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4.0 1904 Reviews

Hotwire Complaints Summary

99 Resolved
422 Unresolved
Our verdict: With Hotwire's very poor resolution rate, careful consideration is needed. Research their service comprehensively, and read up on how they handle customer disputes. If you face issues, be prepared for potential challenges in obtaining resolutions and explore other service providers as backups.
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Hotwire reviews & complaints 561

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K
3:31 pm EDT

Hotwire Fake advertise / ripoff

Hotwire, now I know the pain of third party booking and I got lifetime lesson, I will never book with you guys and I will tell as many as people I can. I am manager in hotel, the only reason I booked with hotwire was I couldn't find employee discount in ottawa east area so I had no option left. I booked hotel in ottawa in first week of sep 2016. I booked blind booking but I booked so called 3.5* hotel, I saw some example of hotels on their site which was holiday inn, residence inn, crowne plaza, radisson, I paid $ 115.00 per night. I arrived at the hotel and guess what.. Surprised! Here I have crappy travelodge ottawa east. I go wow! This is 3.5* hotel. I called hotwire and one customer service guy is explaining me that (Holiday inn, residence inn, crowne plaza, radisson) this all hotels which was listed on their website and travelodge all are 3.5* hotel. Omg. I asked to speak with manager, took forever and now again after waiting for so long manager is explaining me same crap, and asking me y do I think this is not 3.5* hotel. They definitely need some training about hotel knowledge, I was so frekin angry and tired I stayed in that creepy hotel. Carpet was so so wet that u couldn't walk with bare feet, room had really really odd smell. It was disaster. I rather advice ppl to pay $20.00 extra and stay in nicer hotel than booking with this hotwire or any third-party.
Manager and the guy I talked with, please not travelodges are not 3.5* hotels, and they do not consider in a same catagory as the hotels you listed on your site to misguide people.

Stop putting fake advertise

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D
9:21 am EDT

Hotwire False advertising / bait & switch

5* boston downtown hotel advertised on website for past 2 weeks. Everytime you try to book it gives you an error but holds your visa authorization for days...Even tried calling to which they state "deal is no longer available"...But why is it still advertised...
False advertising... If you don't have it remove from website.

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R
4:13 pm EDT

Hotwire Hotel reservations

I have been using hotwire for more than 10 years. Two months ago (February 2016) I was unable to make a reservation and given a # to call at their fraud department. I have called that # over 50 times in the last 4 months trying to get information as to why my account has been flagged for fraud. I spoke with my credit card company and we reviewed all purchases and none were fraudulent. I repeatedly called the hotwire number and spoke with countless agents who just tell me there is nothing they can do to help me resolve this. They give me the fraud # that I have been calling for four months with no response .. I am understandably concerned as to why my account has been frozen but the company refuses to respond to me in any way. I have no idea what is going on with the account and what the causative factors are or were.. It is a terrible position to be in and no one at hotwire is willing to help me resolve this. I know we are entitled to know the information that hotwire has that has caused them to be concerned about fraudulent activity in regards to our account.. Hotwire has shown total disregard for our understandable concern over matters that concern our credit and possible fraudulent activity. All we ask is a call back from the fraud department so we can resolve this issue.

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M
4:02 pm EDT
Verified customer This complaint was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

Hotwire No itinerary or refund received. Company will no longer reply to emails

In April 2016 I booked one night at a hotel in Dallas (for June 20016), this was a "Hot Deal". I didn't receive my itinerary so I contacted Hotwire, via email, right away. I asked that they forward my itinerary to me. I received a reply on how to look it up online. These directions did not work. I again emailed Hotwire letting them know the instructions for viewing my itinerary did not work, and requested they forward my itinerary to me. I received the same generic reply on how to view it online. I tried once again to view it online. I even asked 2 different co-workers to try it, it didn't work for them either. Again I contacted Hotwire. This time I asked for a refund so that I could re-book the room and receive a proper itinerary. Needless to say this did not happen. I called them as well as sent 9 separate email request to them to:
A) Provide a refund
B) Provide contact info to their legal dept
C) Provide the contact info to their Operations VP, Pierre-Etienne Chartier.
Not only has Hotwire not provided any information or refund, but they no longer reply to any emails. I have also told them via email that I will not contact them via phone because the reps lie, and I prefer to have a paper trail.
The cost of the room was only $75. But, as a matter of principle I did not stay at that hotel so I don't know for sure if the room was actually booked or not.
It is now August 2016 and the last reply I received from Hotwire was May 31, 2016.

