Hotwire: Last Minute Hotels Reviews

by Helpwglitch

Wow where to start, first I booked a Hot wire deal for a hotel in Shamrock, Tx. I showed up at the hotel by the address found in my confirmation however they could not find my reservation. Come to find out somehow they have this account mixed up with another hotel in Dallas, TX. When I called this app, I was hung up on 3 times due to them “not getting ahold of the hotel to verify reservation” I advised them the phone # they have associated with this hotel is not correct. I provided the correct phone number to them by a simple google search and 1 rep hung up on me when she told me she called them and no one answered. I placed her on hold and called the hotel and they answered immediately. When I told her this she hung up on me. The 2nd time I spoke with a rep she told me the number that I provided to her for the hotel was a cell #. I advised her it isn’t and did a 3 way call with the hotel. They confirmed they did not have a reservation for me and that I am not the first person who this has happened to with them through this app. The rep hung up on us during our conversation! The 3rd rep, I don’t even know what happened, I thought she was actually gonna do something but she hung up when I was on hold and it went to some voicemail message. I have NEVER had problems with this app before, I use them frequently however I will NEVER use them again after this! I have spent at least 2 hours on the phone with them and I still have not gotten a refund!!!!

by Loganhill689

I wasted a whole evening on the phone with customer service after driving 9 hours to the hotel I booked through this app. My hotel couldn’t find my reservation and this app offered me a measly refund when ANY other company would take care of the customer by covering the FULL cost of the new hotel booking. I took this app’s reimbursement option at the “walk in rate” only to then find out that my hotel was fully booked with no rooms available for me…this app wanted to put me on hold again to look for a hotel in my area but still wouldn’t offer me a full refund for all my trouble. But wait it gets worse. They couldn’t find an open room in my area even though I found one on my own while waiting on the phone…I ended up just paying for my new hotel out of pocket (which was more expensive than what I had previously booked) and settle for a refund for the first hotel booking. At least this was better than wasting more time on the phone. This makes me sick to my stomach and I really hope this company cleans up their mess by reimbursing me for my second hotel booking.

by Dbstock

I used this app to book my car rental for a trip 2 months from now. I had to make a change to the dates so went to the this app site, no change button to be found. Called customer service and asked to simply change my itinerary dates and was told not possible and reservation non-refundable. Just like that, a click of the button and they are stealing $300 from me. Whatever contracts they have in place with car rental companies, a customer should be able to make a date change, especially for a trip 2 months down the road. We are not talking about airline seats last minute at risk of going unfilled. This is a silly car rental reservation. At minimum this app, you need a flashing pop-up warning with flames at checkout that says something like, “BEWARE this app sucker, if you dare try to make a date change after you click this, just know it won’t happen because we’ve already charged your credit card and pocketed your money!” Next step, contact my state attorney general and file a complaint.

by DougBoydad

Our company is removing this app as an option for future travel needs. Due to human error (or perhaps a manipulation by Hotwire ) the incorrect date was selected on a reservation. I did make the mistake of confirming that purchase without rechecking the date. Once the error was determined we contacted this app 24+ hours before reservation and they would not cancel and credit. After reaching a supervisor on phone I brought up the fact confirmation email does specify it is prepaid and can’t be cancelled. She wanted to resend confirmation email so I would have the right polices. She sent the email and well it was the exact same. So now I question if I made a human error in date selection or if app moved date. See the hotel was actually sold out for the dates I believe selected and the this app reservation was a night following when the hotel had availability. In any case, this app was unwilling to offer a credit or refund and chooses to loose out on future business. Poorly run and a shame human error is being taken advantage of. Fool me once but not twice!!!

by GuiSBorges

PLEASE DON’T USE Hotwire! Just go ahead and stick to booking or Airbnb!

