Booked through hotels.com and hotel doesn’t have my type of room. What do I do?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hotels allocate a small number of rooms to third party companies. You are subject to the third party policies when you book with them. Why add the extra layer? Call hotel to get a deal or at least price match so that way you have a direct reservation and access to more inventory and better rooms. They would rather book for same price with you and not have to pay a big commission to the third party. It is critical to book direct with airlines. There is no third party desk to walk up to in the airport when something goes wrong and you’ll be the first to be bumped and wait forever on hold if you call. Third parties are only software companies and have very little interest in the product or your experience. It is surprising to me how many people think it doesn’t matter how you book travel.

I called the hotel. They wouldn’t even price match their own advertised online rate and their online booking system was down!

Boston has an abundance of hotels. Why not just book elsewhere when you encountered this?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hotels allocate a small number of rooms to third party companies. You are subject to the third party policies when you book with them. Why add the extra layer? Call hotel to get a deal or at least price match so that way you have a direct reservation and access to more inventory and better rooms. They would rather book for same price with you and not have to pay a big commission to the third party. It is critical to book direct with airlines. There is no third party desk to walk up to in the airport when something goes wrong and you’ll be the first to be bumped and wait forever on hold if you call. Third parties are only software companies and have very little interest in the product or your experience. It is surprising to me how many people think it doesn’t matter how you book travel.

I called the hotel. They wouldn’t even price match their own advertised online rate and their online booking system was down!

Boston has an abundance of hotels. Why not just book elsewhere when you encountered this?

I’m not the OP. I’m the PP in Philly. I wanted that hotel for the heated outdoor pool. Expedia worked. I wouldn’t normally do it that way but it was the way to go this time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hotels allocate a small number of rooms to third party companies. You are subject to the third party policies when you book with them. Why add the extra layer? Call hotel to get a deal or at least price match so that way you have a direct reservation and access to more inventory and better rooms. They would rather book for same price with you and not have to pay a big commission to the third party. It is critical to book direct with airlines. There is no third party desk to walk up to in the airport when something goes wrong and you’ll be the first to be bumped and wait forever on hold if you call. Third parties are only software companies and have very little interest in the product or your experience. It is surprising to me how many people think it doesn’t matter how you book travel.

I called the hotel. They wouldn’t even price match their own advertised online rate and their online booking system was down!

Could have been a fake rate as bait. Avoid third parties.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If hotel is being truthful, they owe you nothing. Hotels.com owes you a refund. Consider this a lesson learned and always book direct with the hotel. I don’t think Hotels.com is cheaper and if you book direct, you have more recourse if something goes wrong and/or you have to change plans.

+1
Learned this lesson the hard way with airline booking.

+2 when will people learn?? Always book directly with the company providing the service.

[Anonymous]

I try to book directly through hotel, but if the savings are dramatic…I will use Booking.com. They seem better than hotels.com.

[Anonymous]

Hotels.com was much more expensive than booking directly in Italy, and did not show a single room (which the hotel had and is what I needed anyway).

[Anonymous]

For plane tickets, I always book directly through the airline.

But it’s completely false that you can’t save money using third party sites for hotels. I compare the direct hotel price with the third party price before booking.

And no, hotels will not usually price match. For example, Once on a road trip without a prior hotel reservation, I found a good rate on hotels.com, and we stopped. I asked the guy at the desk the cost for a room. He gave me a significantly higher cost than the hotels.com rate. I showed him the rate & asked for a match. He said they couldn’t match, but I could stand there in the lobby & book it on my phone @ hotels.com, so I did.

Also, you should get a message directly from the hotel after booking via third party sites.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There are times when 3rd partes have rooms when the a tual site does not. That is the only time I use them.

Additionally, when booking internationally, it can be easier to book third party.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For plane tickets, I always book directly through the airline.

But it’s completely false that you can’t save money using third party sites for hotels. I compare the direct hotel price with the third party price before booking.

And no, hotels will not usually price match. For example, Once on a road trip without a prior hotel reservation, I found a good rate on hotels.com, and we stopped. I asked the guy at the desk the cost for a room. He gave me a significantly higher cost than the hotels.com rate. I showed him the rate & asked for a match. He said they couldn’t match, but I could stand there in the lobby & book it on my phone @ hotels.com, so I did.

Also, you should get a message directly from the hotel after booking via third party sites.

Yeah, I've had good experiences with hotels.com as well. I am platinum with them so have even been able to cancel and get a refund on "non-refundable" bookings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For plane tickets, I always book directly through the airline.

But it’s completely false that you can’t save money using third party sites for hotels. I compare the direct hotel price with the third party price before booking.

And no, hotels will not usually price match. For example, Once on a road trip without a prior hotel reservation, I found a good rate on hotels.com, and we stopped. I asked the guy at the desk the cost for a room. He gave me a significantly higher cost than the hotels.com rate. I showed him the rate & asked for a match. He said they couldn’t match, but I could stand there in the lobby & book it on my phone @ hotels.com, so I did.

Also, you should get a message directly from the hotel after booking via third party sites.

You do not get any points when using a third party so it is cheaper for the hotel.

[Anonymous]

I like hotels.com and use them frequently to earn the 10th night free BUT I recognize 3rd party bookers are not getting the nice rooms.

[Anonymous]

i book hotel rooms almost exclusively through booking.com and have only had 100% great experiences. and we travel a lot. i only used hotels.com once and they made canceling the room such a pain i swore off of them.

[Anonymous]

Hotels.com is owned by Expedia, fyi.

You will always get the same or a cheaper rate for the same room type on a direct booking, if the company is doing their business correctly. If you see a rate for a hotel you like on Expedia, hotel.com or booking.com, find that company’s direct website and book it through them. That way you’re guaranteed the room type and there’s no intermediation or finger pointing when something goes wrong.

-20 year travel industry exec

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I like hotels.com and use them frequently to earn the 10th night free BUT I recognize 3rd party bookers are not getting the nice rooms.

I used them a ton, but they've changed the rewards and they are terrible now. No tenth night free...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If hotel is being truthful, they owe you nothing. Hotels.com owes you a refund. Consider this a lesson learned and always book direct with the hotel. I don’t think Hotels.com is cheaper and if you book direct, you have more recourse if something goes wrong and/or you have to change plans.

+1. Hotels.com also sometimes is more expensive than booking directly.