OTB (On the Books)

Definition

OTB is the total of confirmed reservations for a future period, as of right now. “OTB for next May is 1,800 room nights” means you currently hold 1,800 confirmed reservations across the May calendar.

What it tells you

OTB is the foundation under every forward-looking number — pace, pickup, forecast, fill curve all derive from it. The OTB curve over time (how OTB grows as you approach arrival) is the booking curve.

How to track it

PMS surfaces current OTB. The harder part is preserving OTB as it was on past dates — most PMS overwrite the state daily, losing the historical trajectory. Dedicated snapshot systems (or BI tools that snapshot) preserve it.

Where it fits

Every short-term revenue decision starts with OTB. The question “is this period filling on schedule?” is “what does the OTB curve look like vs. same point last year?”