WeddingBook® Partners with hotels.com® to Help Brides and Couples Find the Best Guest Accommodations at the Best Price

Discounted Group Rates Can Now be Requested Directly Through WeddingBook.com for 25,000 U.S. Hotels

August 10, 2009 - New York, NY - WeddingBook.com, one of the largest directories of U.S. wedding venues and vendors, today announced a partnership with hotels.com, a leading provider of lodging worldwide. Through this partnership, couples planning a wedding can access hotels.com’s wide selection of accommodations - including chain and independent hotels, vacation rentals, B&Bs, and more - and request discounted group rates directly through WeddingBook.com.

"Locating and choosing hotels for your wedding guests can be time consuming if you have to visit each hotel and discuss group rate options individually," said John Dillon, CEO and founder of WeddingBook.com. "By partnering with hotels.com, WeddingBook can now help couples find the best lodging options and rates for their out of town wedding guests, in addition to all other types of local wedding vendors. We know that wedding travel is expensive, and through this partnership we are helping those planning their big day ensure their guests can book the property they want at an affordable rate."

Couples can easily search properties close to the wedding venue with a map showing the distance of the hotel in relation to the wedding site, if identified. From here, details of each of the hotels can be reviewed, and group rates can be requested for multiple hotels directly through WeddingBook.com. Once the couple determines the hotels they are interested in contacting, they simply fill out one form with the details of their big day and request proposals for these hotels. From here, a representative from hotels.com is on hand to discuss the various choices and the rates for each one, and ultimately work with the couple to book the hotel that is best suited for them.

"We’re excited to be partnering with WeddingBook.com to provide their visitors with access to our vast property selection, and to help them in the process of finding hotel rooms for their guests," said Sunil Bhatt, vice president of business development for hotels.com. "We know what a difference location and accommodations can make in the overall experience of an event, and we believe that WeddingBook.com provides a great service to anyone planning their big day by not only giving them options from which to choose, but also by helping them to work directly with these hotels as well."

WeddingBook.com today lists over 100,000 wedding vendors across the U.S., from reception sites to photographers to entertainers and more, and is adding to this directory every day. Unlike other sites, vendors do not have to pay to be included so brides and couples get the broadest choice available. Each vendor is provided a free listing and a Web page within WeddingBook that the business owner may claim and build out to include specific details of their service(s), upload photos and outline pricing information. Each page also integrates important word-of-mouth features, including reviews from recent newlyweds and written endorsements from other local vendors.

About WeddingBook.com®

The WeddingBook® Web site (www.weddingbook.com) is building a national directory of all U.S. wedding venues and vendors to help engaged couples find and hire the right services to ensure their wedding day is an event to remember. Unlike most wedding sites currently available, WeddingBook allows any local wedding vendor to participate in its growing directory, providing consumers with free, unbiased access to tens of thousands of local wedding businesses. WeddingBook is a registered trademark of WeddingBook, Inc.

About hotels.com®

hotels.com® is a leading provider of lodging worldwide, offering an extensive selection of more than 85,000 properties ranging from traditional hotels and vacation rentals to bed and breakfasts and all-inclusive resorts. hotels.com serves as an advocate for guests before, during and after their property stay. To help travelers choose the right property for each trip, the company provides a variety of tools and features, including property descriptions, rate calendars, maps, virtual tours, and more than one million guest reviews. For more information, please visit hotels.com or call 1-800-2-HOTELS. hotels.com is an operating company of Expedia, Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE).

Hotels.com is a registered trademark of Hotels.com, LP, a subsidiary of Hotels.com. Other logos or products and company names mentioned herein may be the property of their respective owners. © 2009 Hotels.com, LP. All rights reserved. CST # 2083949-50

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Media Contact:

Sarah Mann
press@weddingbook.com
206-818-2429

WeddingBook.com Offers Smart Tips for Budget-Savvy Brides & Grooms

YES! It’s still possible get the most of the “special day” without breaking the bank

May 12, 2009 – New York, NY – To plan an affordable wedding in today’s economy, couples are making lemonade out of recession lemons and getting downright creative to save money without losing the “special” in this day.