I had a reservation for Travelodge in Orlando. When I got to the hotel after a long trip, I was informed the system in the hotel wasn’t working and they could not check me in neither cancel my reservation and refund me so I could go to a different hotel. They left me waiting at the lobby for 2 hours until they could finally get me a room at another hotel. you would think problem solved, right? Wrong! The new hotel was not only more expensive than the one I had already booked, but it was also not as nice. I had booked a room with a king bed and they could only offer me a room with two twin beds. It was a downgrade. In addition, they wouldn’t refund me for relocation costs (such as Uber to the new hotel) nor pay for the difference in price. I wasn’t offered any kind of compensation either! Very poor customer service!

I’m very disappointed with the this app app and will never use it again.

by Loknasta T

this app car rental is such a scam!!! I booked car online on September 30th and I got HOT RATE for it. When I went to rent a car agency ( Ace ) they told me that there is mile limitation for my reservation ( 150 miles a day ) and that I should cancel reservation because if I go further that 450 miles in 3 days I will pay 25 cents per extra mile. These conditions WERE NOT in terms and conditions when I accepted reservation. I called hot wire after agent in ACE told me to call them and cancel. Hot wire did not wanted to cancel my reservation because they told me it was a blind reservation and it is not refundable?! I told them that even if it is blind reservation they SHOULD put all the conditions when you book it, otherwise I got stuck with the car I cannot use. They said they will put those information in the future 😡 I told them I don't care about the future, I want my money back now because it's crazy to scam people like that and do not put all the conditions when you book a car. I ended up being charged for a car I did not use. PEOPLE SAVE YOUR MONEY, do not use this app! Their customer service is rude and their supervisors not doing their job.

by Cbuellschoenman

There are deals on here, no doubt about it. However their strict policies don’t allow for any change even if the fault is on their end. I attempted to book a rental car for an upcoming trip and was given an “Error- transaction can not be processed” message. I closed and re-opened Hotwire and re-booked the same rental. The second attempt approved immediately. However, to my surprise I got trip information for both reservations in my profile. Agents through chat and on the phone confirmed that the details of the reservation were the same and scheduled minutes apart, but there was nothing they could do and I would have to choose which reservation to fulfill and waste the second. A supervisor also confirmed that while it was impossible for me to pick up two rental cars, at the same location, on the same date- that her agents were correct in telling me that this app would not refund either one of the $170 charges. Turns out saving 50% isn’t that great of a deal when you have to buy the same thing twice.👎

by Husky Dad

Worst app ever. For most hotels it only shows 1 picture, even when there are dozens on the this app Website. I tried to book a trip on Hotwire anyway, but it kept saying my credit card wasn’t recognized. So I called my credit card company and they said They authorized the transaction, but this app canceled it. So I called this app and they said it’s because I was trying to book a deal that wasn’t available. After hearing this, I looked again, and the deal still showed up on Hotwire . I also had $15 of “HotDollars” credit, which an email said I could use to book, but couldn’t use it on Hotwire . Hotwire is so much worse than the website.

As an aside, the Hotdeals, you know, the deal where it’s cheaper because you don’t know which hotel it is? Yeah, that’s terrible because they tack on higher fees. I booked a Hotdeal that was $10 per day cheaper than if I knew which hotel I was booking. Great deal! Except after I checked out, the Hotdeal wound up being about a dollar per day more than the normal booking after taxes and fees were added.

TLDR: this app has good deals, just stay away from Hotwire or the Hotdeals.

by Ali Baird

I booked a hotel through this app and when I arrived at the hotel I was told they would not honor my reservation. Because they were overbooked. I called the hot wire customer support number and waited 20 minutes until someone answered. I was on the phone with a customer service rep for another 20 minutes when we got disconnected and no one called me back.
I had to call back again and it took another 20 minutes to get a new customer service rep, he attempted to get another reservation and could not find one so he told me he would refund my account and add a complementary credit. He put me on hold but before he did I asked him if he would call me back if we got disconnected he assured me he would, we got disconnected and he never called back.
Finally I started a chat with a customer service rep which took almost an hour. The final result of the chat was that he would refund my account and send me a confirmation email. I never got a refund and never got a confirmation email. This is absolutely the worst customer service I’ve ever received. I finally had to dispute the charge on my credit card.

by Pointless Games

Booked a hot deal and my card was charged. I was then brought to a screen that said an error occurred and that deal was no longer available. So I had a full trip charged to my card and this app customer care refused to do anything except lay the blame on my credit card company and me. Took 4 days for the credit to be available on my card again. Their customer care department is a third party company out of Malaysia that refuses to give you information on how to contact this app corporate offices after they ultimately refuse to help you.

