Online Travel Booking and Bidding Agencies - Please help--Hotwire & the Sofitel Montreal giving me the runaround

Update: Problem solved. Finally spoke to the right person at the hotel. I will never book with Hotwire again. Their agent gave me completely wrong information. Plus their system seems set up for these kinds of problems; I requested a room for 1 Adult, 1 Child, yet they book me in a room with one bed instead of two? No thanks. I should've done my homework bc I am probably not the first person this has happened to.

I will make this short as I am on hold right now trying to resolve this situation with a Hotwire supervisor. I have a reservation starting this Friday at the Sofitel in Montreal that I booked through Hotwire. I am female and traveling with my 15 year-old nephew. I called the Sofitel to check on the room type and make sure we could have 2 beds. The front desk person I spoke to (I didn't get his name, my mistake) said that Hotwire had booked me for a king room and that if I wanted to change that, I would have to have Hotwire do it or pay the regular room rate (which is now 3 times the rate I booked through Hotwire).

The Hotwire agent called the hotel and spoke to a woman who told him that the only way I could change the room type was by paying the new rate. Now the supervisor who I'm talking to at Hotwire is just repeating the "we don't guarantee room type" story.

Any suggestions or ideas about what I can do?

That is one of the dangers of booking on Hotwire or PL. You are not gauranteed a room type. It is at the hotel's dicretion to give you your requested room type. I like Hotwire, but I recognize this risk and know that if it is essential to get a specific room type, I may want to deal directly with the hotel as opposed to a wholesaler. On the other hand, most hotels do not have an issue offering a choice of 1 or 2 beds. Tonight, when I checked in with my Hotwire reservation at the Renaissance MCO airport, I was given a choice. This choice is not required by Hotwire, as long as the room given sleeps the number of guests on the reservation.

The regular "Superior" rooms at 30 sq. m. are all kings, and it's one level up to "Luxury" to get two doubles. If you are lucky, maybe they would let you pay the difference between Superior and Luxury, rather than the full price of Luxury.

It's a drag, but I would probably take along a sleeping bag just in case.

One way to get around this, for future reference, is to enter 1 adult, 2 children when doing a search. Then you are supposed to get a room that guarantees sleeping spaces for three people.

Why are you upset with Hotwire? They are very up front that you cannot guarantee a specific bedding. It has always been that way. From their website:

Can I request a specific type of bed (e.g., king, double)?

Once you complete your Hotwire booking and learn the name of the place you will be staying, you can call directly to inquire about specific requests. While we cannot guarantee that they will be able to accommodate your request, our partners will do their best to make your stay as comfortable as possible.

I'm glad you got it resolved. What happened?

Snickers, I personally have had a few issues with Hotwire, a total of three on probably less than 8-10 purchases, but sorry to say that this one is on you. I'm confused as to why you would be swearing off the entire business because of your mistake.

If you book two people on Hotwire, you're very likely going to get just one bed. If you book four people on Hotwire, you're likely to get two beds as their system actually does take occupancy into account, unlike Priceline, (a search for 4 people on Hotwire will often bring up different properties or rates than just a search for 2 people). Those people may be accomodated through pull-out couches or roll-away beds according to the Hotwire website so you're not guaranteed the exact number of real beds you wanted, just that they'll find everyone a place to sleep. Link (http://www.hotwire.com/helpcenter/hotels/searching-and-booking/rooms-beds/how-many-beds-are-in-the-hotel-room.jsp)

So again, you requested 2 people, you got a bed for 2 people. Live and learn. Not sure why all the anger. Actually, based on my experience, if you're going to get mad at Hotwire for this, I'd suggest not using them again either, because you're really going to blow a gasket when they put you in an overpriced, smelly 2 star that they say is a 3 1/2 star or reserve two rooms in your name at a hotel when you only requested one and then the hotel manager goes ahead and charges your "incidental" credit card for the second room that wasn't used.

Thanks for the replies--the tip to enter 1 adult, 2 children is a good one. The upgrade option (paying diff in price b/w 2 rooms) is the one I worked out with the hotel. It will be an extra $50/night. I never expected that 2 beds would be considered an "upgrade" but the explanation the hotel gave me (same as the one WillTravel gave me) makes sense and I can deal with that.

