Some people prefer to turn to hotel reservation sites like Trivago, Expedia or Hotels.com.
However, hotel groups (such as airlines) are now seeking to regain full control of their customers’ reservations. Thus, they have implemented the policy of “ best price / guaranteed rate “.
Therefore, if you find a better rate on one of these booking sites, the hotel group commits to :
How does this best price guarantee policy work?
All hotel booking sites offering a “ best price guaranteed All hotel websites with a ” ” policy have the same rule: the lower rate must be found within 24 hours of booking.
This is how companies protect themselves from the vagaries of the market and from promotions that may occur from time to time.
However, it is quite easy to find a lower rate. But will you “waste your time” claiming the difference for a 1% difference?
Maybe not. Unless you were offered a substantial discount or an additional freebie.
You found cheaper elsewhere: for the same room, the same services. Very good! However, refund policies differ from one hotel group to another.
And it all depends on how many nights you plan to stay in the hotel.
Of course, if you’re only booking one night, Choice’s first night free policy is the best, as you’ll see below.
But what about when you stay more than one night? You will need to do the math on which hotel group will offer you the best price for your situation.
See the table below for the different policies for each site, as well as links to the pages detailing the terms and conditions.
For example, I assumed a rate of $200 per night for which you would have found a rate of $180.
If you only book one night, here is what it looks like:
Caption:
If you stay only one night there is no need to hesitate. Choice offers you the first night if you find a better price, even if it’s only $0.01! It is therefore a good way to stay in a hotel for free.
Then, Best Western can be a good choice as well since the chain offers a $100 card . Assuming that your room costs around $100, this corresponds to a “quasi-free”.
However, if you stay more than one night, you will have to make calculations based on the “adjusted rate” proposed by the chain.
Some hotels apply an adjusted rate of 25% off, compared to the best price you have found. This new rate will apply to the entire stay . Therefore, it is very interesting if you stay more than 4-5 nights in the same hotel.
Before submitting a claim, it will be very important to verify that all these conditions are met:
Customer service will check:
All these criteria must be clearly stated on both sites, otherwise your claim will be rejected.
Then, customer service will check:
N.B.: The names may vary between the hotel group’s website and the reservation website you found (e.g.: buffet breakfast vs. continental breakfast).
The customer service department will then focus more on checking the above mentioned caractéristiques of the room first.
As a general rule:
Therefore, you cannot request an adjustment of a “free cancellation” rate against a “non-refundable” rate.
On theother hand, the opposite is possible: if you have booked a “non-refundable” rate and within 24 hours you find a site offering a lower rate that has, in addition, the merit of being able to be cancelled for free … the hotel group will probably align its price.
My advice: before booking on a third party website, check the rates offered by the hotel (if it is part of a hotel group).
And be sure to compare all the caractéristiques listed above (smoking/non-smoking room, type of bedding, breakfast included or not ….).
If you are sure, then you have a chance to get a substantial discount… or even your first night free!
Savings are here:
