Release Period (Cut-off Date)
Release Period, also called the Cut-off Date, is the number of days before arrival at which a hotel takes back unsold rooms from an allotment or group block and returns them to general inventory. Rooms released this way can be sold on any channel again.
How it works
A contract states the release period, for example "21 days prior to arrival". Until that date, the partner (tour operator, bed bank, wholesaler or group organiser) holds the rooms. On the cut-off date, any rooms not confirmed with names or reservations automatically revert to the hotel.
Example
A hotel grants a tour operator an allotment of 20 rooms for 15 June with a 30-day release. By 16 May, only 12 rooms have been confirmed. The remaining 8 are released and the hotel can sell them through its booking engine and OTAs, often at a higher BAR if demand has risen.
Why it matters
The release period balances risk between hotel and partner. A long release gives the partner security but ties up inventory the hotel might sell more profitably; a short release protects the hotel's flexibility but may reduce the partner's willingness to commit volume. Revenue managers should monitor upcoming cut-off dates, as they create predictable moments when inventory reappears and pickup forecasts need adjusting.
It also affects how much a hotel can safely overbook, and how quickly a group displacement analysis should be revisited once a block's final numbers are known.
Related
- Allotment — inventory held for a partner, subject to a release period
- Hard Block and Soft Block — types of reserved inventory
- Free Sale — a contract where the partner can sell without per-booking confirmation
- Stop Sell — closing inventory entirely for a channel or date