Best hotel booking portals?

"Alfred Molon" wrote in message
...
For our just completed trip to Poland and Czechia we essentially booked
everything through booking.com. Was ok, but for instance in Cesky
Krumlov I saw many pensions with signs 'rooms available', while when I
booked Pension Antik it seemed to be one of the few alternatives
available. Which makes me wonder if booking.com is perhaps listing only
a subset of the accomodation available. Which hotel booking do you
recommend?

I've always got best prices/conditions from hrs.de.

For my last trip I did get one hotel cheaper at booking.com, but it was on
three day cancellation terms instead of "same day" that HRS was offering.
(and as I was booking on less than three days notice, taking the cheaper
rate meant that I couldn't cancel)

tim

"Andreas H. Zappel" wrote in message
...
Martin wrote:

Most complaints can give you an idea of the hotel, but not much more.

Take a hotel with hundreds of complaints going back years and you get
an extremely good idea.

But still an idea.

Meanwhile there are several customers for discounts or other benefits,
or they will write a bad review.
BTW there are fewer and fewer complaints at the receptions. Because if
a customer complain there the hotel could solve the problem

IME they could, but don't.

There are some "problems" which coud not be solved, because they are
part of the system.
P.e.:
1. We still use the old fashion keys and ask the guests to leave the
key at the desk if they go out. There are several persons starting a
discussion about it. Perhaps they thing we could not enter the room of
they take the key with them. I don't know any hotel in world, using
keys or keycards or a keyless sytem which could not enter the room at
any time - even if the guest is in and did lock the door from inside.

It's got absolutely nothing at all to do with whether you can enter the
room, but everything to do with whether someone else can walk up to the
counter and pretend to be the occupier of room number 5, as you will see as
part of the story in thousands of films.

Verification that the person asking for the key is the actual guest is
absolutely minimal at most hotels and someone will only be caught out if
they happen to ask they same clerk who checked me in and they have some
reason for remembering me.

I never leave keys behind the desk if I don't have to, it is a stupid thing
to do

tim

"tim...." wrote:

It's got absolutely nothing at all to do with whether you can enter the
room, but everything to do with whether someone else can walk up to the
counter and pretend to be the occupier of room number 5, as you will see as
part of the story in thousands of films.

Wow, you got your knowledge out of films. Did you ever hear that films
are fictions?
BTW, if you loose your key, or if someone steels it, he can get into
your room without any risk.
If he has to ask for the key there is the risk that the person will be
asked for the name.

On the other hand, the key at the reception is a security feature if
something is happening in the hotel (p.e. fire). If the key is at the
reception, there will be no one in the room which means no need to
send someone to there for the evacuation.

Verification that the person asking for the key is the actual guest is
absolutely minimal at most hotels and someone will only be caught out if
they happen to ask they same clerk who checked me in and they have some
reason for remembering me.

Most hotels I know which are still working with keys ask for an
identification - and the others will learn it on a hard way to do so.

Greetings frm Cologne

Andreas

"tim...." wrote:

For my last trip I did get one hotel cheaper at booking.com, but it was on
three day cancellation terms instead of "same day" that HRS was offering.

That's normal - a room which must be paid at the booking time and
cannot be cancelled is cheaper than a room which can be cancelled
until X days before the arrival and this one is cheaper as one which
can be cancelled until the arrival date.
BTW, HRS has some anti trust law problems with their new contracts for
the hotels.

Greetings from Cologne

Andreas

tim.... wrote:

"Andreas H. Zappel" wrote in message
...
[]
1. We still use the old fashion keys and ask the guests to leave the
key at the desk if they go out. There are several persons starting a
discussion about it. Perhaps they thing we could not enter the room of
they take the key with them. I don't know any hotel in world, using
keys or keycards or a keyless sytem which could not enter the room at
any time - even if the guest is in and did lock the door from inside.

It's got absolutely nothing at all to do with whether you can enter the
room, but everything to do with whether someone else can walk up to the
counter and pretend to be the occupier of room number 5, as you will see as
part of the story in thousands of films.

I wonder how often that _really_ happens though- I suspect most theft
from rooms etc. is an inside job. I don't like the old fashioned key
system- they are usually quite clunky and it's inconvenient to have to
hand them in and take them out- I much prefer the card system most
hotels use nowadays...

