Do you know what an Opaque Hotel is?
According to Travelocity, between 20 and 30 percent of online hotel bookings are for “opaque” hotels, the industry term used to describe a hotel whose name is not revealed until AFTER the hotel room has been purchased.
We rarely use hotels ourselves since we usually stay with family or friends when we go out of town. However, for the rare occasion that we do use a hotel the tips below seem very useful.
Dos and Don’ts of booking an opaque hotel:
DO: Choose an opaque hotel if price is more important to you than hotel name or exact location. You’ll get access to unpublished hotel rates at a huge savings – as much as 45% off. So here’s an example – the opaque rate at a 4-star Chicago hotel is just $95 per night – 55% off the regular rate.
DON’T: Choose an opaque hotel if you’re a brand loyalist or need a specific location. While you’ll get general location (i.e., Midtown Manhattan vs. 5th and 53rd), the trade off is that the consumer doesn’t know the name of the hotel until the booking is complete.
DO: Make sure the hotel has all the amenities you require for your trip. Make sure to book through a site that shows amenities such as pool, courtesy breakfast, non-smoking, high-speed Internet and shuttle service before making a decision.
DON’T: Book on a site that doesn’t allow you to see customer reviews of the properties. Traveler reviews and ratings on things like cleanliness, location, staff and service, room quality and more are vital to making an informed decision.
DO: Consider the kind of trip you’re taking. If it’s a business trip, an activity-filled vacation, a last-minute getaway or a whirlwind city tour, an opaque hotel is probably a good choice for you.
DON'T: If you’re a hotel junkie, a stickler for thread count, or in general will consider the hotel the make-or-break of your entire trip, this might not work for you.
What about you? Have you ever reserved a room with an opaque hotel? Were you happy? Do you have anything to add to the tips above?
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9 Responses to “Do you know what an Opaque Hotel is?”
June 23rd, 2010 at 3:21 pm
We’ve booked through Hotwire on more than one occasion. We’ve even found that in some more obscure locations, the hotel isn’t actually opaque. Given the amenities and the general location, the hotel is actually identifiable. We have never had any problems.
June 23rd, 2010 at 3:36 pm
Just in time for summer! Woohoo!
One last tip: keep a reserve tent in the trunk… you never know *smile*
To answer your question: never ever heard of “opaque” hotel bookings before.
June 23rd, 2010 at 4:17 pm
I reserved a room at an opaque hotel for a conference in New Orleans back in ’99.
It ended up being a fabulous hotel and it was a lucky break for me since I was late registering for the conference and nearly the entire city was already booked!
June 23rd, 2010 at 6:32 pm
I’ve booked through hotwire. We like 4 star hotels at 2 star prices. We’ve only been disappointed once, in St. Louis, at a Holiday Inn.
June 23rd, 2010 at 10:21 pm
All opaque hotel bookings generally automatically get you a smoking king room, and you should call the hotel personally after it is revealed to change to a different room type. If it is a weekend when a lot of people are going to be in that city, you might be better off not doing it. After all, if all their other room types are booked up and you are allergic to smoke, you’ll have a room you can’t use, and opaque bookings can’t be cancelled.
I had an opaque booking at the Crowne Plaza in Austin a few months ago. It was quite nice and since they weren’t booked, they were quite willing to change my automatic smoking king to a non-smoking double. I can’t remember the site names, but there’s a couple of sites dedicated to how to best work the bidding strategies. If you google travelocity and bid strategy you’ll probably find it.
June 24th, 2010 at 7:12 am
Kim:
We almost always use Hotwire.com for hotel reservations. Most of the time, we have been very pleased. I have learned from past experience to check any room I am given and will ask to be moved if not up to my expectations. (I always check the bed sheets as soon as we get into a room as I have had some unpleasant surprises.) This problem has been with hotels in general, not just those I have used Hotwire for.
June 25th, 2010 at 10:16 pm
I have used Hotwire and Priceline almost exclusively for years and I have never had a bad experience and in most case it has exceeded expectations.
Once we booked in advance we were able to book a hotel for $25 while other at the same hotel paid well over $100. Most rooms have had indoor or outdoor pools and continental breakfast.
June 27th, 2010 at 4:32 pm
Had the wierd experience of winning a stay at the ultra-fashionable “W” hotel in Chicago. It was gorgeous and chic. But . . . we were in town for a family weekend with our little children, and we got some very odd looks from the hip young 20-somthings in the lobby/bar as we came trailing in with towels and sticky fingers.
The elevator music was club music at a high volume. Taking the boys out for bagels early Sunday morning, I put my hands over the oldest’s ears to block the “ooh, baby, anything you want baby, I’m gonna give it to ya, baby” lyrics. LOLOL
July 1st, 2010 at 10:56 pm
was wary of using Hotwire / Priceline until I found betterbidding.com, which has allowed me to predict what the hotel will likely be based on the few listed for the area / star rating / amenities. Only once was I not pleased; we were put in a smoking room. I should have called right after we booked, as others suggested, to make sure it was non-smoking.
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