Hotel booking sites

[cjpj]

Anyone use agora? I just booked a hotel with them, had a great rate, but now I see mixed reviews.

[sailco]

We booked an airport hotel in Johannesburg a few months ago. First time using Agora. Paid in full in our home currency at time of booking. The room was exactly as described, possibly even an upgrade. There was no fuss at the desk, no extra charges - they didn't even take a credit card swipe - and they allowed us a very late checkout free of charge.

 

We have had difficulties with another well known company a few times including being overcharged at the hotel and once we arrived to find our booking had been cancelled! These days we're more than happy to pay up front, so long as it's in our own currency with no foreign exchange fees attached.

[SeaDog-46]

Assume you mean Agoda.

 

Have used them in Singapore & have another booking for Yokohama in March.

They seem to have better rates than others in Asia.

With all of them you need to read the fine print before commiting.

[sailco]

Oh yes, of course. Agoda ☺️

[jkgourmet]

I ALWAYS prefer booking directly with the hotel unless there is a significant price difference by booking with a third party, or when the hotel requires a non-refundable payment in advance.  I've used booking.com many times in the past.  I used it for our upcoming trip to Japan for our 3 night stay in Tokyo.  It was cheaper than booking directly with the hotel.   Our overnight in Kyoto was booked directly with the hotel.

 

Then I noticed that the rate on Agoda was a bit less, and asked booking.com to price match (which is one of their policies).  They did, and did NOT require payment in advance like Agoda.

 

In regard to online reviews for 3rd party booking companies - can you find even ONE that has good reviews?  I'll save you some time:  NO. 

 

 

[dani negreanu]

If u r a senior 😀, the rates booking directly with the hotel are better than any 3rd party.

[jkgourmet]

10 hours ago, dani negreanu said:

If u r a senior 😀, the rates booking directly with the hotel are better than any 3rd party.

 

Not always - but usually if you're booking a hotel in the USA.  However, I've yet to see an overseas hotel that gives a senior citizen discount (save the occasional large USA branded hotels which occasionally offer AARP and/or AAA discounts). 

[IWantToLiveOverTheSea]

I'm finding in Bali that some hotel websites give early booking discounts.  Keep in mind that when you're booking a hotel in a foreign country, the USD rate (or euro, or pounds or whatever) may change a little from the time you book to the time you stay.  Some people complain they were overcharged by the hotel, and I wonder if that is the reason.   Also, I think some third party sites like Agoda use slightly different exchange rates, which could make one site look a LITTLE cheaper than another.  I try to go by the price in the hotel's currency if I really want to make a good comparison.  Also, a few places I've found in Australia and Bali charge a bit extra to pay with a credit card, and I don't think this info is clear on all sites.  

 

Too much comparing can drive you crazy, though.  Occasionally I'll find one site that only has certain room sizes/types listed.  I want to compare apples to oranges for hotel room types but it isn't possible all the time.  Then again, will I really know if what they gave me is what I booked? I'd say probably not.

 

I think I get too way hung up on finding the perfect hotel for my desired price range. 

[iancal]

We use many,including agoda,booking, laterooms, etc.  There are countless numbers of them.

 

Then we always try to deal directly with the hotel.  In many cases we get a better rate, a better room, better booking conditions, or something thrown in.

 

Very occasionally we have found the booking site to have a lower price.  Happened this winter in one or two places.  We also use the hotel sites...Marriott, Accor, Melia, etc.   They sometimes offer excellent two or three night prepaid non refundable deals.

Edited March 28, 2019 by iancal

[roothy123]

Check cancellation dates on Agoda.  They seem to be a week or ten days earlier than the CX dates on other sites.  And of course, if you should find yourself needing to cancel, keep in mind that because of the time difference between, say, Bali and East Coast USA, you may need to cancel a day earlier than you think you do.

 

My strategy is similar to iancal's above - check booking sites first, then the hotel's website.  I usually stay away from non-refundable bookings, but those are definitely cheaper in most cases.

[John Bull]

6 hours ago, IWantToLiveOverTheSea said:

 Also, I think some third party sites like Agoda use slightly different exchange rates, which could make one site look a LITTLE cheaper than another.  I try to go by the price in the hotel's currency if I really want to make a good comparison.   

 

Yes, we've found the same "optimistic" exchange rates on booking.com, an organisation that we use a lot and which we find very good and honest in every other way.

We switch their currency option to that of the hotel - the quote and the payment always in the same currency.

 

But a word of caution with any foreign currency transaction that you pay by card - on-board cruise accounts, hotels, restaurants, bars, shops, etc ad infinitum.

A few years back outlets started to offer to charge in the card-holder's currency.

Makes life simple?

No - they set their own "pessimistic" exchange rates, much poorer rates than the rates your card issuer gives. 

And now some outlets just set their card readers to the card's currency, and say nothing - it's up to you, the cardholder, to spot it and say "hey, no - set your machine to charge me what's on the check, in the currency that's on the check." 

 

JB 

   

[iancal]

Absolutely.  We find this trend to regretfully becoming increasingly common in Ft. Lauderdale and Miami.  Now, we always ask no matter where we happen to be.  It is usually preceeded by the query 'would you like to be billed in your home currency'.

 

[hallasm]

I’m using those hotel booking sites a lot to locate the hotels - but very often I get ‘better deals’ at the hotel web - primarily for hotels where I’m member of their loyalty programs.

[iancal]

We have taken advantage of Marriott club offers several times at KL Marriott Renaissance.  Both times about 30 points off rhe best rate that we could find elsewhere.  Prepay/no cancel.   Same with Accor.  Novotel Ploenchit sometimes has a good offer for two nights prepaid.  Last year we booked a Boxing Day special with Accor for an Ibis stay in Singapore in January.  Prepaid.   If the saving is 25 percent or more and our plans are solid we will take a good prepay offer.  Same with the Royale Chulan in Penang.

 

Sometimes you simply have to call, not the reservations centre but the hotel itself, and ask what their best rate is.  Once they give it to you ask that breakfast be included.  If you are staying weekend nights often the higher end hotels that cater to business travellers will have very attractive rates for rooms that would otherwise be empty.

 

Edited March 29, 2019 by iancal

[Ashland]

Booking a hotel in Asia (or Europe)..I book directly with the hotel..I just feel better not having a 3rd party involved less of a chance for something to go wrong.