Today’s tourists are looking for a deal and it’s essential hotels and resorts respond if they want to stay competitive.This was the advice of veteran Bermuda hotelier John Jefferis, who said yesterday the Internet has shaken up the way business has traditionally been done in his industry.“Times have changed dramatically,” the director and owner of Coco Reef told The Royal Gazette.Mr Jefferis pointed out: “In prior years our hotel rates would have been given to our suppliers of business, such as Tour Operators, Travel Agents and Online Tour Operators, at events such as Caribbean Marketplace.“Those rates would have been applicable for at least a year and were usually higher than the previous year.“At Coco Reef now, under the direction of the general manager, our revenue manager spends much of her time on the Intranet monitoring global competitors and adjusting our rates to ensure that we are in a competitive advantageous rate band.“The constant barrage of discount based resort advertising on television highlighting up to 50 percent discounts means that even the most discerning of tourists are expecting some sort of a deal.“It is therefore essential to provide certain value added amenities as well as attractive rates.”Coco Reef was this month named Expedia’s “Top Partner of the Year for Bermuda”.The resort’s management received the award at the Expedia Partner Appreciation Event at the Atlantis Hotel in the Bahamas. Expedia is the largest online travel company.The 70-room Coco Reef resort beat out other hotels on the Island to receive the top honour.The criteria for the award included room night production and growth over last year as well as proactive marketing approaches to the Expedia promotional campaigns.“It is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our sales and marketing staff who work with the Expedia team on generating increased sales for the hotel,” Mr Jefferis said.“While the economy remains a great burden on the hospitality industry worldwide, Expedia continues to offer a variety of marketing opportunities and I am grateful that we’ve been able to take advantage of them to generate revenue.”Trish Korzeniowski, market manager for Expedia, said: “We would like to congratulate Coco Reef for its excellence in marketing and for capitalising on Expedia’s broad reach and comprehensive promotional opportunities to extend its visibility and attract new travellers to the property.“It has been a pleasure to work with Coco Reef to help grow bookings.”Mr. Jefferis, a former president of the Caribbean Hotel Association, added: “Not everyone appreciates the fact that every first class hotel room involves the employment of at least 14 people through employees and product and service providers and that the basis for a successful tourism industry is a healthy and profitable hotel industry.”The Bermuda Department of Tourism party held on January 21 at Nobu in the Atlantis Resort was praised by the tour operators who attended was the best event held during the Marketplace week.