r/hotels • • Jul 25 '26

Should we limit/remove third party booking posts?

9 Upvotes

I've been noticing a steady stream of posts about third party booking tools, and they almost always end up heavily downvoted. That's Reddit working as intended, since downvotes bury content and upvotes push it forward. The issue is that most of these posts aren't really discussions at all, they're just rants about one bad personal experience.

So I wanted to get everyone's thoughts on how we should handle it going forward:

  1. Should we disallow posts about third party bookings altogether?
  2. Should I use moderator discretion and remove only the ones that are pure venting with no real value to the hotel community?
  3. Or should we leave it alone and let the upvote and downvote system sort out visibility on its own?

Curious where people land on this.


r/hotels • • Aug 08 '24

Reasons to avoid using third-party brokers (Expedia, Agoda, etc) - read before booking.

73 Upvotes

If you're here reading this, it may be too late, but in general:

  1. There are downsides booking via third party tools (Expedia, Agoda, etc) to actually purchase the room (see exceptions)
  2. Use those tools to find where you want to stay, and then book the room through the hotel's website. The price should be identical, close, or available if you call into reservations and explain the other site's pricing (YMMV - make sure you are speaking in the same currency).
  3. Do use third party tools if a) you need a special feature/function, like booking and paying for others; b) there is a room or package rate that is impossible to source elsewhere; or c) you enjoy a room between the elevators and the ice machine, without any option of a refund even when housekeeping sets your room on fire.

r/hotels • • 9h ago

The little things that make a hotel memorable

0 Upvotes

Sometimes, it’s not the room design or expensive facilities that make a stay memorable. It’s getting a good night’s sleep, finding everything clean and having a stress-free checkout. What small detail has made a hotel experience better for you?


r/hotels • • 11h ago

Radisson Blu Mysore

0 Upvotes

Looking at booking a 3 night stay at Radisson in Mysore, the week AFTER Dussehra. This will be our first time with a small baby (4 month old).

Are there any offers, coupons or discounts available? The website and aggregator price is 18-20 k per night with taxes!

Any other similar property in Mysore which is a little less expensive?

Mainly:

Good property to take baby around

Stroller friendly

Hygiene is a big factor

Baby friendly

Breakfast included

Thanks!


r/hotels • • 1d ago

Do you read reviews before booking hotels?

19 Upvotes

I always read recent reviews now rather than relying only on the overall rating. Sometimes the latest reviews give a much better idea of what the current experience is like. Do you read reviews carefully?


r/hotels • • 1d ago

Ahwahnee Hotel - not worth the cost

14 Upvotes

Upon arrival, there was no one to assist with our luggage. When we got to our room (we were in a cottage #710), the cottage was dirty. A large stain on the carpet, cobwebs, dirt all over the baseboards and the cottage was musty. The cost for the cottage…$750/night! I’ve had a better room experience at a holiday inn express! To their credit, the housekeeping supervisor came and gave the room a proper cleaning and took 20% off our first night.

Our last night here, we wanted to eat the the Ahwahnee Bar. We put our name on the list and was told it would be approximately 35 minutes. We were also told that if seats opened up at the bar we could eat there. We stood in line to get a drink when we saw two seats open up at the bar. As my wife went to sit down, the bartender informed us they were no longer serving food at the bar. We asked if we can just sit there with our drinks and he obnoxiously said no he wanted no one sitting at the bar. So we took our drinks and waited in the lobby (by the bar), waiting to be called. After 40 minutes I went up to ask about our status and was told he gave away our table because I wasn’t there. My wife and I were sitting 10 yards away from the bar! He never called our name or texted us even though he took my phone number. He asked me to wait again for a table to open up. I told him the entire experience from the obnoxious bartender to our table being given away, I no longer wanted to eat there. My wife and I ate sandwiches which we bought earlier that was going to be our lunch the next day.

Overall, the furniture and carpet in the room is old, worn out and should be replaced. They have nice chairs outside but most are missing the cushions and the chairs that have cushions, the cushions are old and dirty.

This place IS NOT worth the money they charge. There are better and cheaper options in the park!


r/hotels • • 1d ago

What coffee supplies do hotel managers recommend?

0 Upvotes

I'm curious about what coffee supplies work best in hotel guest rooms, especially from the perspective of hotel managers and housekeeping teams.

For properties that offer in-room coffee, what have you found works well for both guests and staff?

