Q: I recently booked four nights at a Spokane, Wash., hotel through Hotwire. When I checked in, I was told that it was the day after Hoopfest, a weekend basketball competition for young adults.
As I walked from the lobby to the elevator, I notice that the carpet was filthy, as was the elevator. It also smelled of alcohol.
I went to my room to find a dirty carpet and a musky smell as well. I left the hotel to meet a friend for dinner and called Hotwire in the meantime. I did not complain to the hotel as the attendant was just a young night clerk and changing rooms would not change the overall dirty nature of the hotel.
Hotwire took my case and I informed them I would not be staying at the hotel. My complaint was the basic lack of cleanliness of the hotel and not the amenities offered. I felt Hotwire had some obligation to guarantee a minimum in cleanliness and this certainly did not meet that standard.
Hotwire said the case would be forwarded to an “investigation team” and I would get some resolution. I did not get any resolution. Hotwire refused a refund. They could not have possibly visited the hotel in person within the short notice of their answer. What can I do to get a refund?
– Larry Sweatt
A: On the one hand, all rooms booked through Hotwire are completely nonrefundable. But you probably knew that already.
On the other hand, Hotwire has an obligation to sell you a clean room that meets certain basic standards. I checked the company’s Web site to see if those standards were spelled out, but I can’t say they were to my satisfaction.
Hotwire maintains a “star” ratings based on recognized industry sources, such as Mobil, AAA, Fodors and Zagat. It supplements the reviews with hotel visits by its representatives and customer feedback. But I couldn’t find any mention about what constitutes a minimally-acceptable room. The star ratings imply those standards, without a question.
If you want to be able to pick the exact hotel you’re staying in, I wouldn’t recommend an opaque service like Hotwire. Remember, you’re getting a deep discount in exchange for a room in a hotel that you can’t specifically name, and for which you can’t collect any loyalty points.
Instead, call a travel agent and pick a hotel that you know is going to meet your criteria. Will that be more expensive? Sure, but it sure beats staying at a place you aren’t comfortable in.
I also wouldn’t have let the hotel off the hook so easily. For every hotel clerk, there’s a supervisor on duty somewhere. Ask for that person and politely explain your concerns. Chances are the hotel was just as unhappy as you were about the state in which its previous guests had left it.
A manager might have been able to move you into a cleaner room or worked with you to resolve your problem.
I think Hotwire could do a better job spelling out how a property gets into its network. Do they just have to offer discounted rooms? Do they have to pass some kind of inspection, or agree to meet certain standards of cleanliness? For all I know, this information may already exist in Hotwire’s merchant agreement. But I couldn’t find it on the site, which is where travelers do their research before they book their rooms.
I contacted Hotwire about your visit, and as far as it’s concerned, your hotel checked out.
“Our market manager reviewed the hotel and deemed it is consistent with its 2-star rating, and did not find it to be unclean,” says Amy Bohutinsky, a Hotwire spokeswoman. “Thus, we were not able to issue a refund.”
However, Hotwire regretted that your stay didn’t meet your expectations, and credited you with $50 toward your next purchase. I think that’s a more than generous resolution, considering that Hotwire’s rooms are nonrefundable.
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{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
I am a business traveler and have used Hotwire (aka: Conwire) as my primary source for hotel rooms since based on my comparisons had affordable rates. I have always had a problem with not knowing in advance the hotel policies and restrictions and felt that their lame excuses for why they do not list these details were nothing more than a con job to keep the funds from unsuspecting travelers. Well this week I have just become one of those unsuspecting saps. I reserved a room for the weekend so that my wife and I along with our sheepdog could go house hunting (am relocating), I reserved a room using Conwire (aka: Hotwire)and after completing the transaction and looking over the hotels amenities and location found out that they do not allow pets. When I tried to resolve this issue with the dumb clucks at HW I was told in no uncertain terms that I was SOL, weve got your cash and you should have known better and this was from a supervisor. In short I would STRONGLY recommend that everyone steer clear of these frauds and use Priceline or Expedia, you will have a better chance of getting your issues resolved by using these guys and if enough of us BOYCOTT Conwire they may get the hint and change their ways or I am hoping they will go by way of the DO DO Bird.
i NEVER use any of these sites, i go straight to the website of the hotel chain i plan to stay in after searching for the best price. that way i can complain directly to the chain without having to go through these scammer sites. plus i ALWAYS bring my allersac travel sheet, just because you can’t see the filth doesn’t mean it’s not there.
I decided long ago to NEVER USE HOTWIRE although Priceline has always been a great result! It is NOT the opaque site, it is that Hotwire is a lousey company for customer service. Stay Away!!!!
i recall using a site called hotels.com several years ago fo a hotel in neworleans before katrina; the hotel.com site listed it as 4 stars; it was more like 2 stars; when i enquired about the rating system they said they left the rating up to each hotel what a laugh; now i prefer to use the hotels themselves rather than a third party.
I have to say I’m with Hotwire on this one. First of all, this customer does not say much about the condition of his room. Was the bathroom dirty? Was the rest of the room dirty or was it just the carpet? Is a dirty carpet enough of a reason to leave a hotel? But the primary reason I’m not particularly sympathetic is that this property is a two-star hotel, a fact that the customer neglected to mention. A two-star hotel is probably not going to be very good; that’s obvious from the fact that it only has two stars. I wouldn’t even expect a two-star hotel to be clean. I’ve stayed in them, and I learned my lesson–no more. Sorry, but if you choose to stay in a two-star hotel, you take your chances. If this was the customer’s first time in a 2-star, maybe now it will be his last.