Bed-Swap - Blockchain-based Hotel Capacity Management
Sector: Tertiary sector · Industry: Hospitality and catering · Organisation: TUI Group · Maturity level: Production
TUI Group developed a blockchain-based platform called Bed-Swap that manages real-time inventories of hotel beds and enables cross-border transfers without intermediaries. The solution uses smart contracts on a private blockchain to automatically distribute unused hotel capacity between different markets and optimize occupancy rates. The system is already live and used internally in Germany and the UK, with all contracts processed through the private blockchain.
Documentation status
- Project status: Production
- Evidence: Evidence high
- Editorial review: Ufuk Avci, 15 April 2026
Description
TUI Group, Europe's largest travel company, is working with the German technology firm COCUS AG (Paderborn) on a blockchain solution for internal bed management. The system digitises the transfer of hotel room quotas between TUI subsidiaries on an immutable blockchain — all parties see the same verified occupancy status.
TUI owns over 400 hotels with more than 230,000 rooms worldwide. Room quotas are internally transferred between various TUI subsidiaries (TUI Germany, TUI UK, TUI Netherlands, etc.) — depending on booking status, surplus capacities of one subsidiary are handed over to another. This process was previously manual, paper-based, and prone to double bookings and billing disputes. The COCUS blockchain solution creates a shared, immutable register: every room transfer is immediately visible to all authorised TUI units. Smart contracts can automatically check conditions (is the room available, do the terms match?) and trigger transfers. The BedSwap concept was also examined as a model for sustainable tourism distribution in the EU research project Smart Tourism. Bernard Marr documented TUI as one of the most advanced travel companies in blockchain adoption.
Perspectives
B2B — organisations perspective
Hotel chains and tour operators can handle internal room allocations transparently and tamper-proof with blockchain-based quota management — double bookings excluded, billing automated.
B2C — consumers perspective
End customers indirectly benefit from better room availability and potentially optimised prices through more efficient capacity utilisation. Improved occupancy can lead to more stable prices and better availability during peak times.
Employees perspective
Employees in revenue management and hotel administration benefit from the automation of time-consuming manual booking processes through smart contracts. The system relieves staff of repetitive tasks and enables them to focus on strategic decisions and customer care.
Benefits
General
- Automated capacity distribution reduces vacancy and maximises hotel room occupancy without manual effort.
- Eliminating intermediaries lowers transaction costs and accelerates capacity transfers between different markets.
- Transparent and secure management of all contracts via blockchain increases trust between business partners.
B2B — organisations
- Hotel groups can optimise their overall occupancy while simultaneously reducing operational costs through automation.
Employees
- Employees are relieved from time-consuming manual booking processes and can focus on more value-adding activities.
Challenges
General
- Integrating existing legacy systems into the new blockchain infrastructure requires significant technical adjustments and investments.
- Acceptance and understanding of the new technology among employees and partners can be a hurdle for successful implementation.
B2B — organisations
- Hotel chains must fundamentally revise their existing booking systems and processes to enable blockchain integration.
Employees
- Employees need to familiarise themselves with new technology-driven workflows and may require additional training.
Technology foundation
The system is based on a private blockchain with smart contracts that automatically manage hotel capacities between different markets. This technology is particularly suitable as it enables secure and transparent management of contracts between different business units without the need for central intermediaries.
Implementation examples
TUI Group Bed-Swap Implementation
TUI Group wanted to solve the problem of unused hotel capacity and optimise occupancy across different geographic markets. The company was looking for a solution to automate manual processes and reduce transaction costs for capacity transfers.
TUI Group implemented a blockchain-based platform for the automatic management and redistribution of hotel room capacities between different markets.
TUI Group developed a private blockchain solution called Bed-Swap in collaboration with COCUS AG, which uses Smart Contracts to automatically manage hotel room inventories. The system is already fully operational in Germany and the UK and processes all capacity transfer contracts via the private blockchain. The solution enables real-time inventory management and cross-border transfers without traditional intermediaries, significantly increasing the efficiency of capacity utilisation.
The system addresses the challenge of inefficient capacity distribution between various TUI markets and eliminates the need for manual intervention in room transfers. Blockchain technology creates transparency and trust in the automatic processing of capacity transfer contracts.
Tags
Hotel management, Capacity optimisation, Smart contract, Private blockchain, Automation