Most travel plans start with deciding on transportation.  Will I go by plane, train or automobile? Once that is decided it’s on to booking accommodations. Decisions are based on loyalty to certain hotel brands, previous experiences – both good and bad, and most of all price. Everyone likes a good deal! Often we feel the deal should include a deeply discounted hotel stay, loaded with amenities such as free breakfast, parking and wifi. Reaching our final choice can take us on a rocky road of endless comparisons and closing our eyes to click submit – while wishing for the best.

Making a final choice is a very important part of the trip and it can be challenging, scary and a bit like choosing in the dark. Your comfort and budget should be taken into account, but other aspects must influence the decision too.  One aspect of booking your hotel is choosing a format to use for your search.  Most often we use online websites. Other options include using hotel reservation apps and there is still the old-school choice of picking up the phone and calling.   We spend valuable time to compare and reserve our room; when we arrive, we expect everything we want to be there waiting.

Here at Travel Bags With Annita we wanted to know, “is there a difference between booking directly with the hotel brand vs. the online reservation sites also known as Third Party Intermediaries or third party websites (e.g., Expedia, Hotels.com)?”

We are asked this question and along with everyone else, we see more and more ads promoting various routes to the same hotel room – each stating deeply discounted rooms and amenities to enjoy during your stay.  We hear from our listeners and readers that it can become time consuming, complicated and sometimes misleading.  We think the search really does not need to be so difficult or end in disappointment.

To help us navigate the multiple options, we called in our hotel expert for a little help.  We gathered a long list of insider tips from Kerry Ranson, President and COO of Expotel Hospitality Services and Chairman of IHG (International Hotel Group) Owners Association.  With his advice and your planning, a great hotel stay is no problem and easily within reach!

Kerry’s tips

When booking your hotel room your first point of contact should be with the hotel, either online or via telephone.  Talking to the brand hotel (i.e., Holiday Inn, Hilton, etc.) you have the lowest rate guaranteed. Booking directly with the hotel allows you to make reservations for restaurants and appointments for amenities such as spa treatments.  “All of the things you take for granted become a lot easier when you are booking with someone with their feet on the ground.” states Kerry.  Staff members are trained to know their brand, amenities and are aware of specials, packages and deals.

• A great recommendation from Kerry is to join the hotel’s frequent-stay program and collect the rewards points. This is always beneficial for perks like early check-in and guarantees you get points when you stay.
• Kerry says, “When you book through the branded website you will be given the guarantee that the date and rate you book will capture any points that go with the frequent-stay program the brand has to offer.”  On a third party site those rates do not quality for points.
• You are guaranteed that the booking itself is there. When booking with a third party, you have limited time to cancel or you  may not be able to cancel at all once confirmed and your request submitted.  And you pay the full amount for your stay upfront. According to Kerry, “Booking through the branded website the room is guaranteed, you can cancel unless you are booking a really, really deeply discounted rate. The majority of bookings are cancelable and you are guaranteed to get what you booked.”  Double check so there are no surprises and you are sure when you can cancel and if there are any penalties.  
• Make sure your booking is refundable. This is more likely when booking through the branded website. Kerry recommends that you always ask when reserving your room, “is the rate refundable?”
• There are some third party website where consumers can be susepctiable to being mislead. More and more scams are being reported by people using sites promising more than they deliver.
• Kerry cautions that we look carefully for the hotel’s website which is generally – www –  the hotel name  – com.  Any other variation like www – hotel name – com /frontdesk are websites which are usually a third party website, misleading you to think they are the brand website. This should be a red flag. Kerry recommends that we look at the URL as a way to make sure you are getting the branded hotel site.
• Misleading pricing information and advertising such as  “you get up to X % off”  looks appealing on the search engines but it may not be as good as it seems. According to Kerry, in many cases they do not have the room information to make the claims they are making to you.
• There may be additional fees – a non-refundable booking fee for example. It is not transparent and not seen until you book or later when you receive your credit card statement you’ll see an additional fee charged separately from the actual hotel booking. When you see this you’ll know you have booked through a website other than the hotel brand.

We also asked him about what today’s consumer is looking for.
He stated “consumer are looking for the local neighborhood experience.”  Kerry suggested when booking we consider:

• Is the area around the hotel safe and secure.
• Is it convenient to get public transportation to go and check out the city
• Is the hotel nearby tourists areas and activities you are interested in
• Consider packages which includes your room and a visit to a historic area or a package for sports where you catch a couple of ball games. The hotel brand sites will have these packages. This gives you a good deal and you have activities already scheduled.
• Kerry mentioned, “If you are not seeing certain things on the website, e.g., I don’t see free breakfast,  local restaurants or tourist sites, chances are they will not have it when you arrive or it may be very far away.”

• Confirm the amenities you want and need for your stay.  Things such as a fitness center, free parking, wifi, free breakfast, to  name a few. Kerry stated, “The amenities piece will be listed. Whether there is a restaurant, if there is a safe in the room, a blowdryer…… You want to make sure you get what you want.”
• When traveling with kids Kerry recommends asking several questions – ask what is the room type;  you need the details of the room type. If you need a room with two beds – are they double or two queen size?  Ask yourself, can I put two kids in a double bed? Is free breakfast available, is there a pool, are there game rooms, if you can save money on free breakfast you absolutely want to take advantage of that.
• And, lastly he suggests that we always compare different hotels in the area. Do others in the area have something different from the hotel I have chosen. Once you decide, contact the hotel directly to make your reservation. Go online to the hotel’s website by typing in the hotel’s name in your URL. And, there is always the telephone – where you can call, speak with someone and have your questions answered and your reservation confirmed.

 

About the our expert:

Kerry V. Ranson has more than 22 years of experience in the hospitality industry.  Born and raised in New Orleans, he earned a degree in communication from the University of New Orleans. He joined Expotel Hospitality in 2010 growing their portfolio from 10 to 16 hotels in six states.  He and his wife Elizabeth live in New Orleans with their triplet daughters. For more information about IHG – or to contact Kerry – kranson@expotelhospitality.com

 

 

 

 

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