Hotwire Hotel: 4* NYC (MTC) Sofitel

[Bridgie]

Hey there, just wondering if all the rooms on hotwire (for 2 ppl) tend to have just the one bed. is it possible to book a room through HOTWIRE with 2 double beds?

[Bridgie]

Hi, could you help identify a 4 star hotel, midtown central, with fitness, restaurant, business center and high-speed internet. recommended by 90% of hotwire users? Looks good, but I'm nervous! From your hotel list, it seems it could be flatotel, and it gets crummy reviews on trip advisor...

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

Please click this HOTWIRE link and add a reply to this thread with the dates of your stay, we'll then have a look at the offering above.

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

[Bridgie]

It's October 22-25. $256/night. Thank you!

[Bridgie]

I also have a a couple questions. Do the prices tend to go down the closer you get to the date? And is it possible to get a room with 2 beds through hotwire (I messed that q up in the other post) or is it always just one bed? Any issues with getting treated more poorly because it was booked through hotwire as opposed to being full fee? Thanks for your help!!

[thereuare]

Do the prices tend to go down the closer you get to the date?

Depends upon how actual bookings/cancellations come in relative to expectations as the check-in date nears. See the related link in our PRICELINE FAQ for more info.

And is it possible to get a room with 2 beds through hotwire (I messed that q up in the other post) or is it always just one bed?

There is also a link on this subject in the PRICELINE FAQ, but i'll add that since this is NYC, it makes getting a room with two beds much more difficult. NYC has a high percentage of rooms with only one bed and many hotels consider 2 bedded rooms to be an upgraded from 'standard', so even if the hotel is able to accommodate your request for a room with two beds, there may be an additional fee involved. If you want to ensure two separate 'beds' try searching for triple occupancy (2adults/1child) as this should ensure separate beds... although i've put bed in quotes since the second 'bed' could be a pullout sofabed, rollaway, etc.

Any issues with getting treated more poorly because it was booked through hotwire as opposed to being full fee?

Yes, there are reports of this, but fortunately it's more the exception then the rule. As well, it's hard to 'prove' that the treatment was a result of booking thru HOTWIRE (or any other 3rd party). Sometimes we'll hear a user complain that they were treated poorly, and it's easy to 'blame' the discounted rate, when in reality the user's expectations where unrealistic (ie- expecting an oceanfront room, which typically sells for more then the standard room, and then claiming they were discriminated against because they booked thru an opaque provider) OR the hotel's hands were tied and they weren't able to fulfill the guest's request regardless of how the room was booked (ie- not getting a request for a room with 2 beds honored when the hotel's hands were tied because they were sold-out of 2 bedded rooms, etc). With this noted, there are some hotels which may not be so accommodating to special requests for those who booked thru 3rd party websites (opaque or otherwise)... but in most cases it's an issue with the front desk clerk rather then a hotel wide policy. Bottomline: i've had good and bad hotel stays on both opaque bookings and hotel direct bookings... but it's easier for me to look past any shortcomings when i'm paying much less then most other guests.

For the HOTWIRE property above, the amenity combination matches multiple properties, but the listing also shows a Tripadvisor rating of 4.5/5.0, which would make the Sofitel my best guess for the one you're seeing above.

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

Let us know how it goes or if we can be of further help.

[Bridgie]

Thanks so much! That's great info. This is an awesome site.

BTW, I've noticed that there's also a listing for a 4* Empire State Building hotel for $223, but it only has high-speed internet listed an an amenity! Is it strange to have a 4* with only that one amenity -- no restaurant, no business centre, no fitness center?

Thanks again.

[AaronJB]

This is not unusual; listings do not show all amenities, and sometimes can occasionally appear with no amenities. Unfortunately, the 4* ESB has not yet been reported to the board.

Thank you for using the site's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

[Bridgie]

We booked the midtown central listing, and it was the sofitel - yay! We're very excited, thanks so much for your help!

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your success!

Glad to see you received the hotel you were hoping for and are looking forward to your stay.

Thank you for sharing your win with the board.

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

Enjoy your stay.