Booking hotel in Venice, Italy through travel website or direct hotel?

Question

I am looking to book a few nights in Venice Italy and I've been doing most of my searches through travel websites like expedia, hotels.com, etc... My question/concern is that I'm liking the prices I see on these websites but when I inquire directly with the hotel, the prices are much more inflated. Is it ok to book through the travel site to take advantage of the lower rate? I am very concerned about having an attached bathroom to our hotel room and I am totally unfamiliar about how to ensure I get a good price but make sure it offers everything we need.

Answer 1

http://www.venere.com is the most known in Italy; it's true if you ask straight to the hotel you may get higher prices while booking through a service Expedia or Venere you can access to better fares. They do agreement with the hotels in order to lure more customers.

I never had any problem with Venere, anyway whatever the agency you choose, remember to bring with you a copy of the mail you recevie as a confirmation of the booking and/or payment, just in case.    

Answer 2

You're fine with booking on expedia or hotels.com. One thing I do make sure of is that the room description is the same on expedia as it is on the hotel's own website. Then when you bring the entire reservation with you to the desk you are certain that you are getting what they advertise.

I'm pretty sure Expedia doesn't get a "volume discount" like a broker will get, rather the hotels put their best prices on these websites because they are competing with hundreds of other hotels.

I like tripadvisor as a sanity check to make sure that I'm getting a good hotel. There are lots of candid remarks from recent travelers which can make you change your mind in a hurry.

Answer 3

Yes, it's okay to book through a reputable third-party website. (Both Expedia and Hotels.com qualify as reputable.) They sometimes are less expensive because they can get volume discounts that an individual traveler does not qualify for. The main difference is that you may be required to pre-pay your reservation through a third-party site.

What type of hotel are you booking? Only budget hotels have shared bathrooms. If it's a higher-end hotel, then it will have private bathrooms. If the website does not specifically mention it, try putting the hotel name in a search engine and checking other sources. The hotel might even have its own website with more detailed information.