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Hotwire for families of 5... Please share your experience


cnrhall

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What is your experience with this?

 

We have 3 small children. We would be able to save a great deal of money by booking our hotels through Hotwire. To do so, we would have to book as 2 adults and 2 children.

 

I am a very honest person, but here's why I would consider doing this... I currently have a reservation at a Sheraton. I made the reservation over the phone for all 5 of us to stay in 1 room with 2 double beds. The woman who took the reservation said that we couldn't put a roll-away in the room because of the fire code, but that it was fine for all 5 of us to share the room. The kids can share a bed. I'm also not above making a bed for them on the floor. They sleep in sleeping bags on the floor at home all the time.

 

The rate she gave me for the reservation was $165 per night. She sent a confirmation by email, which has the reservation as confirmed for 2 adults and 2 children. I was very clear that we were traveling with 3 children, so I'm sure that 4 is the official capacity for the room and that the fact that our children are all under 9 makes it okay.

 

The same room on Hotwire goes for $85 a night. Again, we could only book for 4. Obviously, I can't be guaranteed that I would get the Sheraton again. We might end up with another hotel that is stricter about the 4 per room guideline.

 

Have any of you done this? What is the reaction when you show up with an extra child?

 

Thanks.

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I guess it really depends on you. We have traveled with our 3 children before & when we know it is an issue of putting 5 in a room, we book for 4 & DH will go with 1 & check in. We get 2 room keys & make 2 trips into the hotel. One of us has 1 DD & the other one has the other 2 DD's. We did this on our last car trip to Miami.

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I wasn't really planning on sneaking kids in...We're arriving at 10:30 at night after a long day and I'm pretty sure the hotel would notice even if I was willing to do it.

 

I'm hoping to hear from people who have used Hotwire this way to see if their hotel objected. Our youngest is 3. I would find it hard to believe that the hotel would have a problem with it other than the fact that they would make more money if I booked them in the traditional manner rather than through Hotwire.

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They already said it's a matter of not being able to give you a cot, not the # of folks in the room....and you don't need a cot...there's no problem! Just take the kids in---most hotels don't charge for kids, anyway! No problem! (It wouldn't hurt to call them (don't tell them you have a reservation!!!) and check on their prices directly with the hotel...you may be surprised at the price!)

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If I'm booking on Hotwire for 4 people, I believe that I am guaranteed at least 2 beds. Regardless, I'm not worried about the bed situation. The kids can camp out on the floor. It's more an issue of the hotel refusing to put all 5 of us in a room that was booked on Hotwire for 4. I was hoping that someone on the board has some experience with this. Thanks.

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We have only one child but use Hotwire all the time. The hotel has never once asked how many people are using the room. Since we reserve in DH's name he always goes to the desk upon arrival to register and get the keys. The room is sold to Hotwire - not to you. The desk staff does not seem to care how the room is used. The closest I can come to an analogy is being given a room with a King bed that is supposed to be limited to 2 people. No one cared that DD was there. If you are marking your reservation as 2/2 you should get 2 beds in a room for 4 people. As you said you may (most likely will) get a different hotel than the one you already spoke to. 5 may even be okay there.

 

All that being said if you are going to be stressed about this it may be worth spending the extra money to stay where you already spoke to someone about the arrangements in advance. No need to add stress to your life - vacations should be relaxing.

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It's not about sneaking the 'extra' child in; nobody cares. You check in and you go to your room. I have never in my life had a desk clerk indicate in any way that they were counting the number of people with me as I passed through their lobby. :)

 

If your kids are fine sharing a bed, definitely do the hotwire reservation for four to ensure you have two beds, and you'll be set. Hotels are not like cruise ships, whose cabin capacity depends on lifeboat capacity. They have to comply with fire and safety codes, though, which no doubt explains why they won't allow a cot in the room.

 

I love Hotwire, and Priceline can be fantastic as well. I was able to book the Marriott Biscayne Bay Hotel and Marina for $75 per night. Interestingly, the one drawback with Priceline is that you can only tell it how many ROOMS you want, not how many guests there will be, so whenever we use it, we have to go hoping there will be two beds to accommodate us and our daughter. So far we've never had a problem. :)

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Using Hotwire-- can you ask to be in a room with two beds?

 

thats a chance you dont want to wind up with only one bed for the 5 of you-- can that happen?

It CAN happen..I've been told by hotel reps that bed arrangements can be requested but certainly not guaranteed. However the chances for it to happen is very slim in most cases.

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I'm with you - family of five, three kids ages 2, 4, and 6. We hate having to book hotels and cruises, it is always so difficult. Why is it so difficult? Obviously we aren't the only people in the world with three kids. Can't more places make some accomodations for larger family units? And I love it when they tell me that my husband can sleep with one of the kids in one room, and me in the other room with the other two - like that is our idea of a family vacation! Not to mention the idiots who say the kids can have their own hotel room - sort of like a slumber party- NOT! Good luck with the booking. We always phone around a dozen places and then end up paying top dollar for a suit or something similar. I'd love to use those sites- that would save us a bundle of money.

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Using Hotwire-- can you ask to be in a room with two beds?

 

thats a chance you dont want to wind up with only one bed for the 5 of you-- can that happen?

 

This happened to us this weekend. We booked a room through hotwire and we were only allowed to book for 4 people. After booking we called the hotel, they confirmed our reservation and we let them know that there was 2 adults and 3 children ages, 8, 6, & 4. They said that was ok. We also requested 2 beds and was told that they could not guarantee that. A few days before our weekend trip we called again to ask for 2 beds and was told the same thing. When we arrived we only had one bed and had to rent cots for $10 per day, per cot. Just our experience, yours might be different.

 

Tina

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Wow. It shocks me that making a reservation for 4 people on Hotwire does not guarantee 2 beds! I knew that Priceline would not guarantee more than 1 bed, but they also won't take a reservation for more than 2 people.

 

Here's what Hotwire's FAQ says:

 

Can I ensure that my room will sleep 4 (I need 2 beds)?

 

All rooms booked on Hotwire will accommodate the appropriate number of guests in each room, based on the total number of guests you provided and the number of rooms you requested. If you require a specific number of beds, please contact the hotel directly to make your request. While we cannot guarantee that your request will be accommodated, our hotel partners will do their best to make your stay as comfortable as possible.

 

The statements in that policy are contradictory. How can a room booked for 4 "accommodate the appropriate number of guests in each room, based on the total number of guests you provided" if they won't guarantee 2 beds for 4 people. I would think that the definition of "accommodate" for a HOTEL would include a place for each person to SLEEP. Call me crazy.

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We've used Hotwire only 3 times now. Never a problem with getting beds (just make sure you specify at check in that you need 2 beds). But - we do what someone else said. I check in and we go in separately. I've yet to find a hotel that won't accomodate us with 3 young kids when we tell them the kids are small and will share the bed. Ususally it's one parent + 2 kids in one bed, or one kid ends up on the floor.

 

The only time this might be a problem is if you're staying at a hotel that gives breakfast tickets for a complimentary buffet. We stayed at a hotel near Disneyworld many years ago (when we only had two kids) that handed out tix for the buffet. It was a great spread, and there were two other hotels in the same parking lot that didn't give complimentary breakfast, so I understand why they did it.

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