Hotwire Hotel: 4.5* San Francisco (USE) Palace Hotel

[wonn]

Hi there, paid $340 (Incl taxes) on Saturday April 5th for 2 nights in May in a 4.5 * in Union St East.

4.5-star hotel in Union Square East

This deluxe establishment offers its guests tastefully decorated rooms and many special touches

Got the PALCE HOTEL -LUXURY COLLECTION.

Palace is not a 4.5* though is it? checked on Expedia, Hotels.com, and PRICELINE and it's a 4* on all of these. I am not happy about the response I had from HOTWIRE:

Thank you for contacting us regarding your hotel reservation at Palace Hotel - Luxury Collection, Hotwire Itinerary Number xxxxxxxx.

I understand you disagree with the star rating for Palace Hotel - Luxury Collection. I regret the inconvenience this has caused you.

To best assist our customers during the on-line booking process, Hotwire strives to provide clear instructions and accurate information on our Web site. We constantly review our hotel partners' star ratings to ensure we provide accurate and up to date information in support of our Hotel Star Ratings Promise.

We determine our star ratings by:

- Visiting thousands of properties each year.

- Carefully and frequently benchmark our star ratings against other travel sites and ratings authorities.

- Investigate and act on customer rating concerns about specific properties.

- Solicit customer feedback following every stay and adjusting our ratings accordingly.

We recently reviewed this property March 21, 2008 and find that yes, Expedia, Travelocity, and Priceline do rate this hotel as a four star hotel, however Orbitz lists this as a five star hotel. In our review of Palace Hotel - Luxury Collection we also found the following review of the hotel which keeps it in line for a 4.5 star rating on Hotwire:

A rich 19th century air of elegance greets you as you walk through the Palace Hotel doors. Beautiful vaulted ceilings and original Austrian crystal chandeliers recreate the glamour of yesteryear. Host to presidents, royalty, and giants of industry, the Palace Hotel is centrally located downtown and adjacent to the Financial District. Our hotel provides distinguished travelers with the excellent service to which they are accustomed, and was named to Conde Nast Traveler's 2002 Gold List. Unwind in the Palace Spa with an indulgent massage, body treatment, facial or personalized fitness session. Discover true California cuisine at one of our restaurants and lounges. Our renowned Garden Court restaurant features a beautiful domed ceiling of stained glass and was designated a historic landmark by the city of San Francisco in 1969.

If we can be of further assistance, please feel free to reply to this email or contact us directly at 1-866-HOTWIRE (468-9473). Thank you for choosing Hotwire.

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What should I do? Contact my credit card company in the hope that they can help resolve the matter? They seem to put the * rating of that hotel up and down according to some of the stuff I've read in the forums.

Thanks and good luck!

[wonn]

ps It does not appear to list 'Spa' as an amenity now with the 4.5* USE.

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

Please post the amenities shown before your purchase, date(s) of your stay, and the price paid (per nite before fees and taxes) so that we can add this information to the topic title... we'll then add our thoughts on your post above. You can still view the amenities by going to HOTWIRE and clicking the MY ACCOUNT link near the top of their ome page.

Thanks.

[wonn]

These were the details, and they did include spa, thanks

Union Square East

Deluxe Hotel

This Hotel features the following amenities:

Fitness Center

Guests have access to exercise equipment; an additional charge may apply.

Pool(s)

Property offers at least one pool area; hours and dates of operation may be seasonal.

Restaurant(s)

Property offers at least one restaurant on the premises; hours and days of operation may vary.

Business Center

Guests have access to business equipment and services; an additional charge may apply.

High-speed Internet Access

Guestrooms are equipped with high-speed Internet access; an extra charge may apply.

Spa Services

Guests have access to a spa facility or spa services; an extra charge typically applies.

Today's 4.5* USE San francisco does not have a spa listed so the SF hotel must have changed or alace has been downgraded?

[thereuare]

Please post the amenities shown before your purchase, date(s) of your stay, and the price paid (per nite before fees and taxes) so that we can add this information to the topic title...

[wonn]

Isn't this it? Thanks. I didn't take a screen shot, but this is under 'See details' on my booking...

Union Square East

Deluxe Hotel

This Hotel features the following amenities:

Fitness Center

Guests have access to exercise equipment; an additional charge may apply.

Pool(s)

Property offers at least one pool area; hours and dates of operation may be seasonal.

Restaurant(s)

Property offers at least one restaurant on the premises; hours and days of operation may vary.

Business Center

Guests have access to business equipment and services; an additional charge may apply.

High-speed Internet Access

Guestrooms are equipped with high-speed Internet access; an extra charge may apply.

Spa Services

Guests have access to a spa facility or spa services; an extra charge typically applies.

[thereuare]

Please post the amenities shown before your purchase, date(s) of your stay, and the price paid (per nite before fees and taxes) so that we can add this information to the topic title...

We're looking for the dates (check-in and check-out) of your stay and the price paid (per nite, before fees and taxes)

[wonn]

Hotel - 1 room, 2 nights

Palace Hotel - Luxury Collection

2 New Montgomery St

San Francisco, California 94105

(415) 512-1111

See ratings guide

Check-in date

Sun, May 18, 2008

Check-out date

Tue, May 20, 2008

Hotel

1 room(s) @ $147.00 per night x 2 night(s) $294.00

Tax recovery charge and fees

Hotel subtotal $46.39

$340.39

Total $340.39

Some hotels may apply additional charges for incidental fees such as parking. Prices are in $USD.

We're looking for the dates (check-in and check-out) of your stay and the price paid (per nite, before fees and taxes)

[Colfax]

Thanks for your dates and price, wonn.

I don't understand why you're unhappy with the Palace. The reviews are mostly very good. Are you just unhappy because it's rated 4* on Expedia and 4.5* on HOTWIRE? No hotel gets the same rating from every rating service.

If HOTWIRE refunds your money where do you intend to stay?

[thereuare]

The questions Colfax asked above are the exact same ones i would have asked, but i'll add...

Best rate thru the hotel webiste is $239/nite, so you saved almost $100/nite on this stay, and the reviews are pretty good. Since star ratings are subjective, is there really that much differnce that can be quantified between a 4* and 4.5* hotel? What is the problem that you have with this property? Were you expecting a different property and dissapointed that you didn't received it... what were you expecting?

[wonn]

If I had been expecting a different property (which I was not), I would have no right to object since the Hotwire process is opaque and I'm surprised you even have to ask that question on this forum...

My objection is that it's just not a 4.5* hotel, and is 4* on the vast majority of other sites. I think it's a grossly over exaggerated and misleading rating.

[thereuare]

My objection is that it's just not a 4.5* hotel, and is 4* on the vast majority of other sites. I think it's a grossly over exaggerated and misleading rating.

It's a .5 star difference, and given the subjectivity of star ratings, i would consider that within the "margin of error".

[wonn]

Ah well my CC company have agreed to cancel the payment in the next few days based on the information they have seen, and especially since Hotwire initially replied to my emails but then stopped doing so. Today the HOTWIRE phones are not working...