The Perception of Value

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OK, value...I am going away for Christmas. (Yippee!) I searched for a place to stay and used Google's hotel finder. Found a hotel rate of $87/night which I KNOW is cheap for the area. Heck, I paid more than that 20 years ago to stay across the street from where I'm going!
Called the hotel to see if they would honor the internet rate and, you know, save themselves 15+% commission. 12 minutes on the phone with an assortment of live and voice prompt 'associates' before someone could honor the rate. And then, out of the blue, I get the room for $78. I didn't ask for that. I certainly took it. And I do know that the room is definitely 'worth' twice that.
So, value-wise I'm happy. Spending 12 minutes on the phone playing 'will she hang up before we do' is not my idea of customer service. (Yes, I could have booked online in 3 minutes. Yes, I could have hung up and called the Hampton right next door. At that point it was a game!)
But, you know it's in the back of my head (and on the back of the door) that this room can go as high as $300 (West Point football game being an example). Worth $300? IF I had to be at that game, maybe. As Joe Citizen? Probably not. It's like the room in Vegas that I had for less than $80 that my mom was being told was $250 3 days after we left. Convention.
Supposedly they serve a cooked-to-order breakfast (incl) and have a pool, spa and exercise room and WiFi is incl, too. (The B&B's in the area are over $200/night and I wasn't planning to pay as I usually sleep on the couch at my bro's.)
 
I assumed everyone rated value on what "they would have paid" versus what they did. The reviews wouldn't make sense if that column was adjusted for what you did pay. You would have to read every review and figure out what they paid versus the value rating and then look at if you are paying full price or not to see if that rating was a plus or not..
The problem is that it's perceived value. So if you are looking online for a room in rural MN and 1* and 2* hotels on h0tw!re come back as $35-$40 a night and then you compare this to a room in NYC where the same dates and the same reservation system comes back with rooms for $129-$139, the guy from rural MN might rate your "value" as very low.
It's a meaningless statistic...
PS: Not a good choice in either case. In NYC you hit $280 before you hit one with 90% happy people. Those it's $55 or so in MN for something that makes 90% of people happy.
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this is why i get cross with 3 in a bed when they have to mark for value - double room in black pool - $80 double room in london for the same thing $300 its all about demand and location. Where I am if you have to come for a particular conference the rate can be double the price from the day before because I know I can get it - and I know all the other bb's will be charging within $20 of what I am charging so why should I charge less.
 
OK, value...I am going away for Christmas. (Yippee!) I searched for a place to stay and used Google's hotel finder. Found a hotel rate of $87/night which I KNOW is cheap for the area. Heck, I paid more than that 20 years ago to stay across the street from where I'm going!
Called the hotel to see if they would honor the internet rate and, you know, save themselves 15+% commission. 12 minutes on the phone with an assortment of live and voice prompt 'associates' before someone could honor the rate. And then, out of the blue, I get the room for $78. I didn't ask for that. I certainly took it. And I do know that the room is definitely 'worth' twice that.
So, value-wise I'm happy. Spending 12 minutes on the phone playing 'will she hang up before we do' is not my idea of customer service. (Yes, I could have booked online in 3 minutes. Yes, I could have hung up and called the Hampton right next door. At that point it was a game!)
But, you know it's in the back of my head (and on the back of the door) that this room can go as high as $300 (West Point football game being an example). Worth $300? IF I had to be at that game, maybe. As Joe Citizen? Probably not. It's like the room in Vegas that I had for less than $80 that my mom was being told was $250 3 days after we left. Convention.
Supposedly they serve a cooked-to-order breakfast (incl) and have a pool, spa and exercise room and WiFi is incl, too. (The B&B's in the area are over $200/night and I wasn't planning to pay as I usually sleep on the couch at my bro's.).
We are going to visit my son & dil for Christmas this year. $86/night in a newish nonsmoking hotel, free hot breakfast, pool, fitness room, free WiFi, free parking, King size bed, big flat screen TV. The local historic hotel (which we stayed in and I couldn't sleep due to paper thin walls and hearing snoring from both my room and the one next door...haha) was $50 more and no breakfast,etc. I think I'm getting a good value....
 
