Paying for Hotel question

[Stranger1]

This is our first trip to Europe and was wondering if (if it even matters) it's better to pay up front in our local currency through one of the booking sites like Priceline or Expedia, or to pay at the hotel. We would be paying via credit card and wasn't sure if there was a chance of hitting any snags if we pay at the hotel. Also, anyone having any issues with being double billed if paying through booking sites and then getting billed by hotel? Just trying to come up with some possible problems to ask questions about. Thanks in advance.

[Kamloops50]

This is our first trip to Europe and was wondering if (if it even matters) it's better to pay up front in our local currency through one of the booking sites like Priceline or Expedia, or to pay at the hotel. We would be paying via credit card and wasn't sure if there was a chance of hitting any snags if we pay at the hotel. Also, anyone having any issues with being double billed if paying through booking sites and then getting billed by hotel? Just trying to come up with some possible problems to ask questions about. Thanks in advance.

 

I use those two for travel in the USA & Canada . You'll have two choices for paying

1 - Pay When you stay (Credit card at the hotel)

2 - Non Refundable

 

i use option 1 when possible.

[CruiserBruce]

Have traveled in Europe many times. Every trip has at least one hotel that wants money in advance, or only accepts cash. Never had any problem with any of these situations, as long as you are ready for it. Currently looking at a hotel in The Cinque Terra that wants cash only.

 

I avoid the pay in advance services like Expedia in Europe. Would rather just book the standard way, and pay the usual way.

[2ptu/000]

We usually book through the hotel's own booking site. We lost a lot of money when one of the on line sites went bankrupt and hadn't paid our hotel yet. It really doesn't seem to be more expensive and in some cases cheaper. Check your prices once you know what hotel you want to book. Usually you pay less if you pay in advance. This is what we do.

 

Use a Capitol One or similar credit card that doesn't charge an exchange fee. This will save you a bit of money.

[CathyCruises]

Sometimes we book using a travel site; we had two nights in Paris before flying home, have been there many times, and our favorite hotel was a ridiculous E350/night. I was able to get a great deal on Le Meridien using Priceline for $114 (dollars). Now, if it was my first trip, or my destination, etc. I would not have stayed there because it has no charm and is basically a convention hotel; but in our situation it was perfect and CHEAP! No issues with the prepayment.

 

Very frequently we just wander and have no hotel booked, just find one we like during the day while touring around--they all have taken credit/debit cards so far. I usually pre-book the first and last nights and let the rest take care of themselves.

[MeHeartCruising]

I always try to use the hotel's own online booking system. I usually compare it to the big online travel agency rates, but it rarely seems significantly lower. Sometimes a hotel that I really want does ask for up front payment. I prefer to not do that, but if I'm comfortable that they are reputable and/or I really, really want that hotel, I will pay in advance to lock in a reservation. But probably 95% of the time, I just pay by credit card at the hotel when I depart. I have never had an issue with a hotel not taking a credit card, but you could verify what they take in advance. Assuming credit cards are not an issue for you, I would take more than one and preferably more than one type -- take a Visa and a Mastercard, for example. And if there's more than one of you, each should carry a card or two. That way you'll be more likely to have one even if a purse or wallet is stolen. As long as you notify your credit card company/bank in advance about your travel, there should be no problem.

[Ashland]

We always book directly with the hotel's online site and take a print-out of our confirmation that includes the rate we have booked at, room type, dates of stay and reservation number. This has served us well in Europe and in Asia..I would rather not have a middleman involved.

[Stranger1]

Thanks everyone. Looks like I'll go ahead and book directly from the hotel's website.

[Hlitner]

Keep in mind that you should notify your credit card companies and ATM issuing bank of your trip itinerary in order to avoid any security issues. This is a very important task that many travelers neglect at their own peril.

 

We also recommend checking the hotel prices at Venere.com which is a major European booking site (similar to Orbitz or Expedia) that sometimes has some decent rates and also has nice map feature.

