Which platform is the best for booking a hotel?

With the effective prevention and control of domestic epidemic, all parties predict that the May Day holiday is expected to usher in "explosive travel". Ctrip's May 1 report shows that as of April 14, hotel orders increased by 43% during May 1 compared with 20 19. At the same time, the topic of ticket seconds was hotly searched. In order to meet the "holiday economy", operators in the tourism industry have launched attractive promotional activities, and hotel reservation platforms have also launched "May Day special" activities. The same house, shop around, always has the lowest price.

In this context, the Du Nan Deep Test Team selected six mainstream online booking service platforms and randomly selected hotel listings for experience. The results show that the price of the same house is not consistent among platforms, but some merchants said that if the price of the platform is too low, they may refuse to take orders.

Appraisal object

Pig travel, Tongcheng, Ctrip, Tuniu travel, Meituan travel, where to travel?

Evaluation dimension

Price, housing and refund rules.

Dimension description

The price is mainly evaluated from the price of the same house on different platforms.

The housing situation is mainly evaluated from the consistency between the housing information displayed on the platform and the actual housing information.

Retreat rules are mainly evaluated from the retreat time of the same attribute on different platforms.

Evaluation procedure

A

price

There are price differences between platforms, and there are multiple quotations for the same hotel and the same room type on the same platform.

The test team randomly selected different hotel lists and compared the information on each platform. It is found that the price display of the same property on different platforms is inconsistent, and hotels of the same type have multiple quotations on the same platform.

The biggest price difference of a deluxe big bed room on different platforms is 564 yuan.

Take the luxury big bed room of a high-end hotel near the window of the world as an example. In the case of consistent dining service and confirmation service, the prices of the six platforms range from 900 yuan to 1500 yuan. Among them, the same price is the highest, which is 1545 yuan; Followed by pigs, 123 1 yuan; The prices of Tuniu, Ctrip, Qunar and Meituan are 1 192 yuan, 1 15 1 yuan,11yuan and 980.40 yuan respectively. The biggest price difference of this property on six platforms is 564 yuan.

But the difference between luxury hotels and budget hotels is also tens to hundreds of yuan. A luxury hotel in Tuniu has the highest price, reaching 1.749 yuan, which is 325 yuan different from Tongcheng 1.424 yuan. An exquisite big bed room in a budget hotel with a relatively low unit price costs 4 18 yuan in Meituan and 339 yuan where to go. The biggest difference is 79 yuan. It can be seen that the price of the same house on different platforms generally varies in size.

The above luxury hotels told the test team that the prices of each platform are related to their preferential activities and belong to the marketing behavior of the platform itself. In addition, an economy hotel near the aforementioned Window of the World told the test group that its offline stores had not set the price during the May Day period, and the price marked online was set by the platform itself. Consumers can check in normally after the reservation is confirmed.

Where are you going? The price of a room is as high as 17.

In addition to the different prices displayed by the same listing on different platforms, during the evaluation process, the test team also found that there are multiple quotations displayed under the same listing on all platforms. Take the luxury big bed room in the above-mentioned high-end hotel as an example. On Qunar.com's page, there are as many as 17 optional prices displayed at the bottom of the room. It is difficult for the test team to distinguish some price differences by displaying information on the page. The same situation also appeared on the other five platforms. The aforementioned house price is 6 for flying pigs, 10 for the same journey, 7 for Ctrip, 1 1 and 3 for Tuniu and Meituan respectively.

The test team called the customer service in Qunar.com on the issue of multiple quotations. The customer service said that different quotations are because different prices contain different services, including different refund rules, different food supplies and other additional services, such as late check-out. However, for consumers, if they only look at the information displayed on the page, they may

Besides the different additional services, there are also marketing activities of the platform itself. During the evaluation, the test team found that there are two ways to book some houses on the same trip: * * after enjoying "and" direct booking ". If consumers enjoy the listing information, they can save one yuan compared with "direct booking".

B

house

The platform shows that reservations can be made, but merchants may refuse to place orders, and there is a "waiting period" for placing orders.

The test team found that the remaining housing situation and housing prices displayed on the platform were not completely consistent with the actual situation of the merchants, and some merchants indicated that they might refuse to accept the platform orders.

On the basis of different pricing strategies adopted by each platform, in the actual booking process, the test team found that whether the target hotel is open to the six platforms is inconsistent. It should be pointed out that this is related to the wishes of the hotel itself. For hotels all over the country, this evaluation shows that the housing situation of all online booking platforms is the same, but some self-operated homestays and inns have some platforms to book, and some platforms cannot.

There is an "information gap" between the actual housing and the platform.

In addition to the "information gap" between the actual housing situation and the platform presentation, if the housing price on the platform is too low, the merchants will also refuse to take orders. Take the big bed room of another inn at the end of the stadium as an example, and its quotation on Flying Pig and Meituan is 579 yuan and 639 yuan respectively. However, merchants said that the pricing of the two platforms during the May Day period was lower than their expected price, and they will not take orders according to the pricing of the platforms at present.