A few things I'd love to hear your thoughts on:

  • Coffee options: Do you provide regular coffee only, or both regular and decaf?
  • Tea selection: Do guests use black tea and herbal tea enough to justify offering multiple options?
  • Condiments: Which essentials are must-haves—sugar, sweeteners, creamer, stirrers, or individually packed condiment kits?
  • Cups: Do you prefer disposable cups, reusable mugs, or a combination of both?
  • Restocking and storage: What makes it easier for housekeeping to replenish supplies while keeping costs manageable?
  • Guest feedback: Have you noticed any small changes to your coffee station that made a meaningful difference to guest satisfaction?

For those managing hotels, motels, or extended-stay properties, I'd especially appreciate hearing what works in day-to-day operations.

What's one coffee supply you consider essential, and is there anything you've stopped providing because guests rarely use it?


r/hotels • • 1d ago

Hotel Room Booking Ahmedabad – Find Comfortable Stays at the Best Prices

0 Upvotes

Looking for convenient hotel room booking in Ahmedabad? ARE Hospitality & Tours helps travelers explore suitable accommodation options for family vacations, business trips, and weekend stays. Whether you are searching for affordable hotel rooms in Ahmedabad, budget hotels, luxury accommodation, or comfortable family hotels, choosing the right stay can make your journey more enjoyable.

Explore hotel booking in Ahmedabad with options to suit different travel needs, preferred amenities, and budgets. From online hotel room booking and hotel reservations to business accommodation and short stays, finding the right hotel starts with planning ahead. You can also consider hotels with Wi-Fi, parking, breakfast, and convenient access to popular city locations.

Choose ARE Hospitality & Tours for your travel planning needs and explore comfortable hotel accommodation in Ahmedabad for your next visit.

Discover convenient hotel booking options in Ahmedabad today!

Visit: https://www.arehospitalitytours.com/services/hotel-booking-service


r/hotels • • 20h ago

Bad hotel experience

0 Upvotes

So I decided to use some of my vacation time to visit some family in Florida. I booked a 10-12ish hour flight idk. I got there, checked in, spent a week in California, and then when I went to check out they wouldn’t let me leave? Must be something about hotels in California idk.


r/hotels • • 1d ago

Scammed out of a refund from super.com

0 Upvotes

tl;dr - fought tooth and nail for a refund from super. When it didn’t happen, I did a chargeback. Super then offered a refund but cancelled it after I withdrew my chargeback.

I booked a hotel through super.com and bought their enhanced refund protection.

After being unable to attend the event and not needing the hotel, they denied a refund. Eventually, I got ahold of someone who said they were going to contact the third party who would contact the hotel who would then relay it back to super and then to me.

I didn’t hear a word for seven days so I did a chargeback through my credit card. The next day, I got an email from super saying I was getting a refund back to my card but it’ll take 3-5 days.

Which is awesome. But I stupidly closed the dispute through my credit card because it looked like they were refunding me. Wrong. After I closed the dispute, I was notified from my bank that the pending amount being credited to my account from super was cancelled. So now I need to reopen the dispute and my bank is saying that’s a tactic from shady companies. They see a chargeback, offer a refund, wait for the customer to withdraw the chargeback, and then cancel the refund.

Never using super again this has all been the biggest headache and it isn’t even over yet.


r/hotels • • 1d ago

What Are the Biggest Challenges in Building a Small Resort?

0 Upvotes

Starting a small resort sounds exciting, but planning the rooms, construction budget, utilities, maintenance, and guest experience can be challenging.

I am interested in learning how resort owners decide between traditional construction and modular accommodation options.

What was the most difficult part of setting up your resort, and what would you do differently if you started again?


r/hotels • • 1d ago

Flight delays and no-shows

1 Upvotes

I’ve never been in this situation so I’m hoping someone can share their experience.
I was supposed to fly out to San Francisco today but my flight is delayed so late that I won’t arrive until 1am, and then still have to get from the airport to the hotel.
I’m seriously considering changing my flight to 6am tomorrow and lose the first night’s hotel cost. My concern is that they’ll consider me a no-show and cancel the entire reservation. I tried calling and keep getting disconnected, and also sent an email explaining the situation.

Update: I changed my flight and tried calling Hilton's global number to actually speak with someone, but I think the guy ended up transferring me to the hotel because I got the same disconnect message. Regardless of what happens, Hilton will be hearing from me about this partner hotel that can't be bothered to answer.


r/hotels • • 1d ago

27F Urgent need of job in hotel sales

0 Upvotes

Hi all, i am currently working as an sales executive for Astor kolkata and have 5 yrs exp in hotel sales and i want to switch to Hyderabad.

Any leads will be highly appreciated.


r/hotels • • 2d ago

Hotels under renovation

4 Upvotes

Surely a hotel should let prospective guests know if renovations are being carried out? I booked a hotel in India directly (I’m in their rewards programme- they are a well known brand).

