Planning a Vacation in May - Should I book it? (Fort Lauderdale: coupon, 2014)

[TuckerJ]

I'm starting to plan for a vacation in the Fort Lauderdale or Hollywood area in May, and after researching the area, I'm leaning toward staying at the Westin Diplomat. I've been researching and trying to find the lowest rate (don't want to chance it on Priceline), and so far I've found that Hoteltravel.com has the lowest rates for the Westin Diplomat for my set of dates. Has anyone had any experience booking through them? I also found a $50 off coupon that I could use for their site. Total price including taxes would be $594.64 for 3 nights. I just had a chat with one of their agents on their site because I found two rates listed on their site where the higher rate for the same room was non-refundable. Seems kind of odd to me. If you have time for an interesting exchange, here's the transcript. After reading this, would you still book through their site? Still haven't decided...

info: Please wait for a site operator to respond.
info: You are now chatting with 'Frederic'
Frederic: Hello
Frederic: How can I help you?
Mike: Hello Frederic
Mike: I would just like help with booking a stay
Frederic: ok
Mike: at the Westin Diplomat in Hollywood Florida
Mike: i was looking for the cheapest rates and I found your site
Mike: it's for May 8-12, 2014
Mike: I'm sorry, May 8-11, 2014
Frederic: how many persons ?
Frederic: 3 nights?
Mike: 2.. so i need 2 beds
Mike: yes
Frederic: ok
Mike: do you have access to the site on the internet? in other words, do you see the $191 for Superior room which is the first listing?
Frederic: ok
Frederic: let me check
Mike: hello?
Frederic: Nett rate will be 644.64 USD for 3 nights
Frederic: USD 214.80-net per room per night all taxes included
Mike: is that for 2 beds?
Frederic: you should see the semae rate if you click oin BOOK NOW green button
Frederic: yes 2 bed sin the room
Mike: ok, and is this free cancellation? if i have to cancel next week, will i be charged anything or will i get a full refund of $644.64?
Frederic: checking
Mike: ok
Mike: I clicked on "Conditions, Tax & More" under the green Book Now button for the $191 rate, and it says "FREE CANCELLATION! If cancelled before 5th May 2014 (GMT + 07:00), you will receive a full refund. If cancelled on or after 5th May 2014 (GMT + 07:00), you will be charged your full booking amount."
Mike: I just want to confirm if this is accurate.
Frederic: If cancelled before 5th May 2014 , you will receive a full refund
Mike: Is that accurate?
Frederic: yes it is
Mike: ok, great, then I will go ahead and book it.
Mike: wait, I see another listing further down the page...
Mike: do you see it also? where it says $241.67/night for superior room with 2 double beds?
Frederic: ignore this
Frederic: comes from different rate supplier selling higher rate
Mike: what does that mean?
Frederic: it means I strongly recommend yoou to book at $644.64 as at the end of the day, you 'll get the same room and will save money
Mike: I just clicked on the "Conditions, Tax & More" under the green Book Now button for the $241.67/night listing, and it says, "Please note that this rate is Non-Refundable. If cancelled, modified or in case of a no show, total price of the reservation will be charged."
Frederic: yes as mentionned above
Mike: Why would the higher rate be non-refundable and customers would have to pay full amount if they cancelled?
Frederic: this is not a good deal compared to superior room at 644.64 USD for 3 nights
Frederic: because negotiated rate is sourced from a different channel
Mike: can you please clarify what that means?
Frederic: this means our company is buying and selling negotiated rates on hotel nights
Frederic: as we have many rate sippliers
Frederic: some of them modify the room name to appear on the list
Frederic: while they are selling at higher rate
Mike: why would you list a rate for $241/night where someone would have to pay full rate if they were forced to cancel their trip.. isnt that ripping off customers?
Frederic: because our software is based on an algorythm ....
Frederic: and because we have deal on more than 250.000 hotels worldwide
Mike: I was going to book the room, but now I'm a bit hesitant. I might have to do some research first.
Mike: thanks for your time
Frederic: Thank you for your visit
Frederic: Bye
Mike: Bye

[Tulippsy]

If you google the company, you'll find lots of complaints. And it's not much cheaper than if you book directly through the hotel.

[Nolefan34]

The Westin Diplomat is a very nice hotel in a good location. I've never used that website, but I do a lot of online bookings using the other typical sites like Hotwire, Kayak, Expedia, Priceline, Hotels.com, etc. In general, these websites are a dime a dozen. There is no advantage to using one site over another. You may as well go with whichever one gives you the best price. If you're concerned about this particular site, if its only a difference of a few bucks, then go with a more reputable site. As long as they give you a confirmation number, you should be fine. You could call the hotel directly after booking and double-check that they have your reservation just to make sure.

I book all of my trips online and only had 1 bad experience using a site called Hotels.com. I booked through them, but my reservation was never made with the hotel. Its a good thing I called the hotel a week ahead of my trip. They had no room available, but were somehow able to make a room for me after 3 days of calling.

[TuckerJ]

Thanks Tulippsy and Nolefan34 for your replies!

If I book directly through the Westin Diplomat website, the total cost for a superior room with 2 beds (and no penalty for cancellation) is $1008.99. I want to make sure I book a rate that includes no penalty for cancelling since I have a busy schedule and my plans could easily fall through.

The other typical sites listed on TripAdvisor (Expedia, Travelocity, Booking.com, etc.) are a bit lower -- around $800 -- but they all say the same thing regarding cancellations:

The Westin Diplomat Resort and Spa charges the following cancellation and change fees.

• Cancellations or changes made before 4:00 PM (Eastern Standard Time (US & Canada)) on May 05, 2014 or no-shows are subject to a hotel fee equal to the first night's rate plus taxes and fees.
• Cancellations or changes made after 4:00 PM (Eastern Standard Time (US & Canada)) on May 05, 2014 or no-shows are subject to a hotel fee equal to 100% of the total amount paid for the reservation.

So it wouldn't make sense to me that the Westin would charge all those sites the same cancellation fee (which I would have to pay if I cancelled) but not HotelTravel.com. If I booked through HotelTravel.com and later cancelled, I doubt I'd get the full refund. If only I believed them, I'd go ahead and book it. It's such a good deal!

[Nolefan34]

That is the downside of booking online. They usually are non-refundable. It is a risk-reward scenario. I am usually 99% certain I can go when I book a trip since I take off of work. But everyone has a different situation. You could also purchase trip insurance. I'm not sure its worth it on a trip under $1000, but for a costlier trip, it would be.

[blueherons]

Call the hotel and speak with someone in their reservations, NOT the 800 call center. See if they will match the price, usually they will.

[dickny1e]

Those online travel companies are alright if everything goes as planned, but don't expect them to care about you if you have a problem. I bought the travel insurance last year for a trip to Vegas, I had a motorcycle accident and spent 43 days in the hospital, I got their forms and had my surgeon fill them out, I was denied, they said I bought the wrong insurance, it was just a box to check, no options! This was Expedia but I bet they're all the same...