Hotel chains promise lowest prices on Web

By Donna Rosato
USA Today

Hotel companies, eager to lure Internet shoppers to their sites, are launching low-price guarantees for online bookings.

Cendant, the nation's largest hotel franchiser, this month began giving online buyers the lowest rate available on the Internet, plus an additional 10 percent discount on stays at its Days Inn, Super 8, Ramada, Travelodge, Howard Johnson, Knights Inn, Villager, Wingate Inn and AmeriHost brand hotels.

Peter Strebel, Cendant's senior vice president, said most Web shoppers visit three sites before they make a hotel reservation. Cendant and other hotel companies said they hope to take business from discounters such as Hotel.com and Quikbook, which buy large numbers of discounted room-nights from individual hotels.

Starwood and Six Continents have begun similar guarantees. Starwood owns the W, Westin and Sheraton brands; Six Continents has Holiday Inn, Inter-Continental and Crowne Plaza hotels.

"In some cases, our customers are finding lower rates on other sites. This (guarantee) is peace of mind for consumers," said Eric Pearson, vice president of e-commerce at Six Continents.

Web hotel discounters say the chains' guarantees are no threat.

"Price is very important, but it's not the only reason people come to our site," said Quikbook President Ray Vastola.

Quikbook doesn't require prepayment like most other travel sites, and it doesn't charge cancellation fees.

"The price guarantees are meaningless. No one uses them because they're so cumbersome," said Bob Diener, president of Hotels.com.

Diener said sites like his also help travelers bargain- hunt among thousands of hotels worldwide.