TravelinSperry

So after booking, I received this:

"Thank you for booking with us! You will receive two emails. The first confirms that we have received your reservation and that we are processing any payments and reserving any components which may be on a request basis. When this process is complete, we will send you a second email with invoice and a final confirmation."

So it looks like their rates are on request... we shall see if they are able to secure the rates. Once they do, I will call the hotel to verify the room is booked.

Note: Charges were booked as follows: "Payable through HOTELBEDS USA, INC, acting as agent for the service operating company, details of which can be provided upon request." Not sure if Club1 uses 3rd parties to secure their rates or if Hotelbeds USA, Inc. is them (and they just dba as Club 1).

NYC Flyer

Hotelbeds is simply a wholesale distributor of room inventory. Club1 may or may not have additional privately negotiated discounts with Hotelbeds, but many travel agents have access to this inventory.

TravelinSperry

So I have more information re my experiences with Club1:

History:
1- Marriott website rate: $420 prepay + taxes ($490 total per nt), lowest rate. Rate has dropped $4 per night on Marriott.com since I booked with Club1 4 days ago.
2- Club1 rate booked: $206 prepaid incl taxes. Includes $25 coupon code provided by Club1 on first reservation.

New:
3- Contacted Club1 to get the Marriott conf #. Club1 responded very fast each time but after repeated emails they continued to provide me the incorrect Marriott conf #. They vehemently stated they were providing me with the proper conf #, but were wrong every time.
4- I finally called the hotel myself and they were able to provide me the proper Marriott conf # and assured me the reservation was booked and the room was being held for my arrival.
5- I asked the hotel front desk agent if they could enter my Marriott Bonvoy # into the reservation so I could see it within the "my trips" area (so I could have confidence that my Hotelbeds reservation was there).
6- I can now see the reservation and feel confident my Club1 reservation/price is legit.

Interestingly the rate online shows as $345 incl tax for 2 nights. So I'm guessing the $68 difference is the fee kept by hotelbeds. Works for me as I saved over $275 per night. Insane savings and I'm quite impressed with Club1 rates (and quite annoyed with Marriott for attempting to gouge me for booking directly). I am underwhelmed by the Club1 reps however. While their response times were excellent their skills were lacking. But for $275 per night savings I'm willing to overlook any issues on their part.

Although I don't check in until next week - I can strongly recommend my experience with Club1 so far. Saved me a boatload of cash and only took an extra 5 minutes for me to manage my reservations and get the proper Marriott conf # to do it. Quite impressed.

sallyerd

I am considering using Club1 and see you have long post history with FlyerTalk (in contrast to almost all the other posts I have seen about Club1 on flyertalk thus far).
Now that you completed your April Marriott stay can you report on this thread if all went as planned? Were the rates honored and did you receive Bonvoy points as expected?
Thank you for taking the time to provide feedback

NYC Flyer

Can't speak for TravlinSperry, I have booked with the same wholesaler Club1 appears to use, Hotelbeds (Travel Leaders works with them as well), and it they are totally legit. Club1 may or may not have the best price for a given stay, but I would not worry about the hotel honoring the reservation. Be aware that there are service fees added within the tax figure on Club1's site, so the total is slightly higher than just the advertised room rate+tax.

As for Bonvoy points, these rates theoretically do NOT qualify as an "eligible stay", since they are prepaid/wholesale rates. Not saying that your status won't be recognized and/or points absolutely won't accrue, but only bookings made by the guest or their travel agent directly with Marriott by phone, web or GDS are "eligible stays".

TravelinSperry

Yes, I completed my stay and rates were honored. I'd recommend getting the proper conf # so you don't have any issues at check-in, but I didn't. Looking at my account activity I did not receive any points for my stay. The front desk agent said I would receive points, and recognized me as Titanium Elite but as the above poster noted, Marriott correctly did not apply these points. The front desk agent said I could've chosen a free snack instead so next time I'll be sure to do that. I believe I received my proper recognition because I called Marriott pre-stay with the correct reservation # and had them enter my Bonvoy #.

Personally I'd book Club1 again if the savings were appropriate (meaning, enough of a savings to give up points earnings and stay credits). In my case this stay qualified.

sallyerd

Thank you NYC Flyer and TravlinSperry for both of your replies. Solid information here.

NYC Flyer

Always do this! I did the same recently on a Hawaiian package vacation--no points awarded, but upgrades and recognition from staff were much appreciated.

FlyerStef

I wanted to follow up on this thread as it was helpful to me prior to booking...I just completed a stay at Unico 2087 in Cancun booked through Club 1, saved nearly $2k over list price.

I was worried this was all sketch - on paper we were showing as booked through a travel agent in Mexico City - but it was all real and legit, we got exactly what we paid for and just saved a lot of cash. I'm kind of amazed it all worked out, but will happily use it again!

linglingfool

I've had good experiences with C1 in the past (including multiple instances where a property didn't charge me a resort fee because of the "opaque" rate), but dragged my feet a bit on cancelling a March reservation when it became clear lockdowns were coming. It's been more than a month, and still no refund to my card. They're offering a 15% bonus if you're willing to take the refund in the form of a voucher, but I'm not sure I'll have travel plans to use the full value of the voucher before expiration.

tatterdema

I had that issue with them once before. After I emailed them, they apologized profusely and it was quickly refunded. I think they have a lot of glitches in their system. That is the only issue I have ever had, and have used them numerous times. Having said that, I would think hard and serious before using an off beat OTA right now. They are bleeding cash, which I am sure is why they are offering the 15% off for a voucher.

linglingfool

They were proactive in sending out an email about 2 weeks after my refund request saying that refunds were taking up to 30 days, so I was trying to be patient, but I'll follow up soon.

tatterdema

Funny, but I had a ton of refunds due from cancellations. From car rentals, airfare, hotels, parking, etc. I have received every single one in about a week EXCEPT cheaptickets (Expedia). They sent me an email offering the 115% voucher, saying click here if I want it, and if I do not, no need to do anything. The offer expires in 2 weeks, so they are not even going to START the refund process for that long, which is actually over 3 weeks since I cancelled. Just a money grab in my opinion, a way to hold onto the cash as long as possible. Having dealt with them for years, it does not surprise me at all. Fortunately I have the means to get by without the refund right away, but I feel for people who do not, while this huge corporate conglomerate hoards their money.

linglingfool

As an update, I followed up with them via email and they processed my pending refund within 48 hours.

psbaj

Any recent experience with this service? I mean, are they honoring the bookings with all the pandemic situation we are living with?