Unlocking The Power of Hotwire

Hotwire is becoming more and more a go-to tool for even novice vacation planners. While it can provide fantastic savings, it may also deter from your trip if not used correctly. For those unaware, Hotwire is a third-party hotel booking website which typically offers lower rates than booking directly through the hotel or other common third-party sites such as Expedia or Hotels.com. They are able to do this by allowing you to book a hotel based on a set of criteria (rough location, amenities, star rating, customer review aggregate) without knowing the exact property ahead of time. The hotel name is only revealed once your non-refundable payment has been made. While I don’t fully understand the economics of this method, I have assumed it works because hotels use the service to sell-off otherwise unfilled rooms at a discounted rate which doesn’t contradict the ‘lowest advertised rate’ found on their website. 

Here are six tips to help you decide if Hotwire is right for you, and get the most out of it: 

1) Not For Brand-Loyal Travelers

If you are loyal to a specific hotel brand or chain (i.e. you wouldn’t stay anywhere other than a Homewood Suites by Hilton when traveling in North America), Hotwire isn’t for you. Besides the fact that you have very limited control over which brand you end up with, you are also likely missing out on deals associated with loyally programs run by your favorite brand.

2) Are The Savings Worth The Risk?

Find a few hotels on a regular third-party booking site like Expedia. Pick ones that you like based on area, reviews and star rating. Now compare the prices of those hotels to what Hotwire is offering within the same criteria. If you are saving under $20 per night you must decide if the risk of booking the ‘unknown’ is really worth it?  

3) Area, Area, Area!

A major concern some travelers have with Hotwire is the inability to know exactly where the hotel will be located. The website will divide cities into ‘zones’ which can be as small as a few square kilometers, but may be much larger. Carefully review their zone map and when you find the zone you want to be in, imagine your hotel being on the far edge of that zone. Is that something that would severely disappoint you? If so, Hotwire may not be your best option as they cannot offer the location precision you are looking for. 

Intercontinental Wien (Vienna) - easily my best Hotwire find.

4) Consider The Bed Situation

When booking a hotel direct or even via Expedia/Hotels.com you are usually offered a choice of bed configuration. Two doubles, two queens, one king etc. When booking through Hotwire they will only guarantee there will be enough bed space for the people you’ve specified. If you are booking a room for two people you will have no control over which configuration you will be given. Thus two people expecting their own beds may be forced to share one. This is typically a moot point for a traveling couple.

5) Insider Information

Because Hotwire assigns you a hotel based on a series of criteria, chances are someone has previously looked for the same thing and made the booking. There are websites where fellow travelers post their search criteria and subsequent hotel bookings. This can be very helpful with narrowing down the list of potential hotels you may receive. BetterBidding.com is a well-known website which provides this information. While there may be many hotels in a certain area with a certain star rating, if you pay close attention to the exact amenities they are listing (pool, conference center, gym etc.) it may rule some of them out. Explore sites like these and you may be able to narrow down your choice to 2 or 3 possible outcomes. Please keep in mind however that Hotwire can change the selection of hotels they offer at any time and there is no way to identify the options with 100% precision.

6) Contact The Hotel

After booking you can always contact the hotel directly to discuss any special requests including the aforementioned bed issue, or to just verify your details . Because you booked via third party and likely got a price below their posted rate, they may be unable or unwilling to guarantee your requests or may want to charge you an extra fee outside of your payment to Hotwire. There is no harm in trying though as the worst they could say is no.

Have any Hotwire questions, or know some other tips I didn’t list? Drop a comment below!

Mike @ Palms & Pints

@palmsandpints

How to Plan an Effective ‘Guys Road Trip’

I have done a lot of trip-planning in my day for all sorts of adventures, but none of them more frequently than buddies road trips. There is just something about hitting the open road with anywhere from a couple to a dozen of your good friends that can almost guarantee a great time! 
  
My exquisite planning has seen us through successful automobile journeys to great cities like Pittsburgh, Columbus, Nashville, Montreal and Philadelphia. While I’m not saying that any of these trips were without their road bumps (pun intended), they all stayed on track thanks to careful research and focused execution. 
  
The challenge with being the group’s “planner” is that you are faced with the responsibility and pressure of planning something that meets or exceeds your friends’ expectations. The plus to this is that you have full control over all of the details like dates, budget & itinerary. While this role isn’t for everyone, it can be quite rewarding if you go into it prepared. Here are some of my best tips: 
  
Note – these tips are based around a 2 to 4 night, single-destination trip where travel is done by car/van. 
  

Good old open interstate

1)      Set Trip and Payment Dates
  
Everyone will say they are “interested” in a trip without a set time-frame for both the trip itself and payment. Plan ahead and pick a date that works for you, then give a reasonable deadline for your party to provide the cash. Don’t get caught waiting for stragglers and be firm with your deadline. Book hotel room(s) and car rental (if needed) for only the people who have committed with cold hard cash. If you’re a nice guy you can assist any late-comers with booking their own accommodations themselves (or in another small group). 
  
2)      Over-charge, don’t Under-charge 
  
Ensure you collect enough money from everyone to cover the full hotel, car rental (if necessary) and gas costs. When doing your math, err on the side of caution and inflate the price slightly. Keep in mind there are things like road tolls, hotel parking, in-room phone use or other small charges that may arise during the trip. By collecting a little extra at the start, you don’t have to nickel and dime your friends at every turn.   
  
3)      Know Your Group and Plan Accordingly
  
Is the bulk of your travel party big spenders who like to live large and have cash to burn? If so, by all means go all-out. But if you party is like mine and wants to cram the most fun into the tightest of budget, keep that in mind while planning. You can force them to spend a little out of their comfort zone to ensure you secure quality accommodations (see #4 below), but don’t force them to break the bank just because you want to. Secondly, if you are travelling with married guys they will likely have different tastes and expectations than those of the 'single and looking' demographic. The focus on day-time sight-seeing vs. nightlife should be weighted based on the group. 
  