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R
2:04 pm EDT

Hotwire Misrepresentation of "hot deal"

Hotwire just scammed me out of some money by misrepresenting a "hot deal" claiming a hotel had amenities which they do not have on the property. After spending hours with them on the phone, it was hard to get a supervisor on the line and when I did, both denied the claim and were very unhelpful. With the plethora of booking sites available, do not reward shady and untruthful business practices with your money. I tried to contact the corporate offices directly to give them one more shot, and they would not take the complaint. They would not even take the call! If you are unlucky enough to have a reservation with them, think about canceling your reservation. Their customer support service is atrocious and would be unhelpful should you be unfortunate enough to need their assistance. Since Hotwire and Expedia are connected, this goes for Expedia users as well.

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S
12:35 pm EDT
Verified customer This complaint was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

Hotwire Misrepresentation of hotels, horrible customer service, unethical behavior

We have been hotwire customers for more than a year and we made the mistake of trusting the website. We booked several 2 star hotels under the HOT RATE HOTEL PRICES with basic amenities as we are both students and just need a decent place to stay as our main aim was to explore the area and go for sight-seeing and activities in the area. We had a satisfactory stay these few trips as we were provided the described standard of care. We now planned for a trip to Universal Studios Orlando and decided to book for a 3 star and 3.5 star hotel this time through hotwire.com. BIG MISTAKE! First thing we learnt that this "Hot Rate Hotel deal" is a big scam. If you read the fine print, they can stick you with any hotel that they find and is deemed 3 star even if it doesn't meet any required standards! They misrepresent the category by putting in names like Sheraton, Westin, etc. and I doubt barely any customer is actually provided with an actual booking in these places. Instead they have a large mix of any nearby hotels who they deem eligible and chances are you will be stuck with one of them. This is exactly our story and they cheated us this way not once but twice. Here is our story. We made a reservation through the Hot Rate deal at a 3 star hotel and were stuck with a substandard hotel deemed 3 star. Checked reviews on google, yelp, tripadvisor, and several other websites and sorted those with most recent ones. We were horrified to see pictures of filthy and dirty rooms and furniture, complaints about pest infestation and unsanitary conditions. So of course we decided to call customer care. After a long time of explaining the situation and being redirected we finally got an agent who stressed that this would be a one time exception given to us. We of course noted that they should not have kept such hotels in this category and they should update according to recent reviews! In this day and age, who relies 3-5 years old reviews. We finally made a agreement to pay more and get a decent place. The category we chose was a 3 Star Boutique Hotel! Of course again we specified we would require basic amenities and we asked to be filtered out of such places. The lady mentioned that she removed the hotel we complained about. AND AGAIN WE WERE CHEATED! They stuck us with a hotel even worse. The filtering was only for that one place. We got another horrible place with even bad customer ratings and pictures with shower heads hanging, broken chairs and awful conditions. Their claim about the hotel was false - it was not 'boutique'. The hotel was below standard. So we called them again! After speaking with several people and getting redirected about 5 times. All they claim is we were already given a one time exception and they can't do anything further. How is it a one time exception if our complaint was never addressed. Another excuse to stick us up by giving us any substandard place and charging us even more for it! They state that their reservation policy is non-refundable. Of course the policy is enforcable but the standard of the hotel mentioned is not? Their 'customer service' is anything but. The supervisor claims they were isolated incidents when we were ready to provide all the required proof and information from several recent past customers posted online on several travel websites! This is just another way to scam people and they are making great money in doing this. There is no proper management and it did not even seem they were redirecting or doing anything about our case. Just putting us on hold and saying we cannot do anything. We, obviously, now are out of our money and will never use them again. All we were looking for is a decent place to stay! We got scammed by their hot rate deal and misrepresentation of hotels! This is just another effort of on our part so other customers are warned of the shady business these people run! PLEASE STAY AWAY FROM THIS WEBSITE! YOU MAY HAVE HAD A GOOD EXPERIENCE ONCE BUT DO NOT TRUST THEM!

