HotelPlanner Expands Partnership with Ventures Endurance on Athlete Hotel Bookings

March 7, 2024

The company’s renewed sponsorship will support athlete accommodation needs for the iconic RAGBRAI multi-day cycling event across Iowa; Ride the Rockies across Colorado, the popular Hot Chocolate 5K/15K runs across the U.S., and many other events.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla /ENDURANCE SPORTSWIRE/ – HotelPlanner, a leading travel technology platform and hotel booking engine, today announced an expanded sponsorship with Ventures Endurance, a subsidiary of Gannett’s USA TODAY NETWORK Ventures, to share revenue on athlete hotel bookings for more than 115 annual endurance and adventure races and events around the country, including RAGBRAI, which recently announced its route across Iowa, Ride the Rockies, Hot Chocolate runs, Fargo Marathon, and the Statesman Cap 10K, among many other events.

Ventures Endurance, one of the largest event companies in North America, attracts more than 500,000 participants competing in more than 115 events annually. With marathons, obstacle races, cycling, and themed virtual runs, there is an option for athletes of all fitness levels year-round.

RABRAI, Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa is more than just a bike ride. It’s an epic eight-day rolling festival of 20,000 cyclists, music, food, camaraderie and community. It is the oldest, largest, and longest multi-day bicycle touring event in the world.

“This renewed sponsorship is well-timed as more and more athletes are traveling across the country to participate in endurance events, especially the iconic events that Ventures Endurance is known for,” says Tim Hentschel, Co-founder & CEO, HotelPlanner. “This partnership enables athletes, and their friends and family, to find the best price and value for their hotel stay during competition, while driving additional revenue to event host cities.”

“We’re excited to expand our partnership with HotelPlanner to offer an exclusive discount hotel booking solution to our individual athletes, teams, and their families and friends attending any of our events across the country,” says Bryan Rickards, Senior National Sponsorship Sales Director, Gannett. “HotelPlanner’s proprietary AI-enabled booking engine, their hotel relationships, and their individual and group sales expertise make this a powerful partnership to save our athletes money, and to ensure their hotel booking experience is seamless and stress-free.”

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About HotelPlanner

HotelPlanner is a leading travel technology company and hotel booking platform that combines proprietary artificial intelligence, and a 24/7 global gig-based reservations and customer service network. HotelPlanner is one of the world’s leading providers of individual, group and corporate travel bookings. Founded in 2003, HotelPlanner has enduring partnerships with the world’s largest online travel agencies, well-known global hotel chains, individual hotels, online wedding providers, ancillary lodging providers, corporations, sporting organizations from youth to professional, universities, and government agencies. HotelPlanner’s family of brands includes its flagship site HotelPlanner.com, its meetings & events-focused sites Meetings.com; EventConnect.com; and VenueExplorer.com; Lucid Travel, which focuses on sports team travel; Eventsquid, which focuses on corporate and association event registration; and Cleverdis, a mainstay in trade show media. Learn more at https://www.hotelplanner.com.

ABOUT USA TODAY NETWORK VENTURES

USA TODAY NETWORK Ventures, part of Gannett Co, Inc., creates impactful consumer engagements and experiences through world-class events, promotions, races, and technology. We strive to exceed expectations, create unforgettable memories and drive value for our partners while leveraging our reputable institutions, including USA TODAY and more than 200 local media brands. Our portfolio includes the largest high school sports recognition program in the country, USA TODAY High School Sports Awards, and other celebrated brands including the Official Community’s Choice Awards, American Influencer Awards, Hot Chocolate 15k/5k, Amazing Teachers contest and more. Our events are managed with our proprietary ticketing and registration platform, EnMotive. The events and promotions that we build inspire pride in local communities and connect local and national businesses with highly engaged audiences. We are an industry leader and drive results from coast to coast.

Media Contacts

Philip Ballard
Chief Communications Officer
HotelPlanner
Philip.ballard@hotelplanner.com

Heather Gidaly
Senior Director, Communications
Gannett
hgidaly@gannett.com
845-596-6559