4)      Get a Hotel that Works 
  
The Four Seasons is not required, but find a hotel that will suit your needs. Use TripAdvisor and find something that is a fair price but still decently reviewed. Four grown men in a tiny room doesn’t work (I’ve tried it). Try keeping it to three per room maximum. It is a known fact that hotels away from the downtown core are cheaper than those in it, however do some research and look at all of the factors. Is a $20 cab ride or time consuming public transit to the heart of the city worth saving a few bucks on hotel costs? Note: This is a guy’s trip (see: boozing), the vehicle that brought you into the city won’t be (and with some exceptions, shouldn’t be) moved until you are heading home. 
  
5)      Enjoy The Journey as much as the Destination 
  
My typical road trips are anywhere from 2 to 4 nights long. A rule of thumb I like to go by is no more than 4 hours of driving per night spent away. Any longer and the time on the road just simply won’t be worth it. Since these trips are short, it’s best to make the journey as much a part of the fun as the destination. For us this begins with ‘Duty Free’ shopping when crossing the border. Nothing gets our group more psyched for the trip than a rock bottom price for 24 cans of Coors Light or a 40oz bottle of Crown Royal. In addition to this it’s fun to keep an eye out for interesting road-side restaurants and of course have some crowd-pleasing music on hand. 
  
6)      Set Rules and Expectations 
  
Not to be everyone’s ‘Dad’, but as the planner of the trip you and your credit card are responsible for any negligence on your group’s part.  Ensure they know and respect the 'No Smoking' rule in the hotel room and rental car. If you have a group that might get a little rowdy, let them know that it is a quality hotel, not a house party and you don’t want to be kicked out or charged for damages. If you’ve chosen your group wisely they will respect your planning and happily oblige. If there is a 9am wake-up call to hit the road, make it clear that you don’t want to be waiting around for certain people because they chose to party a little too hard on the last night. 
  
7)      Have a Food Plan 
  
Nothing kills the vibe of a vacation more than everyone sitting around in a hotel room for an hour trying to figure out where to eat. Have a list of some interesting restaurants at the ready. It’s a guy’s trip so leave fine (or even semi-fine) dining out of it. Focus on famous local cuisine like cheesesteak in Philly, poutine in Montreal or Pizza in NYC. Research good street food and late-night eats as road-trips are usually short and busy so you’ll often look to grab something on the go. 
  
8)      Set Meeting Places 
  
If you are a Canadian travelling in the US or vice-versa chances are you will not be able to readily call or text your buddies if you split-up. Have a set time and place to meet up for dinner or night plans. Don’t feel like you have to always “keep the group together”, remember this isn’t just your trip, and everyone wants to get something a little different out of it.   
 
Have any of your own tips or questions about road trip planning? I would love to hear from you in the comments! 
  
Mike @ Palms & Pints 
@palmsandpints 
  

Getting the most out of TripAdvisor

As mentioned in several of my prior blog posts, my go-to website when booking hotels is TripAdvisor. (Once again they are not paying me to say this, but I wouldn't turn down the cash if they were!). TripAdvisor is an extremely simple website to use, and millions of real reviews have been posted from users and for hotels all over the world. With that in mind, I have come up with a few tips that will help you get even more out of this fantastic travel resource.

1. You can't please everyone

Even the top rated hotels will have nay-sayers. Have a closer look at the small handful of people who gave a bold one-out-of-five rating to a strongly reviewed hotel, chances are these reviews will have a singular focus. For example, they may say that the hotel was overpriced, or that their reservation was lost. These are valid grievances don't get me wrong, but alone are they enough to discredit the entire stay? Some people will dish out a poor rating in anger over a single issue, and forgo mentioning the many ways in which the hotel succeeded.

2. Prioritize the most recent/relevant reviews

Hotels can change management, they can degrade (or improve) over time. The more recent the review, the more likely it is to be reflective of your upcoming stay. Are you planning on going to a particular Punta Cana resort in January? Try to focus on reviews during that time of year, as factors such as crowdedness, beach quality and even food selection can be very dependant on time of year.

3. Check out the photos

You know how the photo galleries on hotel websites always look fantastic? Don't be one of the many who claim "the website photos were misleading". TripAdvisor allows reviewers to post their own photos, which all accumulate in the "Photos" section for each particular hotel. These can be sorted based on category and each photo has a link to the review it came from. Nothing gives you a better idea of what to expect that an actual traveller photo.

4. Identify your demographic

TripAdvisor keeps track of what type of traveller submitted each review. This can be useful when tracking which demographic is most often staying at the hotel. A hotel with a majority of "couples" reviews will most likely have different amenities and a different vibe than one with a majority of "family" reviews. Also, you can select a specific travel demographic and view only reviews by that type of traveler.

5. Read the management responses

Hotel managers have the opportunity to respond to reviews. These response can sometimes be key in evaluating the credibility of the initial review. While some responses may simply be a generic "We are sorry you had a bad experience, we hope you give us another shot.", sometimes you will get detailed insight about what management did to try and solve the issues that were mentioned. Managers will also respond to positive reviews and give their thanks for the kind words. While these responses are no easier to validate than those of the customer, it's always beneficial to see both sides of the coin.

6. Give back to the community

TripAdvisor is a community, and it grows stronger with each review. Remember all those reviews you read before booking your dream vacation? Spend some time and submit your own experiences for your fellow traveler!


Click here to see my collection of TripAdvisor reviews! Have any questions/comments regarding TripAdvisor? Post in the comments below!

Mike @ Palms & Pints
@palsmandpints