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Travel · head to head

IDeaS vs ThinkReservations

IDeaS logo

IDeaS

Travel

Enterprise revenue management for hotels and casinos, owned by SAS

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
ThinkReservations logo

ThinkReservations

Travel

Property management and booking system for North American inns, B&Bs and small hotels

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: IDeaS nothing about pricing is published, and industry estimates put independent group deployments in the range of one and a half to three and a half thousand US dollars per month, so a buyer cannot even scope a budget without a sales cycle.; ThinkReservations no pricing is published anywhere, so you cannot compare it against Cloudbeds or Little Hotelier without first sitting through a sales call and extracting a quote.
  • They diverge on capability: IDeaS covers Segment-level forecasting, ThinkReservations covers Reservation calendar.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which IDeaS and ThinkReservations actually diverge.

Attributes where IDeaS and ThinkReservations differ
AttributeIDeaSThinkReservations

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), platforms (Web), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Travel).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in IDeaS

  • Segment-level forecasting
  • Group displacement analysis
  • Length of stay controls
  • Room type optimisation
  • Total revenue view
  • Two-way system integration
  • Portfolio management
  • Automated pricing decisions

Only in ThinkReservations

  • Reservation calendar
  • Direct booking engine
  • Channel management
  • Integrated payments
  • Yield rules
  • Reporting

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

IDeaS

  • A casino resort deciding whether a convention group displaces more transient revenue than it producesnot ThinkReservations
  • A hotel group standardising forecasting method across dozens of propertiesnot ThinkReservations
  • A city hotel with complex corporate, wholesale and transient segmentation that simple tools cannot separatenot ThinkReservations
  • A resort optimising length-of-stay controls around peak arrival patterns rather than pricing flatnot ThinkReservations

ThinkReservations

  • A fourteen room inn moving off a spreadsheet and a phone diary that needs breakfast counts and minimum stay rules handled nativelynot IDeaS
  • A B&B selling gift certificates and packages that wants them redeemable in the same system that takes the bookingnot IDeaS
  • An owner of three small New England properties wanting one login and consolidated occupancy reportingnot IDeaS
  • A campground or cabin operator needing nightly and multi-night rules plus OTA distribution without buying a separate channel managernot IDeaS

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

IDeaS

  • Nothing about pricing is published, and industry estimates put independent group deployments in the range of one and a half to three and a half thousand US dollars per month, so a buyer cannot even scope a budget without a sales cycle.
  • Contracts are typically multi-year, which locks a property into the platform through a period when its own strategy or ownership may change.
  • Implementation is long and depends on clean historical segmented data; properties whose PMS has inconsistent segment coding spend months on data hygiene before the forecast is usable.
  • It expects a revenue manager to interpret and override it, so a property without that skill will either follow bad recommendations or stop looking at them.
  • The interface and workflow reflect enterprise heritage rather than modern design, and casual users find it dense compared with the simpler tools aimed at independents.

ThinkReservations

  • No pricing is published anywhere, so you cannot compare it against Cloudbeds or Little Hotelier without first sitting through a sales call and extracting a quote.
  • The product is built for North American operations, so European tax handling, guest registration requirements and local OTA mix are not supported and it is effectively unsellable outside the region.
  • There is no revenue management or dynamic pricing, so rates rely on manual seasonal and day of week rules that go stale unless someone actively maintains them.
  • Payment processing is bundled, which is convenient but means the effective card rate is negotiated inside a software deal rather than shopped separately, and operators rarely check it against a standalone merchant account.
  • There is no native point of sale, spa or restaurant module, so an inn with a dining room runs a second system and reconciles revenue by hand.

Pricing, plan by plan

IDeaS

On request
  • IDeaS G3 RMS$undefined/year
    • Quoted per property and per portfolio
    • No published rate card at any tier
    • Contracts commonly multi-year

ThinkReservations

On request
  • ThinkReservations$undefined/month
    • Property management system
    • Direct booking engine
    • Channel management to major OTAs

Which should you pick?

Choose IDeaS if

  • You need segment-level forecasting.
  • You also want group displacement analysis.
IDeaS review

Choose ThinkReservations if

  • You need reservation calendar.
  • You also want direct booking engine.
ThinkReservations review

Questions people ask

Is IDeaS or ThinkReservations better?
Neither clearly leads. IDeaS starts at On request and ThinkReservations at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, IDeaS or ThinkReservations?
IDeaS starts at On request and ThinkReservations at On request.
Does IDeaS or ThinkReservations run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
What is IDeaS best used for?
IDeaS is most often used for a casino resort deciding whether a convention group displaces more transient revenue than it produces, a hotel group standardising forecasting method across dozens of properties, a city hotel with complex corporate, wholesale and transient segmentation that simple tools cannot separate, a resort optimising length-of-stay controls around peak arrival patterns rather than pricing flat. Of those, a casino resort deciding whether a convention group displaces more transient revenue than it produces and a hotel group standardising forecasting method across dozens of properties are not what ThinkReservations is typically brought in for.
What can IDeaS do that ThinkReservations cannot?
IDeaS covers Segment-level forecasting, Group displacement analysis, Length of stay controls, Room type optimisation. ThinkReservations covers Reservation calendar, Direct booking engine, Channel management, Integrated payments.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

IDeaS: What does IDeaS cost?

It is not published. Independent group deployments are commonly discussed in the range of one and a half to three and a half thousand US dollars per property per month, but every deal is quoted.

ThinkReservations: How much does ThinkReservations cost?

It is not published. Pricing is quoted per property, generally scaled by room count, after a sales conversation.

IDeaS: Who owns IDeaS?

SAS Institute. The forecasting engine draws directly on the parent company analytics platform, which is the substantive reason for the product depth.

ThinkReservations: Is the channel manager an extra subscription?

No. OTA connectivity is part of the platform rather than a separately priced module, which is the main saving against a PMS plus channel manager pairing.

IDeaS: Is it suitable for a single independent hotel?

Rarely. Without a revenue manager and clean segmented history, a small property gets more from RoomPriceGenie or PriceLabs at a fraction of the cost and effort.

ThinkReservations: Does it work outside the United States?

In practice no. Tax, payments and support are built around North America.

IDeaS: Does it handle group business?

Yes, group displacement analysis is one of its defining capabilities and a main reason casino and convention hotels choose it.

ThinkReservations: Can it handle more than one property?

Yes, small portfolios are supported, but it is designed for a handful of properties rather than dozens.

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