WeddingBook.com, a free directory of more than 75,000 wedding vendors, sees couples doing everything from honing bartering skills to secure that cool DJ at a lower price to ‘hiring’ talented friends or family members to take the pictures or bake the cake.

When it comes to hiring wedding professionals, it’s always best to know all of the options. A dream cake might cost $1,000 from a high-end cake designer downtown, while a smaller bakery in the suburbs would be willing to do it for $500. But those planning a wedding may never know, as the smaller baker doesn’t have the budget to advertise in glossy magazines, or on some of the most popular wedding Web sites.

WeddingBook.com is a free directory that lists every local wedding business, offering couples more options from which to choose – which can mean money left in the bank.

WeddingBook.com offers these five creative ways to conserve your cash (and still have a great wedding):

• 1. Shop around. By researching all the options, contacting multiple vendors and reviewing quotes from top choices, those planning a wedding can save. The more options, the better leverage for successful negotiation. (Hint: Visit WeddingBook.com to see all options in your market!) Engaged couples could even practice over drinks, conspiring over how to get that caterer to throw in free desserts (Good cop, bad cop, anyone?).
• 2. Stick to your $$ guns. If you have less to spend it doesn’t do any good to blow your budget. Those planning a wedding should figure out the maximum price they can pay and work toward that. WeddingBook.com is a great tool as it allows visitors to set their budget parameters when searching so the only options that surface are for vendors they can afford. .
• 3. Think spatial creativity. Expand the hunt for a venue beyond traditional hotels and banquet halls. Maybe a local garden, theatre or boathouse would cost less and be more personal and memorable.
• 4. Reduce, reuse or recycle flowers. Consider a large flower, or one with eye-popping color. Less will be needed (reducing) and it will have more impact. Reuse ceremony flowers at the reception and have bridesmaids drop their bouquets in a vase at the head table. Ask the florist if there’s another wedding that weekend similar to the one your planning – maybe an arrangement can be made to the cost of those swanky centerpieces by sharing them.
• 5. What are you doing on Thursday night? Tying the knot on a non-traditional day of the week (basically any day other than Saturday) will save bundles. Having a rehearsal breakfast or lunch (instead of dinner) will not only save money on food and drinks, but will also give everyone involved in the wedding the rest of the day to relax (or more likely finish up those last minute tasks). When contacting vendors, ask for the price difference for hosting on alternate days of the week to help you gauge how much could be saved.
• 6. Yummmm – Family Style Dinner. Dread the thought of a line at the buffet but worried about the cost of a sit-down meal? Talk to caterers about serving dinner ‘family style’ when negotiating costs. It can be significantly less expensive and everyone gets to stay seated. Oh, and will there be kids? Serve ‘em something different and less expensive, like cheese pizza (they’ll like it better than salmon anyway).

About WeddingBook.com

The WeddingBook™ Web site (www.weddingbook.com) is building a national directory of all U.S. wedding venues and vendors to help engaged couples find and hire the right services to ensure their wedding day is an event to remember. Unlike most wedding sites currently available, WeddingBook allows any local wedding vendor to participate in its growing directory, providing consumers with free, unbiased access to tens of thousands of local wedding businesses and the tools to request proposals directly from those vendors best matched to their tastes and budget. WeddingBook™ is a trademark of WeddingBook, Inc.

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Media Contact:

Sarah Mann
press@weddingbook.com
206-818-2429

WeddingBook® Debuts Local Search for Weddings, Making it Easier to Plan the Perfect Big Day

WeddingBook.com Is Building a Free Online Directory of All Local Wedding Vendors, Offering Engaged Couples More Choice

New York, February 18, 2009 — Shopping for wedding locations and services just got easier with today’s debut of WeddingBook's® public beta Web site (www.WeddingBook.com) to engaged couples. WeddingBook brings important transparency to the wedding industry by providing a free directory of all local wedding vendors – not just those that pay for inclusion or preferred placement. WeddingBook’s unrivaled filtering tool helps couples quickly navigate its growing database to narrow down and choose the professionals that best match their tastes and budget for their big day.