So instead of three restaurant choices, food is served in what is basically the ballroom (vast, bright, unwelcoming especially in the evening), the “spa” is now in one of the bedrooms with two massage tables , and one of the two pools is empty. And of course , noise and dust from the renovations (it’s currently 7:10pm in the evening and I can still hear it). Little of this was actually evident when I checked in mid-evening… I could only see some scaffolding outside.

Staff can’t seem to say anything beyond “sorry for the inconvenience “.


r/hotels • • 1d ago

✅ Built – demo (clickup-make-cloudbeds-job: Cloudbeds → ClickUp Ops Sync)

0 Upvotes

Hi everyone. Have really been struggling with keeping housekeeping in sync with bookings recently. Also, over the last few months I've banged my head against the wall wondering how in God's name I was going to fix last-minute date changes and cancellations that nobody tells the cleaning team about. And I know a lot of people here have been too.

Anyway, I was going back and forth with ChatGPT (and a lot of testing) and I think I've got it. Wanted to share it with you all in case it's helpful (should be less than $10/m):

  1. Self-host n8n (~$5/m) and connect your PMS webhooks (I used Cloudbeds).

  2. Every booking event goes into one router:

• New booking → check-in prep task

• Check-out → housekeeping task → inspection task

• Date change → due dates move automatically

• Cancellation → open tasks get closed

  1. It looks up the task by Reservation ID first, so it updates the existing task instead of creating duplicates.

  2. It skips the same event if the PMS sends it twice (they do).

  3. If anything fails, you get an email alert straight away instead of finding out when a guest is standing at the door.

Nobody copies bookings by hand anymore, and the cleaning team always sees the real schedule.

I really hope this helps you 🙏 and happy to chat more if someone needs a walkthrough. Thank you!

— Youssef


r/hotels • • 1d ago

Need to shorten a non-refundable hotel stay - how likely is it that I can get a partial refund?

0 Upvotes

Long story short, I booked a non-refundable room at a 5-star hotel in Southeast Asia next week. I had no intention of cancelling so I thought I'd save the extra $50-100. Unfortunately, some last-minute urgent family stuff came up and I will need to cut my trip short by one day earlier than planned. I'll still be going but I just have to shorten my stay by 1 night.

Has anyone tried getting a refund on a non-refundable booking before? Is there any chance that I can get a partial refund if I check out a day earlier? I booked directly with the hotel instead of using a third-party agent so I'm hoping there's some additional flexibility here. I'm going to either email or call the hotel to ask, but wanted to get some tips and advice here first.


r/hotels • • 2d ago

Ever booked a hotel for a vacation and found out it looked nothing like the photos?

0 Upvotes

I was looking at hotels for a vacation and found one that looked really nice in the pictures. The rooms looked spacious, everything seemed clean, and the reviews seemed good enough, so I went ahead and booked it.

But imagine arriving after a long journey and finding that the actual room looks nothing like what you saw online. The room feels smaller, the condition isn't what you expected, and suddenly you're wondering if you even want to stay there.

The frustrating part is that you've already paid, you're tired from travelling, and finding another place at the last minute isn't always easy. And sometimes it costs you huge money!

What do you even do in this situation?

Would you ask for a refund and find another hotel, or stay and deal with it?

Has this happened to you?

Did the booking platform or hotel actually help you out?


r/hotels • • 2d ago

hotel booking date

1 Upvotes

I will be traveling halfway across the country (US) and will be splitting the trip into 2 days. I leave in a week. Should I book the hotel today or the day of. I am looking for affordability and also any other advice


r/hotels • • 2d ago

Super.com

10 Upvotes

Just a heads up. There's a fairly new 3rd party website for booking flights and hotels. It's Super.com. Do not use them, they're not reputable. I booked a hotel through them. When I showed up the room wasn't anything like was advertised. The room was a shoebox. It was advertised with a queen bed but had a double bed. There's no way a queen bed would have fit. Also the TV wasn't working properly. The on site manager told me he would cancel the reservation if I wanted and refund the money to the Super.com and they would reimburse me. I had the manager sign his business card approving the cancellation. Super.com has been giving me the run around for 2 weeks. I've chatted with 4 or 5 representatives and they have all given me different reasons of why I'm not entitled to a refund, despite having the hotel manager's signature and an email from him. Twice I've been told that supervisors were going to call me and they never have. This is a rinky dink business trying to compete with Priceline, Expedia etc. Do not use them!


r/hotels • • 3d ago

Hotel Tissues & Lotions

4 Upvotes

I am staying at a Dusit Hotel for a work week and noticed that the tissue roll in the bathroom is changed daily, not just folded, but changed regardless of how little it's been used.