OK, value...I am going away for Christmas. (Yippee!) I searched for a place to stay and used Google's hotel finder. Found a hotel rate of $87/night which I KNOW is cheap for the area. Heck, I paid more than that 20 years ago to stay across the street from where I'm going!
Called the hotel to see if they would honor the internet rate and, you know, save themselves 15+% commission. 12 minutes on the phone with an assortment of live and voice prompt 'associates' before someone could honor the rate. And then, out of the blue, I get the room for $78. I didn't ask for that. I certainly took it. And I do know that the room is definitely 'worth' twice that.
So, value-wise I'm happy. Spending 12 minutes on the phone playing 'will she hang up before we do' is not my idea of customer service. (Yes, I could have booked online in 3 minutes. Yes, I could have hung up and called the Hampton right next door. At that point it was a game!)
But, you know it's in the back of my head (and on the back of the door) that this room can go as high as $300 (West Point football game being an example). Worth $300? IF I had to be at that game, maybe. As Joe Citizen? Probably not. It's like the room in Vegas that I had for less than $80 that my mom was being told was $250 3 days after we left. Convention.
Supposedly they serve a cooked-to-order breakfast (incl) and have a pool, spa and exercise room and WiFi is incl, too. (The B&B's in the area are over $200/night and I wasn't planning to pay as I usually sleep on the couch at my bro's.).
We are going to visit my son & dil for Christmas this year. $86/night in a newish nonsmoking hotel, free hot breakfast, pool, fitness room, free WiFi, free parking, King size bed, big flat screen TV. The local historic hotel (which we stayed in and I couldn't sleep due to paper thin walls and hearing snoring from both my room and the one next door...haha) was $50 more and no breakfast,etc. I think I'm getting a good value....
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Samster said:
We are going to visit my son & dil for Christmas this year.
Wait, when did your son get married??? I must have been asleep. Or I forgot. Or something. If I didn't congratulate you, sorry about that.
The place I am staying shares a name with the guy who owns the local garage station where my parents have been taking their car for gas and repairs since the 60's. I couldn't resist the name. All I could think was the front desk clerks will all be in greasy coveralls.
 
Do you live in the same town? If so, drive outside the city and post it fr there. They are filtering from your IP address is my guess..
Bob said:
Do you live in the same town? If so, drive outside the city and post it fr there. They are filtering from your IP address is my guess.
For restaurants and attractions they do not care if you are local as they know most will be. Must be some wording that is triggering the problem.
 
OK, value...I am going away for Christmas. (Yippee!) I searched for a place to stay and used Google's hotel finder. Found a hotel rate of $87/night which I KNOW is cheap for the area. Heck, I paid more than that 20 years ago to stay across the street from where I'm going!
Called the hotel to see if they would honor the internet rate and, you know, save themselves 15+% commission. 12 minutes on the phone with an assortment of live and voice prompt 'associates' before someone could honor the rate. And then, out of the blue, I get the room for $78. I didn't ask for that. I certainly took it. And I do know that the room is definitely 'worth' twice that.
So, value-wise I'm happy. Spending 12 minutes on the phone playing 'will she hang up before we do' is not my idea of customer service. (Yes, I could have booked online in 3 minutes. Yes, I could have hung up and called the Hampton right next door. At that point it was a game!)
But, you know it's in the back of my head (and on the back of the door) that this room can go as high as $300 (West Point football game being an example). Worth $300? IF I had to be at that game, maybe. As Joe Citizen? Probably not. It's like the room in Vegas that I had for less than $80 that my mom was being told was $250 3 days after we left. Convention.
Supposedly they serve a cooked-to-order breakfast (incl) and have a pool, spa and exercise room and WiFi is incl, too. (The B&B's in the area are over $200/night and I wasn't planning to pay as I usually sleep on the couch at my bro's.).
We are going to visit my son & dil for Christmas this year. $86/night in a newish nonsmoking hotel, free hot breakfast, pool, fitness room, free WiFi, free parking, King size bed, big flat screen TV. The local historic hotel (which we stayed in and I couldn't sleep due to paper thin walls and hearing snoring from both my room and the one next door...haha) was $50 more and no breakfast,etc. I think I'm getting a good value....
.
Samster said:
We are going to visit my son & dil for Christmas this year.
Wait, when did your son get married??? I must have been asleep. Or I forgot. Or something. If I didn't congratulate you, sorry about that.
The place I am staying shares a name with the guy who owns the local garage station where my parents have been taking their car for gas and repairs since the 60's. I couldn't resist the name. All I could think was the front desk clerks will all be in greasy coveralls.
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Maddie, they have been married a year!! Just celebrated their anniversary a few days ago. The wedding was in the town my son lives in now (he has been there just over 2 years & it also happens to be where his wife grew up.) I probably didn't talk that much about the wedding, being the mother of the groom and all. hahahaha....
 
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