Stay away from this app. They’ll cause your money to be caught in limbo while you watch hotel prices get higher by the day waiting for it to be freed back to available credit. I booked my room directly through Hampton Inn, the hotel this app suggested I’d get with the hot deal and they were more sympathetic to my problem than this app was and provided the same rate.

Do yourself a favor and book directly through the hotel. Many times they’ll honor prices found on apps like this app. Avoid this app, Expedia and Priceline. They’re all the same company who doesn’t care about you. Just a middleman trying to carve a slice of something they don’t deserve.

by Mgfelix19

So last week I booked a San Diego trip, I tried this app for the first time! I booked a hotel called 4 points San Diego, we drove from LA through traffic with the adress given by hot wire and arrived to a abandon hotel, we get stoped by a security guard that tells us the place has been shut down because of the pandemic, we tell him how that couldn’t be since I just booked through hot wire, he said a lot of third parties haven’t updated! So I had no choice but to book something within 5 min, because I had 2 children in the back, I end up calling to try and get my money back and a Jose told me sure we’ll give you your money back and 5 dollars hot cash, I said ok I’ll probably won’t use them (something I shouldn’t have said) because he came back on the line and said sorry I investigated more and we can’t give you your money back, the hotel is still there you just went to the wrong addressed and they took it as a no show, I told him how can that be if I went to the address given by them, and he said they’re nothing I can do, it’s my first and last time booking with them, it’s not about the money I lost but it’s the fear of them pulling something like this again!

by Tyler2386

So I’ve never had problems with other sites booking a hotel and didn’t expect to have such a headache of a time with these scum. I have had two bad incidents now within two days. First I pick the hotel and the bed and go to book and pay I click pay and it says oops the deal is gone select another room and book now. All the while my card was charged the full amount for the room that was never booked. Now when I contacted them they said they didn’t charge my car that it is a hold placed but not by them so says the rep I’m talking to they can only release the funds and then I have to wait 5-7 days for my money to be put back into my account. So I figured alright I’ll wait. Then couple days later going to book another room what do you know same thing happens again charged my card full price and didn’t book the room at all. Now I’m out a couple hundred dollars until this “release” goes through and I get my money credited back to my account. DO NOT ISE this app AT ALL FOR ANY REASON THEY WILL SCREW YOU OVER AND NOT TAKE ACCOUNTABILITY ON THEIR END AND BLAME YOUR BANK AND THAT YOU NEED TO CONTACT THEM INSTEAD OF this app IM FILING A COMPLAINT WITH BBB AND MY BANK IS OPENING A FRAUD CLAIM AGAINST THEM FOR THEM SAYING THEY NEVER CHARGED MY CARD YET IT STATES CLEARLY IN MY STATEMENT this app SO OF THEY DIDNT AUTHORIZE THE CHARGE THEN ITS FRAUD AND NEED TO BE INVESTIGATED SO IT WILL BE!!!

