Hotel booking sites

I always compare rates on the hotel’s own website with booking sites to get the best deal. Some chains also have loyalty schemes which are free to join and offer discounts on room rates. My rule of thimb is always to book a room I’d be happy with, but enquire about an upgrade on arrival- some hotels will give a free upgrade, others for just a small amount.

Rule of thumb.

I wonder that too Teetime.
You don't always pay less either. I was enticed by cashback this summer and found that the pay at the hotel price was quite a bit cheaper than the booking site....I just didn't bother to make the calculations.

I tend to use the booking sites to find a range of hotels then check their individual web sites. Often cheaper. Recently as much as £20 a night. Now and again there is a much better deal via a booking site, so best to check both if you’ve time.

We booked a room in the Lakes via a site and got a really nice room. We booked directly the following time and the room was awful backed onto the fire escape where the staff hung around to smoke. We asked to be moved but it wasn't any better.

Used Booking.com twice but much prefer airbnb, usually staying in a room of the owners own home. You can be assured that they are not going to have a dirty room or grotty bathroom and I have stayed in many swanky, interesting, quirky and stylish homes (and boats) all over the UK and Europe for a fraction of hotel costs. After all, you don't LIVE in the room 24/7. Most have high end toiletries and great breakfasts included.

I have always used booking.com but we have just returned from Dawlish and I noticed that the hotel's own prices were considerably cheaper.Our room was OK but not sea view like most. I didn't say anything but the owner said "come again and we will make sure you get a sea view"DH always says it is better to deal directly with the hotel.I am inclined to agree now.

I have used Booking sites, air bnb, direvt booking and tbh could not say one route was better than another. Some you win , some you lose! I try to to as much research as poss. & tbh depends what you need the place for! A room for a night as a stopover, a base for a tourist weekend or a bit of a relaxing few days to unwind!

A relative of mine owned, until quite recently, a B &B in a Welsh seaside town and she had to pay the booking sites a percentage of any guest who booked via them. She always encouraged guests to book direct with her, especially if they had special requirements, such as mobility issues or dietary needs. I've followed this advice in any hotel or B & B in the UK and have always been offered better rates than any booking site quotes.

We run a B&B in SW Scotland and the booking sites are a great way to get otherwise missed business. At a cost however, as much as 17% sometimes, which is a lot but still extra business. Sometimes these sites offer discounts on rooms but usually with chain type hotels. We much prefer it if folks look for us on booking sites then ring us directly. Never any difference in rates but we can sometimes offer discounts for multi rooms etc etc. If folks do use a booking site we can offer an upgrade to one of our better rooms (if available, we only have 4 rooms) at the extra cost which negates the % I would say if you are not happy with what you have booked and sometimes paid for in advance, have a quiet word with the owner/manager and see if something can be done. Don't leave harsh trip advisor reviews without talking to them first..... we are very lucky never had one.... but its amazing what a quiet word will achieve.... !!

I use Expedia, because you can collect Nectar points, awful reason I know! Although, because I use them a lot, I've had slight discounts through them. If they don't produce a good range though, I will switch to Booking.com who sometimes seem to have more choice. I have also booked with hotels direct but I don't find a lot of difference between their prices and the booking sites. I also like to take the option that booking sites offer of cancellation without penalty, at a slightly higher price, because one can never be sure if that might be required.

Teetime, I think a lot of booking sites will give you a few pictures of room the size and size of bed etc, plus a shot of the bathroom so you have some idea of what you are going to get when booking. Some hotels do the same and offer a box with "special requests" so you can state "not near lift etc" I also go on feedback and ratings. I suppose as with anything there is always a premium for a seaview. We were very happy with our room in Spain on our recent holiday, whilst we didn't get a sea view, nevertheless had a nice raised ground floor room, fronting gardens with fountains and lovely Bougainvillea cascading over the top of the balcony.

Interesting post BGranniel, I wouldn't post a negative comment on TripAdvisor, certainly not for a small establishment. I haven't had too many bad experiences fortunately.