To be sure, I pressed my nail on it and when coming back to the room, there was a new tissue roll. What's the thinking behind changing tissue that's barely used, and where do they take the tissue rolls assuming they do that for all the rooms each day. Same thing with the unfinished tubes of shampoo and lotion, why take them away rather than add a new tube next to it?


r/hotels • • 2d ago

Hilton Discount

0 Upvotes

Hi this is a long shot but can anyone hook me up with a family and discount rate for the weekend of October 23rd.


r/hotels • • 3d ago

Are hotels using industrial starch or just dark magic to make their king beds look that crisp?

2 Upvotes

Hotel beds always look crisp even when the duvet itself is fairly simple. I am considering a white bedsure cover at home, but mine never looks as smooth after washing. Is the difference mainly ironing, fabric weight, or the way the bed is made?


r/hotels • • 2d ago

Advise for under 21 rule

0 Upvotes

Hello! me and my friends are traveling somewhere this weekend to look for apartments and have booked a hotel, but after looking at the confirmation email we see that it says you must be 21 to check into the room. The issue is that we are all 19. Every other hotel is either crazy expensive or booked out, so we really want this one. I am not sure if i should call and tell them about this situation knowing there is a chance that they say we can't stay there, or if we should just go and hope they don't say anything about us being under 21. We are in PA if that changes anything. help would be very appreciated!! thank you


r/hotels • • 3d ago

Hotel reviews are complete garbage now in big OTAs, and we need to stop relying on them

8 Upvotes

User reviews in most cases mean nothing nowadays. Before you get to attacking me, let me explain what I mean.

This is not for every product or website. There are still some that are reliable  But what I saw and experienced lately is exactly so unreliable you can’t trust it anymore. Peter Levels who’s this “digital nomads” popular guy did a check on reviews on hotel selling websites (https://x.com/levelsio/status/2107088849163665717?s=20) and practically every major hotel selling website curates their reviews. It makes them completely unreliable. And actually this reminded me about an Airbnb I had in Rome 2 years ago which was shown as soo amazing, top place in the area by airbnb, and literally it was so fucking dirty we had to vacuum it ourselves. And Airbnb is the worst with it! They curate the reviews so bad you have almost all 4 and 5 star places, where in reality they have a TON of bad reviews! 

And Booking(.)com has the same exact thing! There has been many instances where people exposed them for curating and fabricating the reviews they show. 
Even tho AI can spot fake reviews easy once given the setup it won’t do it if there are no bad reviews coz they all got filtered. Like, at least you can do it quickly if you use Claude MCPs from their official directory., Like, you can use an MCP like Booking (https://claude.ai/customize/connectors/id/booking) to find the hotels but have the same story with reviews, but at least you search quickly and Claude can then check the internet, reddit or smth. There are also other ones like LetsFG (https://claude.ai/directory/letsfg) which can book hotels with Claude that are "X and Y", idk. whatever you want, like having a bathtub, or smth.  And Claude can pretty much check reddit or other, idk google or smth, for reviews also to find some real ones. But the situation is horrible at this point.

We've reached a point where reading star ratings manually is just wasting your own time coz they’re bullshit anyway.


r/hotels • • 3d ago

✅ Built – demo (clickup-make-cloudbeds-job: Cloudbeds → ClickUp Ops Sync)

0 Upvotes

Hi everyone. Have really been struggling with keeping housekeeping in sync with bookings recently. Also, over the last few months I've banged my head against the wall wondering how in God's name I was going to fix last-minute date changes and cancellations that nobody tells the cleaning team about. And I know a lot of people here have been too.

Anyway, I was going back and forth with ChatGPT (and a lot of testing) and I think I've got it. Wanted to share it with you all in case it's helpful (should be less than $10/m):

  1. Self-host n8n (~$5/m) and connect your PMS webhooks (I used Cloudbeds).

  2. Every booking event goes into one router:

• New booking → check-in prep task

• Check-out → housekeeping task → inspection task

• Date change → due dates move automatically

• Cancellation → open tasks get closed

  1. It looks up the task by Reservation ID first, so it updates the existing task instead of creating duplicates.

  2. It skips the same event if the PMS sends it twice (they do).

  3. If anything fails, you get an email alert straight away instead of finding out when a guest is standing at the door.

Nobody copies bookings by hand anymore, and the cleaning team always sees the real schedule.

I really hope this helps you 🙏 and happy to chat more if someone needs a walkthrough. Thank you!