by SRD 1990

I originally loved this app. It’s what I’ve used for years to book hotels and rental cars. HOWEVER, their policies are complete garbage if you get stuck in a bind. Especially during Covid-19 and all the special restrictions for each state. I live in New York and our governor doesn’t care about the 2 week quarantine mandate that was lifted by the CDC. So me thinking it was now ok to travel (without having that mandatory quarantine) I booked a trip to Utah with almost 600 dollars worth of hotel nights and car rental days. Once I found out that I couldn’t travel there because of our jobs not wanting us to have to quarantine for two weeks, I immediately got ahold of this app assuming they would respond as a good company like Delta would and show compassion on the matter and refund me for the misunderstanding. Long story short, I talked to four different people with one of them being a supervisor and they all said the same thing. Their policy is this and they will not stray from it no matter what. They wouldn’t even give me credit through this app for the 600 dollars I just lost because of something out of my control. DO NOT USE this app. THEY WILL ROB YOU THE FIRST CHANCE THEY GET. There is no compassion, there is no forgiveness. This company is scum and it needs to have light shed on it.

by Frustrated Pal

I booked a hotel through the this app app for the first time a few weeks ago, since a friend recommended this app. It’s a total disappointment when I found that I can get the same hotel / same room at a CHEAPER rate with FREE cancellation. I called Customer Service to ask about their Low Price Guarantee and was told to use the Chat or Message function. I had to spend hours “chatting” with several agents (Celyn, Vince, Jemar, Omar, Mary, Chella) on May 11, chatted with one agent (Bree) on May 10. Everyone told me that my chat history will not disappear and they will get back in 5-10 minutes, which did not occur! When I finally spoke with someone who knew how to search or click on the link I sent, and look at how the other websites are offering lower/better rates, she agreed to issue a refund back to the original form of payment. After checking my bank statements several times, I decided to reach back out to see if they’ve processed my refund. Of course, I was told that because I did not respond during the chat session, they can’t do anything. The agent did NOT even ask me any questions. She was merely stating I’ll get a refund back on the same form of payment. Be careful when using this app because you will NOT get customer service that will provide support.

by VmarieD

this app is by far the worse booking site I could have possibly used. There customer service agents are not helpful, I requested to be escalated to a supervisor and then they ignored my request. My issues were bit resolved and I was unable to receive a refund that even the rental company who I used said they were happy to issue. On my family’s vacation to Florida my wallet was left on the plane. I had my id but sadly my license and such were in the wallet. Upon getting to the car rental place they would not allow me to retrieve the car without the license but they would refund it. Hot wires policy said I needed an id and since I didn’t have it there was nothing they could do to help me. So now I have no car and won’t be refunded. The customer service rep then went on to say I won’t transfer you to a manager because they will just tell me the same and stopped responding. If the company the rental was from would honor a refund I don’t see why this app shouldn’t. Furthermore this would have been easier to accept if the person I spoke with wasn’t so rude and condescending. This was not an ordinary circumstance and if this is their policy I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone. I plan on making complaints on the site until someone gives me a more accurate response. And for the record the booking policy says id not drivers license if this wants to become a technicality thing. BBB will hear this.

by Moveplaylearnnow

Multiple time problems with this app. Their customer service is basically to tell you there’s nothing they can do.

I’ve paid for hotels that were fully inhabited aka no vacancy and got no refund and had to pay again. I’ve booked a room and they put me in an unfinished room like a closet - no refund or discount. I’ve been kicked out of a hotel bc it was for out of state travelers and I live in the state I guess too local for them - no compensation and today I didn’t fully send a payment with apple pay and it didnt authorize my card. Then I went back on the browser and got a new room, and this app charged me twice for the same date. Again I called and nothing. Just sorry no refund. Why would I book two hotels on the same night?