This interests me a lot as I've newly returned from such a trip. Could someone please explain to me how an 'agency' can charge less for a hotel room than going direct to the establishment? I assume there are fees involved? I actually asked the receptionist this on Saturday and he replied that he wondered the selfsame thing!

Kim19
Many moons ago when I worked in the travel industry we used to 'block book' rooms in hotels year after year, thereby getting a deal. Then offered them at cheaper rates 'Only on our Site' sort of thing. To be honest I'd be surprised if this happened in any hotel that was not large, part of a chain or abroad, where the agent has the ability to be 95% of filling the accommodation. There used to be a charge to us (as agents) if we didn't fill our allocation. I've no idea of the fees nowadays to big agents but as I said to us as B&B owners the fee for a room let can be as high as 17%
Thanks TerriBull,
I believe it can be a real problem for B&B owners the nasty TripAdvisor reviews.

We usually deal direct with the hotels as you can ask about favourite rooms and so on. In the Lakes we have always had a better deal by contacting the hotel rather than booking.com.

But why would anyone post a bad review on Trip Advisor unless they had good cause? Some establishments treat the client as if they are doing them a good turn. It's a business transaction and if the client is dissatisfied complaints should be taken seriously. Sometimes proprietors' bad attitudes don't make it easy for clients to complain.

Quite agree Jaxie!

Why run a B&B if you don't like people, or worse still other people in your home?

If I wake up grumpy …… it can happen! OH makes me stay in the kitchen until I've had two cups of coffee and he does all the running about serving breakfast which he's just cooked!

I use bookings.com in France, Italy ,Spain a lot (4/5 times a year for short and long breaks ) and have always found that the venue is better than my expectation and there are often bargains to be had . ( ps I am not on commission from bookings.com just my experience lol ?) The photos of the room you choose with them are accurate.

I use a combination of Booking.com, Airbnb and direct booking. Using those booking sites means you only read reviews of people who have actually stayed there, but can then e-mail or phone the place directly to enquire their rates. If going to foreign parts, using a booking site may be more secure and some of the small hotels/guesthouses may not have their own websites.

Trip Advisor can be useful for reviews, but you need to look at the profile of reviewer. A number of "glowing" reviews are from posters with just one review and also one helpful vote, which is suspicious. After a bad experience with a tour company in another country, I started analysing their Trip Advisor reviews. I noticed that there were others with poor experiences, but immediately following a bad review, there would be 3 or 4 good ones, each from posters with 1 review and 1 helpful vote - very suspicious! Of course the good reviews push up the average ratings.

Obviously everyone has to post a review for the first time, but reviews from someone who has travelled a good bit, may be more reliable. Reading a negative review need not necessarily put you off - I've read one from an American complaining about lack of room service and small room in a 2 star hotel in a popular European destination. It depends what you're expecting.

I used a booking site to book a hotel abroad and it said that if I cancelled within 3 hours, there would be no fee. However, when I couldn't get flights, I cancelled within an hour. Three months later, I had to go to the credit card company to get my money returned. The booking site wanted nothing to do with giving a refund and the credit card company charged me for currency exchange even though booking site was priced in Sterling. I was singularly unimpressed. I usually use Expedia with no problem but didn't on this occasion.

Absolutely, Teetime, and often cheaper via the hotel directly!

I use Booking.com as I can often cancel the room at short notice. I have an elderly parent. I have not noticed that the rooms were inferior. They also have a price promise. I think it is not in the hotels best interest to give you poor rooms as the companies like Booking.com have a certain amount of clout.

It was Booking.com I used Dragonfly46 to book my foreign hotel room. I have used them one other time and the site said that they had a car park which I could use in London for the emergency hotel I booked. When we got there, it turned out that the car park was a public one within 10 minutes walk. As I had 2 disabled people with me, this was rather inconvenient. When I complained to the booking site, I was told that it was up to the hotel to put things right. Not very helpful at all.

Only done this once but nevertheless would repeat. Looked at 3 booking sites to compare then phoned the hotel direct. Hotel cheaper!