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M
1:06 pm EDT

Hotwire Hotel

I booked Astor crown plaza hotel through Hotwire, when we check in at 7PM the room was not ready, we were asked to check back. Finally the room was ready close to midnight, the room without air conditioner. Manager were called, she promised that the rooms will be for free the first night but has to be refund back thru Hotwire. I won't be able to contact Hotwire customer service. The worst company in the world, they put you on hold for hours & purposely disconnected. Don't ever use this company for your travel need. ZERO STAR!

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Guiell Thomas
, US
Jul 25, 2016 2:21 am EDT

every body have to take careful with this company, because if you don't want the hotel they show you, , never can canceled, they give to you a poor hotel with low cuality, , when you try talk ton customer service they see to you, no cancel any think, o send to you to the insurance company, , that company don't have nothing to do witth the cancel any reservation, never use HOT-WIRE to reservation any hotel car or fly, , no use that company please they hide the stupid rules, and you never know the true until you already reserved, that hotel is a low cualiity

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E
8:06 am EDT
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Hotwire Ripoff

I booked a package (flight + hotel) with cancellation on hotwire. I spoke to a live agent and received a confirmation email with my itinerary number, flight and hotel details. Unfortunately, I have to cancel my trip due to health reason but hotwire said they cant find my itinerary number? Therefore I'm unable to cancel my trip. I've called the airline and the hotel directly and they've confirmed my reservations exists. I've made numerous phone call to Hotwire and spent hours on hold. Hotwire keeps transferring me to different reps but each time they can't seem to find my itinerary number?...I need to cancel my trip but no one at Hotwire can help me...any suggestions?

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12:03 pm EDT
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Hotwire Hotel booking - deceptive business practices, breach of agreement

On 5/4/16 I booked hotel reservations through hotwire.com for a party of 3 (Myself, another adult, and a child). On hotwire.com directly on the home page an adult is listed as (18+ yrs) and a child is listed as (2-17 yrs). I selected my destination, dates, room. Please note: hotwire does not share the name of the hotel or hotel details until after booking is completed. After completing the online booking process and my credit card being charged $823.75 for the stay, only then was I informed that the hotel my party of 3 would be staying at was the holiday inn. There was no issue until we arrived at the hotel and tried to check in. To my surprise the hotel refused to check us in until I paid an additional $400 for my child. The hotel said the cut off age for children is 12 and because my son is 15, he is considered an adult and would have to pay $400 to stay. I argued that I did not select this hotel in fact I had no idea where I would be staying until after the booking is complete and my son should not be penalized for what is clearly a business disagreement/miscommunication between hotwire and the hotel. Needless to say I was forced to pay the additional $400 unless we wanted to sleep on the street and loose the nonrefundable $823.75 already paid to hotwire. Why on earth would hotwire book us at a hotel that has restrictions on children and age limits? Why on earth did hotwire not informed me that this would happen when we arrive? Hotwire is in partnership with these hotel chains. This is there line of business. I spent the 1st 2 hours of my vacation on the phone with hotwire customer service. I spoke to 3 different reps as I had to call back several because I was mysteriously disconnected each time. All reps said I should not have been charged anything additional and my booking was a final sale. The reps said they would call the hotel to resolve the issue. All 3 asked me to stay on hold and took my number in case we got disconnected. While waiting on hold, I was disconnected (Not-surprise) and not one of them called me back. This is just unacceptable. I then went back to the lobby and spoke with the hotel manager who decided to give me a $75 credit. I was still charged $325! If hotwire has hotel partners with age restrictions then their website should reflect that, but it does not it simply says a child is “2-17 yrs” so what is the consumer to do but to trust the company we’re doing business. Why am i, the consumer being penalized for hotwire’s error? Hotwire sent me an email confirmation stating that my hotel reservations for a party of 3 was booked, paid, and all set. The email even went on to say that there’s no need to reconfirm with the hotel. This is what I call false advertising and unfair business practices at its best. I have all documentation and receipts from both hotwire and the holiday inn. I'm requesting a refund for the additional charge of $325.

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Wine Is Good
Wine Is Good
, US
Jun 16, 2016 2:50 am EDT

This is the hotel's fault, not Hotwire. Hotwire advertises based on the information provided to them by the hotels. If there are restrictions from a hotel, then that hotel would not show in the queue based on your selections.

