Amazon is reportedly getting ready to launch a travel site for online hotel bookings in the US according to travel trade site Skift.

Amazon Travel will aim to differentiate itself from its already well-established rivals like Hotels.com, Bookings.com and Trivago by serving as a marketplace for independent and BOUTIQUE HOTELS.

Set to debut in January of next year, the travel site would become the latest service out of the behemoth electronic commerce company which, in addition to books, has expanded to include fresh groceries, electronics, wine and video-streaming over the last few years.

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The initial site will feature a selection of hotels located within a few hours’ drive from major US centers such as New York, Los Angeles and Seattle.

Though the project is meant to fill what Amazon sees as a void in the hotel industry, booking sites that specialize in smaller independent hotels do exist.

Quikbook.com is a reservation site for boutique hotels at discounted prices, while Mr & Mrs Smith also specializes in hand-selected, boutique hotels around the world that have been reviewed by experts.