Merchants call the platform price "wrong price"

The same thing happened on Ctrip. The test team chose an inn at the end of the competition venue on Ctrip platform and booked a big bed room in the inn. The order submission page shows that the original price of the property is 763 yuan. After using the 5 yuan voucher, the new house will be 1 15 yuan voucher. On the 1st, after buying 53 yuan coupons, the price was 590 yuan. Compared with 780 yuan quoted by merchants, the difference is about 200 yuan, which is nearly a quarter of the pricing of merchants.

When the test team asked the merchants whether they could place orders directly on Ctrip, the merchants said that the price of Ctrip was the "wrong price", which was the activity price that Ctrip staff applied for by using the merchant account without authorization. It is not a voluntary preferential activity, which is too different from the pricing of merchants. Consumers are not advised to place orders in Ctrip. At the same time, it is said that the reason why its housing is displayed as "reserved" on the US Mission is because the staff of the US Mission often change the price.

, so don't sell. For consumers, if merchants do not recognize the price of the platform, they may encounter the problem of not being able to place orders, which will increase the cost of time and energy.

In this case, the platform said that this was a unilateral misunderstanding of the merchants. This activity is open not only to hotel-level members, but also to new users. Merchants misunderstand that this activity is not open to new users. Now that it has been explained clearly, the two sides have reached an agreement.

To shorten the waiting time, you can select the "Confirm Now" label price.

Merchants said that consumers can place orders on the platform, but there will be a "waiting period". Merchants with the right price will take orders, and merchants with the wrong price will refuse to take orders. Ctrip customer service said that the booking on its platform cannot guarantee a certain success. After booking, consumers still need to wait for the confirmation from the platform and merchants, subject to the final confirmation result, and the confirmation time of each merchant is not exactly the same, so consumers need to take the order page as the standard.

For the questions that need to be confirmed after booking, Ctrip said that the platform provides a variety of booking forms. If you want to reduce the waiting time, you can choose the price with the "Confirm Now" label to make a reservation.

C

Retreat and reform

Some platforms have stricter rules for quitting the network than those defined by merchants.

Some platforms have stricter retirement rules than merchant-defined rules, and merchants indicate that they need to follow the platform rules.

In terms of returning and changing the visa, the tester team noticed that the rules of the same property on different platforms are not the same. Taking the big bed room of an economy hotel as an example, under the condition that the listing information and meals are consistent, among the six platforms, the free cancellation time of Zhu Fei, Tongcheng, Ctrip and Meituan is before May 0 18, which is consistent with the rules of offline merchants. The free cancellation time of where to go is slightly advanced, and the platform shows that it can be cancelled free of charge before 0: 00 on May 1 day. The free cancellation time of Tuniu is quite different from that of merchants, and its latest free cancellation time is before 23: 00 on April 30, which is more "strict" than other platforms.

Merchants said that the platform's withdrawal rules were decided by the platform itself. If consumers place orders on the platform, they need to abide by the platform's return rules. When booking, consumers need to pay special attention to the return and modification rules of the order page to avoid trouble when returning and modifying.

There is room for improvement in the price and accuracy of housing information.

In addition to price, housing situation, and retreat rules, the problem of killing big data that frequently breaks out is also of concern to consumers. In terms of hotel reservations, big data killing was once a serious problem for all platforms. Not long ago, at the platform "Big Data Killing" special research meeting held by Guangzhou Municipal Market Supervision Bureau and Guangzhou Municipal Bureau of Commerce, Meituan, Ctrip, Qunar.com and other platforms 10 signed a commitment letter: they promised not to illegally collect and use consumers' personal information and not to "kill" by taking advantage of data. In this evaluation, the test team did not find the problem of "big data killing" on the platform.

Generally speaking, although the six platforms of this evaluation have not encountered the problem of big data killing, there is still room for improvement in the accuracy of price and housing information, and more reasonable rules should be formulated. At the same time, when booking hotel accommodation, consumers need to carefully read information such as additional services at different prices. In addition to booking on the platform, they need to further confirm with the merchants and avoid the "pit" in time to get a better consumer experience.

Data analysis and content provision: researcher and intern Zheng of Shenda think tank.

Design: Liu Xiaocong

Related Questions and Answers: Related Questions and Answers: Is it reliable to book a hotel on Ctrip? Thank you for inviting me!

In the past two years, there have been more and more negative reports about Ctrip. On the one hand, Ctrip is the only one. Because of the expansion and integration of various businesses, there are indeed such and such service problems. With the popularity of the Internet, this problem has gradually fermented and become a negative example in society. On the other hand, as an OTA platform, Ctrip will also have some third-party products. As a profit-seeking company, there will be some obscure services such as bundled insurance or service policies. Because the user is not careful, there is a "pit". Even so, I still think Ctrip is the most reliable or the best service among many OTA platforms. It is the first platform for domestic air tickets and hotel reservations in i query. It's not that I'm forcing Ctrip to wash white, but I'm objectively talking about my feelings about using Ctrip.