As anyone who has planned a wedding knows, getting started can be complicated and confusing as there is currently no central directory for all local wedding professionals. Most existing wedding sites require local vendors to pay for listings, which significantly limits participation and ultimately inhibits options and choice for the to-be-betrothed.

WeddingBook is building a U.S. directory of all local wedding services and vendors from reception locations to photographers to entertainers and more. Each local vendor is provided a free listing and a Web page within WeddingBook that the business owner may claim and build out to include specific details of their service(s), upload photos and outline pricing information. Each page also integrates important word-of-mouth features, including reviews from recent newlyweds and written endorsements from other local vendors. WeddingBook currently has information on more than 65,000 wedding professionals, already exceeding many existing wedding sites that may only display one out of every 15 vendors at most in a given location.

"In today’s market where budget sensitivities are heightened, engaged couples want to know they’re exploring all possible options to find the right wedding venue and vendors at the right price. The challenge is only a small fraction of services are made available through word-of-mouth referrals or included in online directory listings, which makes finding the right vendors feel a little like the odds of playing the lottery," said John Dillon, founder and CEO of WeddingBook Inc. "WeddingBook is trying to increase visibility in the local wedding market by providing an unbiased directory of all potential local vendors with real pricing information, key details of the services offered, along with reviews and endorsements that make it easier to plan the perfect wedding without blowing the budget."

WeddingBook's unique filtering tool makes it easy to adjust specific criteria and narrow down locations and local vendors matched to a couple’s interests. For example, photographer filtering criteria can be adjusted to specify the preferred type of shooting format and style (digital, 35MM, medium format, photojournalism or traditional), budget parameters, online proof availability, and even if they work with an assistant. Once the search is narrowed, couples can review vendors’ profiles along with any reviews and endorsements, and then directly request proposals from the local businesses best suited to their needs. All proposal requests are submitted through WeddingBook without contact details, providing important control over personal information. Once proposals are received and compared, the to-be-betrothed may initiate contact at their convenience.

WeddingBook helps local vendors manage marketing costs by providing free marketing exposure combined with a new type of performance-based advertising that gives vendors complete control over if and when they pay. Listings and profile pages in WeddingBook’s unbiased directory are always free and vendors only pay a "response fee" if they decide to pursue the request made directly by a prospective client already interested in their services. If a vendor elects not to respond, they can send a message to the requestor that they are “already booked” or simply “decline” to close the contact loop. Because all WeddingBook requests for proposals are initiated directly by those planning a wedding, participating wedding vendors avoid pursuing leads who may have no interest in their services. This saves vendors time and money and is likely to yield higher booking rates than alternative marketing channels.

"I feel that WeddingBook is the first website to recognize wedding vendors are small business owners that can’t take the risk of paying thousands of dollars to be listed on a website that may not result in any new business," said Cheryl Arme, owner of Chocolate Sinsations, a wedding cake bakery based in Phoenix, AZ. "WeddingBook sends me interested people who can afford my pricing so I spend less time selling and more time working."

WeddingBook Inc. is privately funded, backed by successful investors and veterans of the online travel and media sectors, including Stephen Kaufer, founder and CEO of TripAdvisor and Dan Saul, founder of Smarter Travel Media, along with Dillon and others. The WeddingBook.com directory first introduced vendor information online in the fall of 2007. Today's announcement recognizes the 65,000 local vendors now available through WeddingBook.com and the greater choice available to those planning a wedding.

The WeddingBook® Web site (www.weddingbook.com) is building a national directory of all U.S. wedding venues and vendors to help engaged couples find and hire the right services to ensure their wedding day is an event to remember. Unlike most wedding sites currently available, WeddingBook allows any local wedding vendor to participate in its growing directory, providing consumers with free, unbiased access to tens of thousands of local wedding businesses and the tools to request proposals directly from those vendors best matched to their tastes and budget. WeddingBook® is a registered trademark of WeddingBook, Inc.

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Media Contact:

Sarah Mann
press@weddingbook.com
206-818-2429