I hope you used a credit card at the hotel. I would be calling my card and filing a charge back for the added costs. I would also be calling the main hotel number (800 #) and filing a complaint.

Saying all of that, it IS always best to confirm with the hotel even though any 3rd party booking agent tells you not to. Policies and rules change, and sometimes, the changes do not reflect fast enough.

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A
4:13 pm EDT

Hotwire Hotel reservation

Booked a one-night stay at Treasure Island Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas for May 28, 2016 (Itinerary #: [protected]). I was traveling with aged parents and when we reached Las Vegas at 10pm and tried to check in, we were told by the hotel that there was no booking under our name. For some reason, the reservation was never communicated to the hotel by Hotwire even though Hotwire charged my credit card and I also received a confirmation email that said there was no need for me to call to reconfirm and that the hotel has been booked. The hotel was also completely sold out so they couldn't accommodate us with a new booking. When I called Hotwire, I kept being passed around between "customer service" and "rebooking" departments multiple times for the next 2 hours or so without any light at the end of the tunnel, after which I finally gave up and rebooked a room in another hotel by myself. I do have to say the Hotwire representative that helped me finally was very friendly, knew what he was doing and issued me a proper refund. But the fact remains that I was left stranded in Vegas without a room and with old parents at 10pm for 2-3 hours all because I trusted Hotwire. This was by far the worst online experience I have had, and I will likely not ever use Hotwire again for my travel needs.

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Wine Is Good
Wine Is Good
, US
Jun 16, 2016 2:55 am EDT

It is always best to confirm directly with the hotel.

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K
8:32 pm EDT

Hotwire Never refunded the actual amount

I booked car for 24 march to 27th march 2016 by phone. Girl on phone booked me a wrong car (5 seater instead of 7). She apologized and refunded me money. But, I didn't get full refund. Its difference of $22.5 due difference currencies. Usd-cad. Now this is 2 months from then. I have called 5 times for refund. I have got nothing yet. Keep telling me wait and keep watching credit card statements. I am tired now. Last time they hang up my call. It was a limit. I don't recommend this a all. Its not about $22 dollars but, fairness to customers.
They are cheating with customers.

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T
5:25 am EDT

Hotwire Crazy extra fees!!

I have booked a plane ticket via Hotwire and when I received a payment confirmation email I noticed there was a mistake, so I called Hotwire and told them about that. They said that they can make changes for some extra cash. I refused because it was not my mistake. After wasting some time on phone I finally agreed to pay and they changed the date. Later I received a notification that I have to pay extra $400! Called and asked what was going on. They said that some extra taxes were added to my ticket! Asked them to cancel my flight and they asked for more money! Terrible company! Avoid them!

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7:05 am EDT

Hotwire Overcharged airfare

I booked four flights (for a family of four) from Ft. Lauderdale to Montreal round trip for what I thought it was a good price. Unfortunately I did not pay close attention to the confirmation e-mail and only two weeks later I noticed that the itinerary was reversed (Montreal to Ft. Lauderdale round trip). I called customer service and two hours later they determined that it was my fault and in order to change my tickets I will have to pay $200 + difference in cost per traveler. The new price per ticket that she gave me was $340 (which included all taxes) less $287 the initial ticket, for a total of $1012 (4 x ($200 + $53), which I agreed to.
Hotwire sent the new itinerary and receipt by e-mail. This time I reviewed it carefully only to find out the total charge was $1361. I called customer service again and was told that the additional charge was for taxes; however, their prices already include all taxes and fees, according to their website.

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Wine Is Good
Wine Is Good
, US
Jun 16, 2016 3:00 am EDT

"I booked four flights" and "I did not pay close attention to the confirmation e-mail".

You made a mistake. The extra charges are the fees charged to YOU that the airline charges to your booking agent, which includes any fare change and the change fee. Airlines charge up to $150 just to change a ticket. You messed up. Pay it, accept your mistake, and move on.

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6:09 am EDT
Verified customer This complaint was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

Hotwire Hotel booking

I am traveling with family members and used Hotwire to book two rooms for two persons per room. Hotwire booked us into a Candlewood Suites hotel which has only one bed per room. After an hour on the phone with them, it was clear that the assumption is: two persons per Queen bed. Even though I explained that I (a 47 yo man) cannot share a bed with my mother (age 77). When I asked for a formal grievance or complaint process, it was explained to me that Hotwire does not have such a process. Eventually I was given an email address ([protected]@hotwire.com), but was told that nothing would be done. It is despicable that Hotwire assumes that two people can share one bed. BEWARE!

