What Photos a Travel Agency or DMC Asks For (and in Which Order)

The hotel thinks “our gallery.” The agency thinks something else: can I sell this hotel today — in a brochure, a WhatsApp, or a dossier — without asking for more assets?

If the answer is no — messy ZIP, missing room types, standard and superior look the same — the partner picks another hotel in the same destination. Not out of spite: because of the clock.

What they actually ask for (not what the hotel wants to send)

Agencies, DMCs, and tour operators do not contemplate. They work. The pack has to make the product clear in under a minute of scanning:

1. Hero: the image that stops the scroll (character façade, pool, views, the “why this hotel”).
2. Rooms by category: standard, superior, suite — each one recognizable.
3. Bathroom and comfort: the end guest looks; so does the salesperson.
4. Public areas: lobby, corridors that make sense, living spaces.
5. F&B and leisure if they are part of the sale (breakfast, terrace, spa, beach).
6. Setting / location when it is a selling point (sea, old town, mountains).
7. Logo and, if you have one, a short dossier or fact sheet.

The order they want (and why)

Sending “everything together” forces the agency to act as editor. Commercial order removes that friction:

1. 1–2 heroes (the promise).
2. Rooms from lower to higher (or from the best-seller to the highest margin).
3. Bathroom of the main category.
4. Public areas and experience.
5. F&B / MICE / leisure according to positioning.
6. Exterior and setting.
7. Brand: logo, a simple plan or map if it helps.

That order works for Drive, a permanent link, or a downloadable pack. Channel does not matter: the sequence tells the story.

DMC / wholesaler vs retailer: same criteria, different volume

• DMC and tour operator: they want coverage and quality files for catalog, their own site, and sales to other agencies.
• Retailer: often forwards the essentials (hero + 8–12 photos + price/dates if there is a promo).
• MICE: meeting rooms, layouts, coffee break, event terrace — if it is missing, you are out of the briefing.

You do not need three different hotels. One well-named official pack covers 80%. Extras are added by partner type, not by improvising a new ZIP every time.

What to leave out (it only slows the send)

• Six almost identical angles of the same room.
• Phone photos compressed through WhatsApp.
• Last season mixed with the new renovation.
• Names like IMG_4832.jpg.
• Huge watermarks or collages.

Minimum pack to answer today

• Is there one clear hero?
• Does each room category read in 2 seconds?
• Is the bathroom of your best-selling category there?
• Are public areas and the extra that differentiates you there?
• Is the logo a usable PNG/JPG (not only inside a 40-page PDF)?
• Do filenames make sense to an agency?
• Can you deliver this without digging through someone’s phone?