Finding the Best Deal …

In December, while traveling north for the holidays, I wrote about using TripAdvisor to help find hotels along our route. TripAdvisor is only one of what has become a very crowded field of travel websites and apps that search for hotel room rates and offer bookings. Other services in the category include Expedia, hotels.com, Travelocity, Priceline, Trivago, Booking.com, bookit.com
, Kayak, and Hipmunk (new sites appear all them time, and I wouldn't be surprised if I missed a few). All of the above named website also offer mobile apps for iOS and Andriod devices.

With the exception of Trivago and hotels.com, all of the listed websites also quote rates and make bookings for flights, hotel and air packages, car rentals, and cruises. Expedia, hotels.com, and Priceline handle their own bookings, while the other websites are basically search engines that troll all of the possible booking sites to find  the best deals.

When you enter search information you are given a list of hotel choices with daily rates — usually for the lowest category of rooms. Once you select a specific hotel you are then shown a wider listing that includes more room categories. Also listed will be both included and extra charges for the hotel. Most hotels in resort areas charge a daily resort and parking fee, which is then added to their daily rate.

As I wrote in my earlier column, I use the hotel search engine sites to give me an idea of availability, but only on one occasion, several years ago, did I find a better deal than what was available directly from the hotel. For one thing, these sites do not offer organizational discounts. As an experiment I searched Honolulu Hotels for one night in February on Expedia, hotels.com, and Priceline. On all three sites I chose the Hilton Hawaiian Village on Waikiki Beach, and all three quoted a $269 nightly rate for an ocean view room with a king-sized bed. However on the Hilton website the same room was available for $256 at the AARP rate.

An added disadvantage to booking through one of the travel websites is that you must go through the website for any changes and cancellations. I was recently checking into a hotel when the person in front of me needed to make a change to his reservation. I heard the desk clerk say that the guest needed to contact Expedia because he made the reservation through them.

Priceline was one of the first companies to enter the online booking market – I am sure everyone remembers the Name Your Own Price television ads featuring William Shatner. With the Name Your Own Price feature, which is still available, you chose a date, location, hotel star rating, and enter what you are willing to pay. For example, since I am currently in Hawaii, I selected a date in February, the ocean front Waikiki Beach area, and a four star hotel. Priceline listed the nightly median price for such a hotel as $345, and I could then enter a bid. However, before placing the bid you have to enter your payment information, and if your bid is accepted, your credit card is charged and your reservation made with all purchases final. Name Your Own Price, and some of the other sites, also offer what Priceline calls Express Deal. Instead of a listing of hotels, you see only the area and star rating with a daily rate. If you make a selection you must enter your payment information before finding out the name of the hotel, and again, all purchases are final.

The biggest advantage to using these websites and apps is the reviews. I like to read about other people's experiences, especially the negative ones. Too many negatives, or recent negatives such as dirty rooms or bedbugs, immediately crosses the hotel off my list.

One final note about travel bookings – if you are a COSTCO member I recommend checking them out when you need to rent a car. At CostcotTravel.com you enter the dates and location and the returns rates for all car categories from four companies, highlighting the best deal for each category. The rates are consistently lower than those available with another discounts, including AARP and both of our retiree government and union related memberships.
Until next week, visit onmouseclick.blogspot.com for the online version of OnMouseClick.