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Priceline or Hotwire offering refunds for corona virus cancellations?


Travelgirl22
By Travelgirl22,
in

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I'm wondering if either PL or Hotwire are offering refunds or honoring cancellations in the wake of the corona virus?  Several major events are being cancelled nationwide and I'm sure the hotels are facing major last minute cancellations.  I am planning a trip to NYC and was going to use PL or Hotwire to book, but Gov. Cuomo just declared a state emergency for NY, so I'm wondering if I should either wait to book, or book now when prices are low and see if PL or Hotwire will let me either cancel or rebook?  I have some time (3/26), so it's not rush, but wonder if anyone had experienced an event being cancelled and the hotel refunded your room?  Thanks, travellers!

 

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No official 'blanket-wide' cancellations yet, as far as i know... although i suspect there is some case-by-case cancellations taking place behind the scenes.

 

Here are some comments i made a few days ago relative to 'will prices go down further as a result of coronavirus':

On 3/1/2020 at 10:31 PM, thereuare said:

Hotel pricing uses a forecasting model so it's likely that current pricing is already factoring in some level of weakness.  So the question is whether fear is at it's peak right now and things will not be as bad as hoteliers think (and rates will move higher) or will travel slow to a trickle and things will get worse (and rates move lower). 

 

If anyone really knew if things are at their worst right now and will improve vs. if things will deteriorate further from here, there would be better ways to profit from it than just the savings on this hotel room :wink:... but unfortunately nobody knows what to expect in the nearterm (and thus the wild swings of the stock market last week).

 

Wish i had a more concrete answer for you, but at the moment nobody can say with a high degree of certainty.

 

Are you just coming for the one nite of March 26th or is this the first nite of your multi-nite stay?  If i were in your shoes how much of an outlay would play somewhat of a factor in my decision making... if just for one nite and my outlay was $100 i might make the decision to book now and take the chance; if it was a 4-5 nite stay i wouldn't be wiling to roll the dice as much.  This is one instance where resort fees may actually help... if you buy a hotel room for $40 with a $40 resort fee and you don't show, you're only 'out' the $40; they don't collect any resort fee on a 'no-show' reservation.

 

Also, depending upon your credit card you may have some sort of insurance through them... although whether this insurance would cover an instance such as coronavirus would require a thorough reading of their terms of the insurance (or at least a phone call to customer support).

 

I will add that rates are reaching crazy levels... 4* hotels with great reviews in NYC starting at $40/nite.:ohmy:

 

If you'd like us to have a look at some of the offers please confirm the full dates of your trip and we will advise accordingly.  Also, are you looking to make this a 'budget trip' so looking for something acceptable as cheap as possible... or are you looking for a value trip for something high-end that is at a price that has never been seen before?

 

Please remember to return to BetterBidding and use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases... or thru our sister site MAPSandHOTELS.com for your regular rate purchases.

 

Let us know the above and we'll take it from there.

Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases

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Thanks for your detailed reply!  My travel dates are 3/26-3/3029, a 4 night stay.  I am definitely looking for a budget trip, but nothing under 3.5*, no more than $150/ nt (under $650 total if possible) and since I have tickets to the Daily Show, so I am looking to stay in the Midtown West or Central Park South area, although NY is pretty easy to navigate if I were to stay closer to Wall STreet, where the rates have been very low.  But I just heard that NY declared a state of emergency, and in 2 1/2 weeks I don't know if the show will allow a live audience due to the outbreak.  I have other plans though, so still plan to go unless the situation gets dire.

 

I'm hoping to avoid a hotel with resort fees!  Is there a way to filter them out before we get to the checkout screen?  I hate selecting a hotel for a good price and then find out there's a $40/nt resort fee.

 

Thanks for all your help! 😄

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Just like Las Vegas, resort fees are almost unavoidable in NYC, just about every hotel now charges them!  As well, rather than focus on a hotel that does not charge resort fees, i would suggest instead focusing on the total cost, as you are better of with a $40 hotel that charges a $40 resort fee vs. a $100 hotel that does not charge a resort fee.:wink:

 

My suggestion would be this hotel from hotwire:

4* HOTWIRE SoHo - Tribeca for $52
Boutique hotel
Smoke-free rooms
Restaurant(s)
Internet access
==> Arlo Soho

While this property does charge a $35/nite resort fee, you're all in price would be $419 which is still well below your target budget and the hotel gets good reviews.  While not exactly in midtown, it is near two different subway stations that can get you close to the filming of the Daily Show (well, as close as a subway can get you as there is not really service along 11th Ave) as well as to points in midtown.

 

If you wanted something more centrally located i think you would likely see the price go up substantially (probably $100+ for the trip) and the hotel would not be as well reviewed.

 

Thoughts on this property / option?

 

Please remember to return to BetterBidding and use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases... or thru our sister site MAPSandHOTELS.com for your regular rate purchases.

 

PS- i did find this from Allianz which is the insurance company that is sold by Hotwire during check-out:

Quote

Trip cancellations and trip interruptions due to known, foreseeable, or expected events, epidemics, or fear of travel are generally not covered. This may vary by state, and other coverage and exclusions may apply. Please review your plan or call us for details. We review every claim based on its unique facts and circumstances and are happy to answer any questions you may have.

(emphasis added by me)
 

Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases

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The Arlo SoHo sounds great!  I tend to stick to the well known franchises, but this different place and the reviews are great.  I will be ready to bid later today, hope the rates are still low. Of course I will bid through these links!  😄

I don't see any Hotwire promo codes posted, although the rates are besting PL by quite a bit.

 

I did see that notice from Allianz Global about cancellations, and it seems that if you buy insurance, you may be eligible for a refund, on a case by case basis.  Do you usually recommend buying the travel insurance?

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25 minutes ago, Travelgirl22 said:

Do you usually recommend buying the travel insurance?

I usually do not... if i had an aging parent that was sick or some other 'inside' knowledge that would make increase the chances i would need to cancel then i would consider it (or if i was traveling internationally since there are more moving parts involved in that), but i'm statistical in nature so i take a probability point of view:

 

If the hotel above (before resort fees since those would not be paid if you for whatever reason did not show up at the hotel) cost ~$300 and the insurance is ~$20, i figure the insurance is about 6.5% of what my 'loss' would be.  So it comes down to  whether or not i think have a greater than 6% chance of needing to cancel for a covered event.

 

I italicize the last part of that sentence as there are many events that would not be covered by the insurance (for example, 'epidemics' are an excluded event so it would likely not apply given the current situation).  There are lots of other exclusions for which insurance companies would not have to pay so i'd prefer to 'self insure'.  As well, i would also have some sort of travel insurance from my credit card company (not sure what it does/does not cover), and there is always a chance that the booking company (priceline/hotwire) would allow for a refund (or issue a credit to be used on a future purchase) should things get even worse.  The companies have been 'pretty good' in the past of allowing cancellations/issuing refunds when there were location specific issues, but they may take a harder stance in a nationwide/worldwide epidemic since it would have more of an effect on their bottomline.

 

So far playing the odds has worked in my favor, but it only works until it doesn't:wink:, so you have to weigh your own tolerance for risk and if there are any factors in your own life that would increase/decrease the probability of you needing to cancel the trip.

Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases

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