By the Caribbean Journal staff

Home sharing giant Airbnb has completed its acquisition of last-minute hotel booking company HotelTonight, the two sides announced.

Airbnb, whose vast global portfolio focuses on short-term home rentals, said it was “working to reimagine travel by building an end-to-end travel platform that combines where you stay, what you do, and how you get there, all in one place.”

HotelTonight, which several years ago launched in Caribbean markets like Nassau and San Juan, will continue to operate as it does today.

Sam Shank, the company’s founder and CEO, will lead Airbnb’s “boutique hotel category,” the company said.

“When we founded HotelTonight, we sought to reimagine the hotel booking experience to be more simple, fast and fun, and to better connect travelers with the world’s best boutique and independent hotels,” Shank said. “We are delighted to take this vision to new heights as part of Airbnb.”

In recent years, HotelTonight had expanded from same-day, last-minute bookings to longer-term discounted bookings.

“We want Airbnb to be the place where travelers plan all of their trips, whether they are booking one year or one day in advance,” said Airbnb President of Homes Greg Greeley. “The HotelTonight team has a tremendous passion for helping guests and rich industry expertise. We are more than thrilled to have them on board.”