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Moodycp
, US
Jun 29, 2016 5:23 pm EDT
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Just happened to me! Hotwire's website stated call hotel directly for bed arrangements. Hotel stated no, you must call hotwire. Hotwire's policy -Two people, no matter who they are, will get one bed. They offered to rebook us in a different hotel, for a lot more money, but still no guarantee, even if you booked saying 4 people in party, that you get two beds. You may get 1 bed and a sofa couch. Really unhappy with this! We are stuck with no way to fix this and will not be able to sleep.

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11:15 am EST

Hotwire Customer service / website malfunction

I called on 03/09/2016 to request a record of my past bookings since they didn't show up on my account. I had called before, last year actually to complain that their website wasn't showing past bookings properly; in any case, I called then got transferred to "the right department"; once explaining my problem, I got transferred again to "the right department". Once I got there, the lady sent me a re-confirmation, saying that to make sure I log in next time since it was booked under a guest account, which doesn't make sense because I always log in, print my confirmation emails and itineraries. In any case, I tried to further explain my problem then the service rep cuts me off by saying "thank you for calling Hotwire, have a great day" and hanged up. Now I'm not sure if the sound / voice was too low to hear but that was just rude.
Also, I never received the re-confirmation email of my package booked through them. Also, their website is full of bugs, reloading, logging in without any reason, logging out.

Worst experience ever.

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M
2:21 pm EST

Hotwire Hotwire overbooked us then left us stranded

Hotwire booked a room at the aloha hotel in arroyo grande, ca. A confirmation email was sent. I personally called hotwire to double confirm the reservation. When I arrived the hotel owner said that hotwire over booked me and there was no room available. I called customer service several times. I was placed on hold 6 times for over an hour each time until the phone just disconnected. Each time I talked to a representative the answer was the same. We can offer you a refund that will take 1 to 2 business days to reflect. We were 5 hours from home and had been sitting in a car now for 11 hours. When I told the representative the immediate danger we were in because we were in a bad part of town, their response was I am sorry for your inconvenience, but did nothing to help get us out of the situation. 50' to the right a girl on some kind of drug, to the left a drug deal happening. Two police cars with lights on searching a homeless man’s belongings. Several suspicious persons turning away anxiously as soon as they saw us in a car. We missed our nonrefundable event due to being on hold with customer service. We were told that we can book our own 2 star hotel and send them the bill. But they already had all the money I had on my card for lodging and would not return it for 1 or 2 business days. So after driving 5 hours then sitting 6 hours we decided for our physical safety we just needed to cancel the trip. So now completely emotionally and physically drained hotwire tells me they are sorry but maybe that is best that we cancel the trip and drive exhausted in the middle of the night another 5 hours home.

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1:14 pm EST
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Hotwire No flight ticket refund.

I changed the time of my flight ticket 2 hours later.
The origination city was the same, the destination city was the same, the date was the same, only the time was changed for 2 hours later.
The change was made 3 months ahead of the flight date.
I was assured that I would pay a flight cost difference, if any, plus a fee of $75.

Hotwire charged me $700+ the full price for the new ticket plus the fee but have never refunded my original booking.

I have called their Customer Service department (what a joke) 15 times over 3 months and they put me on hold until I hangup or if I do not they drop the call. I have written to their Corporate Tier 3 department and NEVER got a reply.

NEVER NEVER USE HOTWIRE.

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11:28 pm EST

Hotwire Charging my card without access to current or available itinerary

I called into hotwire customer service regarding flight prices. The customer service agent convinced me that I would get the best rate by booking on the phone. He took about 45 mins to book it and once he sent me the confirmation email with my itinerary number, the problems started.

The itinerary number he sent me wasn't coming up as accurate. Every time I tried to look up my itinerary number on hotwires site, it came back as an error saying that it is deleted and that itinerary does not exists. Of course, my account was charged $4, 015 immediately. I pointed this out to the agent right away and he told me not to worry about it and he transferred me to another agent because I was concerned.

