Posted in Travel

Best Price Guarantee

Most hotels offer you a Best Price Guarantee (BPG) but only if you book directly with them.  Before booking ALWAYS CHECK THE CURRENCY depending on which country that is in.  Also keep in mind that there are different types of rooms, some with breakfast or taxes included, so you really have to be sure to compare “apples with apples”.  Most hotels claim that if you find a lower rate elsewhere they will match the lower rate and give you an additional 5-10% off which sounds good but they exclude a few websites and have terms and conditions so you may disqualify. Now, if the room rates are non-refundable and you disqualify you get stuck on a higher rate without getting the promised refund and 5-10% discount.  It is the hotel’s best interest that you book directly with them because they try to avoid paying a commission to travel sites who sell their rooms but you need to watch out for your best interest 😉

Before booking a foreign hotel make sure that your credit card does not bear transaction costs for international purchases because if it does, it is best NOT to book directly with the foreign hotel; is best to book your hotels in the USA, in US funds to avoid such transaction costs.

American travel sites also offer you a Best Price Guarantee (for foreign hotels) and I personally prefer to deal with an American company because I can use coupons and reward bucks, earn points or get money back if I belong to a loyalty program.  Customer service may not be as good outside of the USA so it is more pleasant and worry-free to deal with American companies (should things go bad with the hotel).  American sites also refund you the difference and Expedia, for example, gives you a $50 travel coupon which I have qualified for many times.  The only disadvantage of the Best Price Guarantee on American sites is that you need to find a lower rate within 24 hours unless you are Expedia+ Gold level customer, in that case you can take advantage of the BPG program until the day of your travel, which is more like it.
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2 thoughts on “Best Price Guarantee

  1. Very nice guide! Sadly, the BPG is not working that well at all times. I’ve had several issues with denied claims due to minor things. Always a little disappointing, but at some point you know what works and what doesn’t!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you for your time to comment! 🙂 I always do a price comparison for hotels to find the lowest price for the same room so I’m already happy for the fact alone that I am getting the best possible deal. Second: whenever I can, I choose a refundable room: I never cancel trips but I have cancelled many rooms because I found something better later on or if I have a coupon later on 😉 If there is nothing better I just keep it, most likely that was booked on the best price. Third: I never have expectations with BPG but still go for it, got nothing to lose. In my experience Expedia was the one who qualified me the most and awarded me $50 coupons. One time I found an airplane ticket for only a dollar less elsewhere (and the difference was in the tax not in the base fare) and I still got qualified. It sounds ridiculous to put in so much work for only a dollar but I was working more for the $50 coupon 😉

      Liked by 1 person

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