I guess I forget all these horrible times getting stiffed by this app bc I continue to book thru them. I guess I deserve what I get for being stupid.

by Kim Ann B

I have no idea how this is a 4 star hotel. Convenient to trolley stop and location feels fairly safe. Otherwise staff is rude, elevator smelled strongly of weed and got stuck with my son and husband in it, if you self park in the garage there is no access to hotel. You have to walk up on foot from the underground parking and enter the hotel through the front doors. It’s a side business run by the valet guys - super shady. Our first room REEKED of cigarettes and we immediately noticed it had not been cleaned. That was confirmed when we opened the toilet and there was urine, ash and a partially smoked cigarette in it. Asked front desk for a new room and they were rude and unapologetic. Second room was cleaner, but still not what I would expect from a 4 star. Maybe a motel 6 level of quality. We booked 2 queens but ended up with 2 doubles (if they were even double size. So very small that the sheets just hung off of them). For the price, I’d definitely skip this one and choose a different hotel.

by GnomeRocks

this app sometimes has a good deal, but I wonder if saving $15 now and then is really worth dealing with their unpleasant customer service. They booked me into a hotel that ended up being full, and was talked by their customer service into accepting the refund with Hot Dollars when they told me I would not get my refund for 9 days otherwise. They did not bother to tell me that you can only use Hot Dollars on their website where the prices are like $4 more so I had to call them back to figure out to login on their website. They did absolutely nothing beyond wasting my time putting me on hold to confirm over the phone with my original hotel that they overbooked, reading me terms and conditions for another 10 minutes and making me pay $4 extra on a different hotel to make me happier after they made my evening such a hassle. My recommendation is to avoid their crummy Hot Dollars for refunds. Live and learn.

by ZayRose

Hello, I will say that I have booked multiple rooms with great views of the city. Being able to use the this app app to see where I get options for hotels allows me to accurately determine where I would like to be located within the city I select. Do not hesitate, this app gives you top of the line rooms for a very affordable price. Everywhere I’ve stayed has been absolutely beautiful, I have plenty of places for food, Drinks and restaurants. Also the staff always shows top of the line professional service. Even during Covid 19, If you want to be smart with your funds and still book with a luxurious look, Book with this app, I promise you that you won’t forget a memorable stay. 🏨🔥

by Rifferr

I’ve used this app twice now, both to book hotels in Charlotte, NC. First one was a 4-Star Hotel in Uptown Charlotte for about $111/night which was about $140 cheaper than any other hotel in the city. Next time I used it we got a 4-Star Hotel in the heart of the city for about $104/night - even better than the first time! Although you may not know exactly where you’re staying at the time of booking, it may be worth while if you are planning on being in a big city or somewhere loaded with hotels because this website will give you the best rate because of that no show until book policy. Just read the details like free WiFi, parking, choose your bed or hotel chooses for you, etc. before booking and you shouldn’t have a problem!!

by Link2Leo

I'm a long time user of this app and thought to have learned the ins and outs of Hotwire through experience but when I booked a rentacar with Ace @ LAX I was greatly disappointed to discover not only is this app deceptive but also dishonest. They are swindlers!
A few days before pickup they issue a notice on where to pick up your car. It stated there’s a shuttle from the airport to Ace but sure enough I soon discovered there is no shuttle bus to Ace whatsoever! In fact, ACE's scam is to use other car rental shuttles (thrifty is closest). I was walking around the airport jet lagged after a 10 hour flight like a zombie with my family in tow trying to get to my car. It’s absurd! I attempted to get a taxi but they told me $30 min for a 5 min. ride. Finally I figured out how to get there by thrifty's shuttle.
What’s more, I wrote a long letter to this app explaining my predicament and got no response. They never reply to these reviews here because they are swindlers and liars. I pray nobody goes through rentacar hell like I did.

by Lil Wonder

Last year I used this app and I got booked at a Hotel that I was previously booked at through this app in another year and which I felt very unsafe. When I called to see if I could switch hotels and explained to them that the previous year I had an incident happened to me where I was assaulted at that hotel, they refused to change me into another hotel and told me that all bookings were final. It took me two hours to finally get them to at least change my Hotel as they would not give me a refund.