To clarify: I wasn't "angry" at Hotwire, just frustrated, tired, & a little panicked when I wrote my initial post. As I said, I should've done my homework before booking for 2 people. I've used Hotwire a fair amount in the past, but only when booking for 1 in situations where I had a lot of flexibility regarding my stay. It just kind of defies logic to me as to why they would put an adult/child in a room with one bed. That's their business model and they're free to have it, but it's so illogical to my mind that I'm not sure I want to do business with them in the future. I have enough other booking options that I can afford to be inflexible in my thinking and not use a service whose features don't make sense to me. But the main reason I feel like swearing them off is (and these details aren't in my post) that their CSR told me that he'd spoken to someone at the hotel who said that I would have to pay the full rate now to change rooms (a difference of almost $200, not the $50 upgrade fee I later found out about). I called the hotel directly, spoke to that same person, and she informed me of the upgrade option (also said that she tried to explain this to the Hotwire guy).

It was a confusing & frustrating situation, calling the hotel & being told to talk to Hotwire, then Hotwire saying, no, we have to talk to the hotel, then getting misinformation, all while I was stressed and paying international roaming charges on my cell. So I'm not sure I want to subject myself to the potential for that and what I view as bad customer service again.

Thanks for the clarification... maybe the assumption by both Hotwire and the hotel is that most travelers fitting the demographic of one adult and one child would be parent and their son/daughter. I really don't fault either Hotwire or the hotel in this case.

Perhaps it was just a misunderstanding between the hotel and Hotwire on the upgrade fee vs. paying full rate... I don't know obviously, but it happens and I could see how being in different countries could provide a language barrier, especially with a hotel in Montreal!

You've learned your lesson and learned the way to do it next time (if there is a next time for this scenario).

OK, call me a prude, but as a father I would feel a bit funny sharing a bed with my 15 year-old daughter.


Thanks for the clarification... maybe the assumption by both Hotwire and the hotel is that most travelers fitting the demographic of one adult and one child would be parent and their son/daughter. I really don't fault either Hotwire or the hotel in this case.

OK, call me a prude, but as a father I would feel a bit funny sharing a bed with my 15 year-old daughter.

I don't disagree with you... I would feel the same way in fact.

I think most people here would agree with this....

I think the issue is that you have to understand what you are committing to when you use a "bidding site". The rules are very clear that you are not guaranteed two beds.... if that is a REQUIREMENT, then do not use the bidding sites.

OK, call me a prude, but as a father I would feel a bit funny sharing a bed with my 15 year-old daughter.

Does everyone read that fine print? It is reasonable to assume when booking that if they are asking the number of persons, that the room will accommodate that number of people, and it may be a mix that cannot sleep in the same bed.

The fact that Priceline does not ask for the number of occupants signals people that they might get a room that is not tailored to the number of occupants.

I think most people here would agree with this....

I think the issue is that you have to understand what you are committing to when you use a "bidding site". The rules are very clear that you are not guaranteed two beds.... if that is a REQUIREMENT, then do not use the bidding sites.

If you use a blind bidding site, and if you don't read *any* of the rules, then you actually deserve any problem you have (in my opinion).

Do I use PL "name your price" for air tickets when I need to arrive in a city before noon? No, becuase the details (not even the "fine print", just the warnings I "sign") say that they can give a flight any time during the day.

Have I ever used PL for air tickets? Yes, and I not only saved $400/person, but I got a flight that was *more* convenient for me (which would have cost $800 more per person if I booked directly).

How do I feel about rooms with 2 beds when I am the only person staying? I HATE them. But if Hotwire or PL has a good enough price, I will take my chances anyway, because I am willing to hate the second bed for $100 or more per night.

IF YOU ARE WRONG, DON'T come here and write a flame.

No, people do not read the "fine print" and that is why they have problems after the fact.

Hotwire and Priceline are very clear in their rules.

If people are not willing to take the time to read the guidelines before they bid then they should not complain about the problems they end out having later on.

