Exposing Expedia and their “less desireable” rooms

This past week I was reading reviews on Trip Advisor from people complaining about various properties.  They all had one thing in common:  they had used Expedia.  As a consumer, I like using Expedia because I can see cheap rates for a variety of places.  But there’s a down side to the cheaper prices they offer – many to most times you are not getting the property’s best room, in fact you are going to get the least desireable rooms.  That’s the way it works.

Even great properties have less desireable rooms.  I recently spent a week in London and stayed at the St. Pancras Hotel, a 5 star Marriott property Voted the Number One Hotel in the UK in The Sunday Times Magazine’s 2011 Top 100 Hotels in the World.

The St. Pancras is located above the St. Pancras Train Station

It was stunning, the service equivalent to what you’d expect in a 5 star property, and lived up to every expectation I had of it.  I booked directly through the Marriott website, but got a glimpse of the “less desireable”  rooms.  The rooms themselves were good (not as lovely as others), but the views were either of the roof of the train station, or a lower roof to another building.  The more desireable rooms had views of Euston Street and overlooked the parks, museums and general area.  There was a world of difference between the 2 rooms.

If you were a hotel, would you lower the price and give away your best rooms or your “less desireable” rooms to get showcased on sites like Expedia?  Probably.  But if you are a guest, and can get a more desireable room for the same or similar price as a “less desireable” room, why would you use Expedia or BookIt?  I know the impression is that you get a better deal on Expedia or BookIt, but the reality is that you don’t.

My husband and I have condo’s in Porto Playa and El Taj Ocean in Playa del Carmen, Mexico.  Both properties are beautiful, offer lots of amenities, and both are listed as the top rated properties in Playa del Carmen.

The stunning Porto Playa Condo Hotel in Playa del Carmen

I can go on and on about how great each one is, but the real question is, “Are there any less desireable units in either property?”  The answer is Yes, of course there is.  Some are better than others.  When people send me inquiries, I put them in the best unit available by my standards and my tastes. I don’t want them in the “less desireable” units because I like my guests to be happy and come back again and again.

And yet I admit I’ve got high standards.  To be honest with you I’ve been embarrassed when I see people stay in condo’s the I would consider to be “less desireable” and yet they couldn’t be happier because the properties are so great.  Maybe I set my own bar too high, but there are other people like me, who are disappointed when they walk in a “less desireable” room and know there are nicer rooms, or rooms with better views.

“Less desireable” might mean next to the laundry room, or in a noisier area, or where you have to keep the drapes closed because the restaurant terrace is outside your room, no views/bad views, or next to where the maids congregate, or . . . there’s thousands of ways a room can be “less desireable”.

You might think it’s a matter of price, but that’s not necessarily true.  A savvy traveler can go when they want, get a deal,  and they don’t need a wholesaler like Expedia or BookIt to do it for them.  They know they can get as good a deal and the more desireable unit by going through VRBO or other owner related sites.