I gave them another chance and I am really angry that I did. This year, I wanted to book a hotel and after entering in a different credit card information for whatever reason it booked a different listed hotel that I did not want to stay at. When I called to rectify The situation they would not do anything about it. I never write reviews and I really hope that no one ever uses this service ever they’re awful.

by Dmpyle

Hotwire and the company behind it are horrible and you can save yourself a lot of pain by avoiding them both. I was trying to book a hotel for the following week and noticed that Hotwire kept changing my dates to the current day every time I refreshed the search. Finally booked one and thought I was good to go. When I arrive at the hotel they have no idea who I am and it turns out Hotwire booked the hotel for the same night I booked it. Then the hotel says someone checked in and used the reservation. I called this app and they said since it’s a “HotRate” deal there are absolutely no refunds or changes, which apparently includes their system screwing up. So now I payed for someone else’s hotel room last week and had to get a last minute room at full price when I arrived totaling over $700 for what ended up being a 7 hour stay in the hotel. I will never use anything with the this app name again

by DidappointedInHotel

I can’t voice my disappointment enough in this hotel. I came to Chicago to shop and go to a play. I input ‘downtown’ when making the reservation and even called the hotel, when I saw it was an option, to ask if it was walking distance to the main shopping areas. I was there three nights and paid more for urber rides than the hotel! I would have done so much more in Chicago if it wasn’t an additional $20+ to get to the city. Hotel itself was okay. Tiny and old. Plus when you get there an additional $20 per night, in the small print when you book, for extra amenities that you will never use. Spa down the road, discount at the bar(that was never open late enough to use). Live and learn. Unless you are planning on staying in the Gold Coast area book someplace else. The extra for the room is worth it. Ended up costing me over $100+ more than planned.

by Vee562

I booked a hotel and one of my main filters was a hotel with a pool. I chose the hotel but upon arrival noticed construction going on at the hotel near the pool. I then ask the receptionist and she says it will be opened the next day, FOR SURE. The next day, the new girl now working the front desk, says the pool will be opened after 5. Again I let it go because our reservations were for a few days and we would have time to hang out by the pool once it opened. I return to the hotel later that same day with my two children and husband to see posted signs saying the pool will not be opened til renovations are completed. I was very disappointed with this app for not letting me know this hotels pool would be out of service and then the hotel, Comfort suites Odessa, for giving me the run around. Very inconvenient and upsetting. I work hard for my money and want what I pay for.

by Lcm Lon

this app uses bait and switch when you book with them. They said I was guaranteed to receive my car rental from Enterprise Alamo National Hertz Dollar Budget. When I went to book car rental they gave me Advantage. I called them to mention that advantage was not advertise in my five guaranteed car rentals companies. They did a bait and switch on me and they refused to switch me to one of the other car rental companies. In which they advised I was guaranteed in their online listing. I reviewed advantage and their customer reviews had so many negative complaints with this car rental company. I didn’t feel safe using them for my family trip. this app refuses to issue me a refund or switch me the the rental company that they guaranteed to me. I will never use this app ever again. Poor customer service and not a trusting company. Their bait and switch was very this honest. Buyers beware

by Ph_ag

Warning false advertising - just as another reviewer experienced I was also charged for a room but then receive an error. Which means the room and that deal “got away” which is bs. I called and they stated the price went up reason why it did not book but yet charged my card. So I asked can you they use that credit to pay the difference to book another room they said no. So I let it be and waited til the next today to see if my credit card got refunded back. Nothing yet..... so I saw the same deal again (my mistake) and I tried to book it and the same error I received. I got charged again, so now I have two charges pending. I understand that it’s not fully charged just a hold but on my end it shows that it’s charged, now I have to wait 3-5 days. So now I can’t book anything for my birthday weekend. So be aware DONT USE this app - PURE FALSE ADVERTISING!!!!

by SLG1220

Hotwire is really well designed. We were able to score a great deal on a hotel in downtown Chicago for a family staycation. Thanks to the advanced filters, we could narrow down to a specific neighborhood and find a hotel with a pool. The kids had a blast and we were able to use some of our savings to splurge on a nice meal at the hotel restaurant. I will definitely continue to use this app and will certainly recommend Hotwire to my friends and family. Thank you this app!