Does everyone read that fine print? It is reasonable to assume when booking that if they are asking the number of persons, that the room will accommodate that number of people, and it may be a mix that cannot sleep in the same bed.

The fact that Priceline does not ask for the number of occupants signals people that they might get a room that is not tailored to the number of occupants.

Well, anyone who hangs out on FlyerTalk is unusual, and should read the fine print rules.

The point is, most people don't, because they expect that other than not telling them in advance which hotel they will receive, Hotwire will act more or less like other sites. Hotwire reinforces this misconception by asking for the number of people, unlike Priceline. It is certainly a reasonable assumption for people to make that if Hotwire asks how many adults and how many children and the response is one adult and one child, that the room will accommodate one adult and one child of up to 18 of the opposite sex (50% chance that the one child will be opposite sex, right?). Otherwise, why ask the question.

Hotwire is counting on the fact that people will not read the rules. If they put on the hotel listing that it could not guarantee separate beds, many fewer people would pull the trigger an buy. It seems to me that in an opaque situation, there is a higher duty on the part of the website to prominently tell people how the site may differ from their reasonable expectations.


No, people do not read the "fine print" and that is why they have problems after the fact.

Hotwire and Priceline are very clear in their rules.

If people are not willing to take the time to read the guidelines before they bid then they should not complain about the problems they end out having later on.

Yes, I got what I deserved. Hotwire was right, I was wrong. I suck and was an idiot for not reading the rules and making assumptions. Thanks to all who have pointed that out.

Yes, I got what I deserved. Hotwire was right, I was wrong. I suck and was an idiot for not reading the rules and making assumptions....

A shame that you hadn't seen that particular light earlier on.

One other item that also needs to be mentioned: when dealing with discounts places of pretty much any type, you should expect horrible customer service. That's one of the ways that they keep their prices down, by having few CS people, and even fewer competent CS people. If you complain about service offered by Hotwire or Priceline or WalMart, we learn nothing new about those organizations but quite a bit about you.

Not necessarily. Costco is one discount place that comes to mind that hires smart, competent people.


A shame that you hadn't seen that particular light earlier on.

One other item that also needs to be mentioned: when dealing with discounts places of pretty much any type, you should expect horrible customer service. That's one of the ways that they keep their prices down, by having few CS people, and even fewer competent CS people. If you complain about service offered by Hotwire or Priceline or WalMart, we learn nothing new about those organizations but quite a bit about you.

A shame that you hadn't seen that particular light earlier on.

One other item that also needs to be mentioned: when dealing with discounts places of pretty much any type, you should expect horrible customer service. That's one of the ways that they keep their prices down, by having few CS people, and even fewer competent CS people. If you complain about service offered by Hotwire or Priceline or WalMart, we learn nothing new about those organizations but quite a bit about you.

Kick a man when he's down, way to go! Empty barrels make the most noise, after all.

I've actually had good customer service experiences with Hotwire when I've encountered problems with a booking. These include getting booked into an absolute dump without a private bathroom, hotels with missing or mis-stated amenities, hotels that were way off the mark regarding star ratings, and double the difference claims. I received "hot dollars" towards a future trip or a refund. I was only let down once by Hotwire in over a hundred bookings, but have saved a few thousand $$ which, for me, has been a good trade off.

What are "discounts places" anyway.... were you watching Desi Arnez on some old reruns of "I Love Lucy"?

I ask you all to take a deep breath and calm down. I'd appreciate if a couple of you would edit your posts. I'd be surprised if you didn't know who you were.

Even requesting a room on Hotwire for 3 persons (instead of 2) is not a guarantee of getting two beds.

I booked a room for two colleagues who wanted 2 beds - and so I did just that - booking a "room for 3" thinking that would help.

As it turns out, they checked in rather late, and the only room(s) remaining had one bed.

I suspect this could even happen with a conventional reservation if you check in very late - but at least you would have the option of walking away - while with Hotwire - you have already prepaid and would have to fight it out on the phone.

As it turns out, they accepted the room - the one good thing about Hotwire customer service in this case is that they issued a partial credit since the room provided did not accommodate 3 persons.