The second agent transferred me to a third person and that third person said that the initial booking agent had made a mistake and didn't input some needed information. He put my on hold for about an hour and a half. Finally told me that he cant find my complete package in the system and that my best option is to cancel.

finally got put through to a supervisor and he was able to cancel the trip and told me I would have to wait 5 days for my refund. Wasn't very apologetic. I spent a total of 3 hours on the phone because one of their sales agents made a mistake and didn't even get an apology.

I am a singe mom and was very excited to book this trip to take my sister and my kids to mexico. Now, I will loose more money because I have to wait for the refud and try to find anothere good deal to rebook.

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5:58 am EST

Hotwire Refund policy

My wife and I are shocked that following the Zika outbreak and unlike our flight and car hire provider! Who refunded us in full, Hotwire are refusing to let us cance or even rebook to an alternative destination, instead gave false information about the state of the Zika Virus in Puerto Rico, stating it was safe after our Doctor gave us a clear advisory following the CDC and WHO and NHS (UK) warning that pregnant or possible expecting mothers should avoid and not travel to Zika infected areas.

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6:18 am EST

Hotwire Thieves!

I booked a room in a hotel through Hotwire. They confirmed my reservation, but then they cancelled it for no reason. They never told me anything, never even sent me a cancellation email! When I arrived at the hotel, I was told that Hotwire canceled my reservation. I immediately contacted their customer service and asked what was going on. And they told that the cancellation was done per my request. Seriously? Here I was, all alone in another country, with no place to stay. Thanks a lot! These people are liars! I hate Hotwire and will never use it again!

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Hotwire Customer Reviews Overview

Hotwire is a popular travel booking website that offers discounted rates on flights, hotels, rental cars, and vacation packages. Our analysis of Hotwire reviews reveals that the website is highly regarded for its user-friendly interface, competitive pricing, and reliable customer service.

Many customers appreciate the ease of use of the website, which allows them to quickly search for and book travel arrangements. The website's search filters are also praised for their ability to help customers find the best deals on flights, hotels, and rental cars.

Hotwire's competitive pricing is another major selling point, with many customers reporting significant savings compared to other travel booking websites. The website's "Hot Rates" feature, which offers even deeper discounts on hotels and rental cars, is particularly popular among budget-conscious travelers.

Customer service is another area where Hotwire excels, with many customers reporting positive experiences with the company's support team. Representatives are said to be knowledgeable, helpful, and responsive to customer needs.

Overall, Hotwire is a highly recommended travel booking website that offers great value and reliable service. Whether you're planning a weekend getaway or a longer vacation, Hotwire is a great place to start your search for affordable travel arrangements.

Hotwire In-depth Review

In summary: Hotwire is a travel website that offers competitive pricing on hotels, flights, car rentals, and vacation packages. With a user-friendly interface and a variety of travel services, it is a convenient option for travelers looking to book their trips at discounted rates. While the site provides value for money and often has deals and discounts, the opaque booking process may not appeal to everyone. Customer service experiences vary, and the cancellation policies can be restrictive. Overall, Hotwire is a solid choice for budget-conscious travelers who are flexible with their plans.

Overview of Hotwire: Hotwire is a travel service company that specializes in offering discounted rates for hotels, flights, car rentals, and vacation packages. By keeping the details of the hotel or airline a secret until after purchase, Hotwire can provide lower prices than many competitors.

Website Usability and Design: The Hotwire website is clean and intuitive, with a simple layout that makes it easy for users to navigate. The search functions are straightforward, allowing users to filter and sort results according to their preferences.

Booking Process and Ease of Use: Booking on Hotwire is generally straightforward. Users can easily select their travel dates and preferences, and the site provides clear instructions at each step. However, because some details are only revealed after booking, it may not be suitable for those who prefer to know all the specifics upfront.

Range of Services Offered: Hotwire offers a broad range of travel services, including hotel bookings, flight reservations, car rentals, and vacation packages. This makes it a convenient one-stop-shop for various travel needs.

Pricing and Value for Money: Hotwire is known for providing good deals, especially for last-minute bookings. The value for money is generally high, although this can vary depending on the specific deal and travel dates.

Deals and Discounts Availability: The website regularly features special deals and discounts. Users can access these through the "Deals" section or by signing up for the Hotwire newsletter to receive notifications about current promotions.

Customer Service Experience: Customer service experiences with Hotwire can be mixed. Some users report satisfactory assistance, while others have faced challenges when dealing with changes or issues with their bookings.