David

--
(*) of the royal duchy of city south and deansgate
www.davidhorne.net (email address on website)
"[Do you think the world learned anything from the first
world war?] No. They never learn." -Harry Patch (1898-2009)

Martin wrote:

On Mon, 18 Jun 2012 07:35:53 +0100, (David Horne)
wrote:

tim.... wrote:

"Andreas H. Zappel" wrote in message
...
[]
1. We still use the old fashion keys and ask the guests to leave the
key at the desk if they go out. There are several persons starting a
discussion about it. Perhaps they thing we could not enter the room of
they take the key with them. I don't know any hotel in world, using
keys or keycards or a keyless sytem which could not enter the room at
any time - even if the guest is in and did lock the door from inside.

It's got absolutely nothing at all to do with whether you can enter the
room, but everything to do with whether someone else can walk up to the
counter and pretend to be the occupier of room number 5, as you will see as
part of the story in thousands of films.

I wonder how often that _really_ happens though- I suspect most theft
from rooms etc. is an inside job. I don't like the old fashioned key
system- they are usually quite clunky and it's inconvenient to have to
hand them in and take them out- I much prefer the card system most
hotels use nowadays...

I know somebody who had a free breakfast for months after he stopped
staying in a Holiday Inn, where he had previously stayed for months.

I must say that sounds a bit more lax than any hotel I've stayed at in
recent years. They seem to keep an eagle eye on breakfasters...

--
(*) of the royal duchy of city south and deansgate
www.davidhorne.net (email address on website)
"[Do you think the world learned anything from the first
world war?] No. They never learn." -Harry Patch (1898-2009)

In article , Andreas H.
Zappel says...
Most hotels I know which are still working with keys ask for an
identification

I can't remember ever having been asked for an ID to enter a room.
--

Alfred Molon
http://www.molon.de - Photos of Asia, Africa and Europe

David Horne wrote:
tim.... wrote:

"Andreas H. Zappel" wrote in message
...
[]
1. We still use the old fashion keys and ask the guests to leave the
key at the desk if they go out. There are several persons starting a
discussion about it. Perhaps they thing we could not enter the room of
they take the key with them. I don't know any hotel in world, using
keys or keycards or a keyless sytem which could not enter the room at
any time - even if the guest is in and did lock the door from inside.

It's got absolutely nothing at all to do with whether you can enter the
room, but everything to do with whether someone else can walk up to the
counter and pretend to be the occupier of room number 5, as you will see as
part of the story in thousands of films.

I wonder how often that _really_ happens though- I suspect most theft
from rooms etc. is an inside job. I don't like the old fashioned key
system- they are usually quite clunky and it's inconvenient to have to
hand them in and take them out- I much prefer the card system most
hotels use nowadays...

I have card problems, though ; it seems that it usually takes multiple
tries to get the door open even when I DON'T put one in the same pocket as
a credit card or, I was warned recently, a cell phone.



--
Erilar, biblioholic medievalist with iPad

Martin wrote:

It's got absolutely nothing at all to do with whether you can enter the
room, but everything to do with whether someone else can walk up to the
counter and pretend to be the occupier of room number 5, as you will see as
part of the story in thousands of films.
Wow, you got your knowledge out of films. Did you ever hear that films
are fictions?

Do you know that it happens in real life too?

Yes, it happens in real life too, but not so often as you can see it
in the films.
BTW, there are some more ways to check if the asking person might be
the customer.

BTW, if you loose your key, or if someone steels it, he can get into
your room without any risk.
If he has to ask for the key there is the risk that the person will be
asked for the name.
On the other hand, the key at the reception is a security feature if
something is happening in the hotel (p.e. fire). If the key is at the
reception, there will be no one in the room which means no need to
send someone to there for the evacuation.

There are hotels where the reception is left unattended. I've stayed
in several. I always take the key with me.

An unattended reception must not mean that the key there isn't safe.

Greetings frm Cologne

Andreas

Alfred Molon wrote:

Most hotels I know which are still working with keys ask for an
identification

I can't remember ever having been asked for an ID to enter a room.

Interesting.
We have the oder to ask for the name if the customer is not known.

If the hotel has a camera in the reception it is easy to add a picture
of the customer to the guest file - and than there is no more need to
ask for an identification.

Greetings from Cologne

Andreas