 

Hank

[CarolinaMamma]

I always book directly with the hotel via email because we are a family of 5 and it's hard to do that online. We need 2 rooms next to each other or a large suites In Europe, I often get lower rates when I email them than the published rates on their site, so give it a try. For example, for a recent booking in Venice I got a rate that was less than the price quoted online + free parking during our cruise.

[Putterdude]

We have always booked thru the hotel's website using Visa without any issue. However, do advise your CC company of your travel plans as they may reject the charge otherwise...which they did to me one time when I failed to advise them:o. I have never use Priceline or Hotwire outside of North America but would have no problem in paying thru them.

[LondonTowner]

I normally check the hotel's website with the prices on booking sites. Quite often there is no difference at all. However, I have booked a few hotels in Italy over the years with Venere.com as they often have good rates. With Venere you pay the hotel direct at the end of your stay.

 

I prefer to pay at the end of my stay and not upfront.

[iancal]

We usually stay in small family run hotels, agritoursims, or pensions. More often than not we book them directly.

 

Some insist on cash. When there is an option, we always ask if there is a discount for cash. More often than that they extend a 5-10 percent discount for cash.

 

We have used Priceline extensively in Europe, London actually, and have had very good success. Only had one win in Italy and it was a very good Milan hotel. We gave up on Italy bids but Priceline bidding is our first stop for UK and France (primarily London and Paris bookings).

[CathyCruises]

We usually stay in small family run hotels, agritoursims, or pensions. More often than not we book them directly.

 

Some insist on cash. When there is an option, we always ask if there is a discount for cash. More often than that they extend a 5-10 percent discount for cash.

 

We have used Priceline extensively in Europe, London actually, and have had very good success. Only had one win in Italy and it was a very good Milan hotel. We gave up on Italy bids but Priceline bidding is our first stop for UK and France (primarily London and Paris bookings).

 

We found that we have much better luck on Priceline and Hotwire when we check better bidding dot com. That's how I knew I was getting Le Meridien in Paris; it allows you to look at the listed amenities and figure it out from there. There are limited listings for Europe but it's still helpful. Now, in certain places we are very picky about where we stay. In Rome, we only want to stay in the historic center, and sometimes the listings 'exaggerate' their location a bit, so you do have to be careful. (I never knew Trastevere was so huge!) We do pay in cash also, as above, when we need to.

[iancal]

We use that plus biddingfortraveldotcom. Once in a while hotwire comes through with a good one.

 

For London and Paris, we get four stars (Marriotts, Meridiens) at or under $100 and some excellent deals in the $40-55. range for Gatwick and Heathrow airport area hotels respectively.

 

Our favourite is Marriott Kensington....central, short tube ride from LHR, lots of restaurants in the area, and a Sainsbury's opposite where you can buy fresh fruit, pastries and a Starbucks for breakfast (beats the 7 or 8 GBP muffin and coffee that the hotel offers)

[Crusin6]

Venere for research purposes Contact the hotel directly to see if they have other accomodations not listed which they often do. Like apts or connecting rooms. Credit card and Never prepay. That has been our plan. Last trip and the trip before we followed the above advice and wound up booking some hotels thru veneer and booking a gorgeous apt researched thru veneer but negotiated a lower price thru the owner. No security deposit. No prepayment. Credit card use only and always. And email confirmations and reconfirmations as i leave nothing to chance. I even confirmed with romecabs that their driver would make the local call for us to the apt as i knew from my emails with the apt owner that at our arrival time he would mot be meeting us but would sent his very competent assistant who only had limited knowledge of english. All went perfectly and the owner met use the following morning and did not ask for our credit card until check out. This man apparantly bought out the entire floor of an 800 year old building and renovated it into 4 various sized apts near the piazza del popolo. Wonderful! And reasonable and convenient. However as the good planner I am. I also knew of many other hotels with vacancies just in case. Lol. Yep mid July and still reasonably priced decent hotels had last minute rooms. Btw I don't think in all of our travels we have ever had to go to plan b in Europe. On a hurricaine affected and extended cruise yes but never in Europe.