Cancellation and Refund Policies: Hotwire's cancellation and refund policies are often seen as restrictive, particularly for the Hot Rate deals where changes or cancellations are typically not allowed. It's important for users to review these policies carefully before booking.

User Reviews and Ratings: User reviews and ratings on Hotwire can be found on various external review platforms. These reviews are mixed, with some customers praising the deals and others expressing dissatisfaction with customer service or specific bookings.

Mobile App Functionality: The Hotwire mobile app is well-designed and offers the same functionality as the website. Users can search, book, and manage their reservations on the go, which is convenient for travelers.

Loyalty Programs and Benefits: While Hotwire does not have a traditional loyalty program, frequent users can benefit from exclusive deals and promotions that are occasionally offered.

Transparency and Fees Disclosure: Hotwire's opaque booking model means that some details are not disclosed until after purchase. While the total price is shown upfront, the lack of transparency about the specifics can be a drawback for some users.

Travel Destinations and Accommodations: Hotwire offers a wide range of travel destinations and accommodations, including hotels ranging from budget to luxury. The variety ensures that there is something for every type of traveler.

Rental Car Services: The rental car services provided by Hotwire are comprehensive, with options available at numerous locations worldwide. Users can compare prices from different providers to find the best deal.

Travel Insurance Options: Hotwire offers travel insurance options to protect users' bookings. This can provide peace of mind, especially for more significant travel investments.

Comparison with Competitors: Compared to competitors, Hotwire's main advantage is the potential for lower prices due to its opaque model. However, competitors may offer more transparent booking processes and flexible cancellation policies.

Payment and Security: Hotwire provides secure payment options and takes measures to protect users' personal and financial information, which is essential for online transactions.

Accessibility and Language Support: The Hotwire website is accessible to users with disabilities, and language support is available for a variety of languages, making it accessible to a global audience.

Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability: Information on Hotwire's corporate responsibility and sustainability efforts is not prominently featured, which may be a consideration for socially conscious travelers.

Final Verdict and Recommendations: Hotwire is recommended for travelers who prioritize savings and are flexible with their travel details. It's particularly useful for last-minute bookings and those who don't mind the lack of transparency in exchange for lower prices. However, travelers who prefer knowing all the details before booking or who require flexible cancellation policies might want to consider other options.

How to file a complaint about Hotwire?

Here is a comprehensive guide on how to file a complaint against Hotwire on ComplaintsBoard.com:

1. Log in or create an account:
- If you already have an account on ComplaintsBoard.com, log in using your credentials. If not, create a new account to proceed.

2. Navigating to the complaint form:
- Locate and click on the 'File a Complaint' button on the ComplaintsBoard.com website. You can find this button at the top right corner of the website.

3. Writing the title:
- Summarize the main issue with Hotwire in the 'Complaint Title'. Be concise and clear about the problem you are facing.

4. Detailing the experience:
- Provide detailed information about your experience with Hotwire.
- Include key areas such as transactions, nature of the issue, steps taken to resolve it, personal impact, and the company's response.
- Offer ideas and guidance on what information to include for users struggling to articulate their concerns.

5. Attaching supporting documents:
- Remember to attach any relevant supporting documents to strengthen your complaint.
- Avoid including sensitive personal data in these attachments.

6. Filling optional fields:
- Use the 'Claimed Loss' field to state any financial losses incurred.
- Utilize the 'Desired Outcome' field to specify the resolution you are seeking from Hotwire.

7. Review before submission:
- Review your complaint for clarity, accuracy, and completeness before submitting it.
- Ensure all details are accurate and effectively convey your concerns.

8. Submission process:
- Submit your complaint by clicking the 'Submit' button after reviewing it.

9. Post-Submission Actions:
- Regularly check for any responses or updates related to your complaint on ComplaintsBoard.com.
- Stay engaged with the platform to track the progress of your complaint.

By following these steps, you can effectively file a complaint against Hotwire on ComplaintsBoard.com.

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Contact Hotwire customer service

Phone numbers

1866 381 3981 1866 468 9473 More phone numbers

Website

www.hotwire.com

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Use this comments board to leave complaints and reviews about Hotwire. Discuss the issues you have had with Hotwire and work with their customer service team to find a resolution.