overnight, but he said Expedia wanted to be in on the ground floor ahead of rivals such as Priceline.
Despite sharp fluctuations in the digital currency, Bitcoin is slowly gaining traction in travel e-commerce.
OTA Cheapair.com adopted Bitcoin earlier this year, as does vacation rental company HomeAway and Virgin Galactic.