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I have used Ctrip for more than ten years, and I have encountered some problems in the process of using Ctrip (including Ctrip, E Long and Qunar). Here are some typical problems and final solutions (the first three E Long were not acquired by Ctrip):

On 20 10, I booked a round-trip ticket from Beijing to Kathmandu via E Long. On the way back, China Eastern Airlines canceled the flight, but E Long didn't inform me in advance. E Long's solution is to replace China Southern's premium economy class for free.

20 1 1 A hotel in Chengdu made a reservation through E Long and was told that there were no vacancies in the reserved room type. The solution given by E Long is to upgrade the room type for free.

20 12 booked a hotel in Chengdu through E Long, and was told that there were no vacancies in the reserved room type when checking in. The solution given by E Long is to upgrade the room type for free.

20 15 booked a hotel in Guangzhou through Ctrip. When I checked in, I was told that there was no room available in the reserved room type, and I needed to pay more for the upgrade. When I said I would complain about Ctrip, the hotel directly gave me a solution to upgrade the room type.

20 15 The flight from Foshan to Beijing booked through Ctrip was oversold. Ctrip's solution is to change Guangzhou to Beijing for free, and compensate 200 yuan and the airline for 100 yuan.

20 16 booked a round-trip ticket from Beijing to Colombo through Ctrip. Because it is a special price, I don't want to return it or exchange it, but I have to return to China in advance for personal reasons. I tried to apply for a refund. Ctrip and Cathay Pacific coordinate tax refund, service fee and refund fee of tens of yuan.

20 18 Xiamen Airlines canceled the flight through the Tianjin round-trip ticket booked by Ctrip. Ctrip's solution is to change Shandong Airlines flight for free, and compensate 100 yuan.

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Of course, all kinds of problems I encounter are not only using Ctrip, but also booking, Agoda, future meetings, flying pigs and so on. I have also encountered problems such as flight cancellation, sudden cancellation of orders when the hotel is approaching, and the goods provided do not match the description. Although I feel angry every time I encounter a problem, I get a more reasonable solution every time, and my journey is not delayed by Ctrip or service providers. Share how to communicate effectively with Ctrip after encountering problems;

First of all, don't panic or get too angry when you encounter problems. First, try to communicate satisfactory solutions with hotels or airlines. If the coordination fails, contact Ctrip customer service to complain, clarify your requirements and customer service, and let Ctrip coordinate for you. Don't blame Ctrip customer service too much. In fact, sometimes hotel overbooking and flight overbooking are not Ctrip's problems, and Ctrip's customer service does not have much ability to help you get a lot of things right away. They are only responsible for recording and coordinating, and help you communicate with the service provider according to their procedures. All you need to do is tell your request and wait patiently. The requirements should be reasonable. For example, if the hotel is oversold, I will arrange an upgrade for you or a hotel in the same level and region; If the flight is oversold or cancelled, I will arrange for you to change your ticket or arrange accommodation during your stay. Of course, you can also ask for some financial compensation. But for an order that can't be returned and changed, it doesn't meet your requirements in general if you want to return and change it after booking.

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Since I have encountered many problems in the process of using Ctrip, why do I still think Ctrip is more reliable? Mainly due to the following reasons:

The largest OTA platform in China. Just as we choose big brands when buying things, we should also choose a guaranteed platform when choosing travel service providers. On the one hand, it ensures the security of our personal information and payment information, on the other hand, it will be more secure in service and have a certain price advantage. For example, there are many problems in JD.COM, but from my experience of using JD.COM for more than ten years, the method and speed of solving the problems are the most satisfactory.

Perfect service system. 24-hour customer service, almost no need to wait for a long time, solve the problem within 24 hours (although customer service says 24 hours, it usually takes 5~6 hours to get a reasonable answer), which is not available on many platforms. For example, Agoda rarely waits less than 15 minutes, and there is no reply to booking complaints. The hotel provides services from 9 am to 9 pm, not to mention small service platforms abroad, so Ctrip is often dubbed as "nanny service".

Easy to use platform. Many people criticize Ctrip for bundling insurance. In fact, if we carefully look at the price composition before submitting the process, we will notice whether other services are included. If so, we can cancel it before submission. From this point of view, it is not uncommon for some airlines to make reservations on some platforms in official website and abroad, and some of them are even "hard to find", such as default meals for low-cost airlines, baggage consignment service, and automatic deduction of a certain percentage of service fees after submission by foreign OTA platforms. Moreover, now Ctrip is also improving, focusing on the extra services on the service interface.

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Finally, now the competition is so fierce and the price is very transparent, so the competition between platforms is mainly reflected in the service, so as long as it is a big OTA platform, I personally think it is reliable. But the reliability mentioned here is not that 100% has no problems and errors, but that they can provide you with reasonable solutions after problems occur. Finally, I would like to remind you that you need to pay attention to booking hotels through OTA platform:

Choosing self-operated products, products provided by third parties, after problems appear, disputes are likely to occur;

No matter which platform you use to book a hotel, if you are worried, you can contact the hotel by phone or email before you leave after booking to help you check whether there is an order for you to avoid overselling.

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