Do you LOVE staying in hotels like this...

 

...but paying $300 per night simply isn't an option yet?

I just got off the phone with a good friend of mine, and she told a story about a particular luxury hotel where she and her husband have stayed that charges rates in excess of $250 per night.  

Just to give you an idea of how upscale this place was, one evening they actually ran into a well-known rapper and his whole entourage in the lobby.

When I heard how little my friend paid to stay there, I yelled, "Forty dollars per night? How did you do THAT?"

Turns out, she's a raving fan of Hotwire.com, a site that sells last-minute bookings for hotels.

Before I go any further, this is already sounding a bit like an advertorial, so keep in mind that I have no affiliation with Hotwire! I'm just passing along a cool discovery that you may want to think about on your next trip or vacation.

To explain the concept of Hotwire, imagine a hotel that has a total of 250 rooms, and only 200 of the rooms have been booked for tonight (so far).

If the hotel estimates that 30 of these rooms will remain empty all night, they often allow Hotwire to sell them to people at a highly discounted rate...so they can at least make SOMETHING from those 30 rooms.

After all, most hotels would rather make $40 from a room than $0!

Now, I've know about Hotwire for a while...but I've just never taken the "leap" and tried it. I investigated the site further, and here's an honest look at some pros and cons I came up with: 

Pros: You can choose the level of hotel quality you want (2 star, 4 star, etc.), the amenities you require, how much you're willing to pay, and the specific location of town where you want to stay. In most cases, your stay will be WAY cheaper than the hotel's normal rates.

Cons: You have to pay in full ahead of time, and they don't tell you what exact hotel you'll be staying in until after you pay.

That second "con" has always made me a little uneasy, but if you think about it...what does it matter? You can get very specific about the kind of hotel you want, and their match MUST meet those requirements...so how bad could it be?

If you've ever had a cool experience with Hotwire or know someone who has, I'd love to hear about it. Just click on the "comment" button below and give us your two cents!