Discount Hotels Frequently Asked Questions

What does discount hotels mean?

Discount hotels is a term used to indicate that the price for the same hotel room can be had for less than what you would have to pay directly with the hotel. Actually, "discount hotels" is a misnomer. The hotel is not discounted, the hotel room rates are discounted.

How do I know I'm getting discounted rates?

The discount percentage is calculated from the difference between our rate and the hotel's rack rate. That percentage represents the average savings for all room-nights associated with your itinerary. Hotel "rack rate" is an unfortunate industry term used to indicate the hotel's published rate for their accommodations (by room type). Paying rack-rate would be like being 'put to the question' by the Spanish Inquisition.

What if I find lower rates?

First, make sure it is for the same hotel, the same room type, the same number of people and the same dates, and that you are comparing against rates that can be verified today. Second, check for service fees, which are sometimes included within the room tax. Also check their policy in terms of changes or cancellation. Then contact us right away. Tell us the web site where you found the lower cost. If we find our total cost to you is higher, we will, at our option, either credit your account the difference, or cancel your reservation without penalty. Note: This does not apply during holiday, convention or special event periods, and your arrival date must be no less than 30-days from today.

How can I be sure I'm paying the lowest rate?

It is impossible to predict what every supplier or hotel is going to do, either intentionally or accidentally, every moment of every day for every room type in existence. So, unless you shop every travel site on the Internet it is impossible to be 100% sure. What we do is contract with hotels far in advance and negotiate the lowest cost for every room type, for each day of the year. We then sell our inventory at a price below market value. The sell price then is key to ensuring the rate you pay is less than the hotel's rack rate (see above) or through any other supplier. Thus are you paying a discount rate for your room. The savings to you can be up to 75% or more off the hotels rack rate.

What about Lowest Rate Guarantee?

it is a game we do not play. See "What if I find lower rates."

Who isn't up-to-here with the glut of advertising bombarding us with lowest rate guarantees? Garfield said it best though, "If you gotta say it over and over again, it can't be true."

The intent is clear: believe the hype but don't question the voracity of their claims. Our answer: Always question the voracity of their claim!

Anybody can get a cheap rate on a 4-star hotel room in off-season far from where they wanted to stay. The real talent is getting acceptable rates during mid and high seasons. That's our forte, not theirs!

How does your service differ?

We are a lean company able to offer the best services compared to any other reservations service company in the world, period. We keep our facts straight and our prices low because we are both lean and smart. Large companies doing the same type of business cannot compete with us in either regard. Why? Because, it is a basic axiom of organizational dynamics that proves: when you add layers of complexity to an operation, your costs increase exponentially; your ability to provide quality services drops substantially and the number of human errors increases dramatically.

The fundamental service of this business is to make hotel and travel reservations. It ain't always a piece of cake, but it ain't rocket science either. Being the "biggest" is all about ego and the money needed to feed it. It's about ego's that are too afraid to compete on level ground. No thanks, we'd rather be the best at what we do than the biggest egos in town. What would you prefer?

So, what should I do?

Spend your money with lean, smart service companies who do not use manipulation tactics to garner your trust. Lean-smart companies work harder for you. They speak for themselves. They are more loyal to their customers. They have better pricing. And, they get the job done right the first time. Mostly, they really want your business and are willing to go that extra mile to make you happy. Yes, that would be smart, and that would be us.