Hi, i recently booked 2 rooms X 3 night for my family trip to Phuket with agoda.com. The total amount i was billed is USD512.49 around RM1773.20 (X3.45). But when I recieved the statement for my credit card, I was charged USD554.64 around RM1913.51. So there is an extra charges of RM140+ which is about 8% different. I understand the currency excharge going up and down everyday, but I think RM140+ is a bit too much, so I email them regarding this issue, and here is their reply:


Thank you for your email.

Regarding to your inquiry, we charged in local amount, Please be aware that many banks charge fees for processing exchange conversions. These charges are typical in the industry and are often built into the exchange rate. We only select partner banks who agree to maintain competitive levels for these fees. For charges that are converted to your local currency by us before being processed by your Credit Card Company or local bank we use the mid-rate applicable on the date of the transaction. As most of the world's major currencies are valued against the U.S. Dollar, the mid-rate is a true indication of the current exchange rate.

If you would like us to recharge in USD then we will process full refund for the previous local amount accordingly. Would you kindly advise your acceptance by return. Thank you.

Should you need further assistance, please feel free to contact us at credit@agoda.com

Best Regards,

Titima Panjach
Credit Specialist

So is this a comment practice? I am not sure, since this is the first time i book oversea hotel through online. And they are offering me a "recharge in USD" which i don't fully understand how different would that be. So i really need some opinion here. RM140 aren't really breaking the bank, i just don't like being "con", if thats the case here. Anyone?

Thanks.

BTW, even with the extra RM140, they are still a lot cheaper than any other website i can find. The same hotel from Air Asia GoHoliday would be RM2400, and if i booked directly from the hotel it would be slitly cheaper than GoHoliday.

This post has been edited by tong1774: Jan 2 2009, 11:57 AM

First there appears to be a diff between US amt charged .....USD554.64 vs USD512.49 .
Many hotel booking sites charge an adm fee which will be shown when u make the booking.

The explanation given by the mail seems to explain the rate used for the conversion. non Ringgit Charge made to credit/charge card denominated in MYR will be converted to MYR at exchange rate at date of billing...

My credit card statement din't show the USD, only in RM. I did the conversion myself by X3.45. So are you saying that it is actually quite reasonable?

Just check back their side, the same hotel now is even cheaper, which is weird seeing it is actually closer to the check in date.

Your quoted rate at USD3.45 is way outdated already..unless u charged mths ago?

Current rate is about Us$3.6 but CC company normally quoted higher than market rate by ~USD0.15 from my previous experiences!! So the actual charged rate at US$3.75 is about the rate using CC

The charge is last month. So if its 3.75, then the amount is about right. But 3.45 is the rate when i book the rooms.

Last mth US$ was at it's peak..I remembered RM fall sharply last mth & reaching almost US$3.65 Are u pretty sure US3.45?

Unless u mean u charged ~Sept?

http://www.gocurrency.com/v2/historic-exch...y=1&frYear=2008

Hmm weird, the online currency calculator give me 3.45+, guest its wrong then. My bad.

Check the date you got charged wth Bank negara mid- rate here:

http://www.bnm.gov.my/index.php?ch=12&pg=6...ype=Mid&unit=rm

If u got charged after 17/12, rate pretty close to 3.45

The transaction date listed on my statement is 13/12. Checked bank negara closest is RM3.5495.

This post has been edited by tong1774: Jan 1 2009, 10:42 PM

My experience with non MYR charges using CC is this.

Say i charge US 200 on 1/12/08. I see from internet or bank rate 1 US $ - MYR 3.53.

The CC statement states.....US $200 charged to my account dated 3/12/08. The exchange rate used will be diff from 3.53 - 1 as the date used will be that of 3/12/08 Plus the rate used will be one that is used by the card issuer viz some arrangement with some third party. (as explained in the email reply to u) Most of time, the rate used is higher than what we see quoted.

I have rates that worked in my favour sometimes, but most times, its slightly higher than if i were to use the hard currency.

Further, we will not be able to get the rates that are officially quoted ( like those quoted in the newspapers). There's always a margin both ways when we actually exchange at the money changer or when we buy TT from the banks.

OK-lah...not much diff from the CC normal inflated rate...Last mth I charged my CC at Zhuhai hotel & xchange rate at the point of time ~RMB47.5 to RM100..I'm expecting RM115 for the RMB230.nite room but once I received my CC bill the amt was RM130!! an xtra of RM15!!

and this was not the 1st time..most of the time CC charged higher than the xchange rate!!

Ok then. I guest this is a comment practice if CC was charged at foreign currency. Thanks guys!

Of course CC conversion rate was higher than actual exchange rate. The rates also higher than Bank rates.

For TS,

Amex charged me for Bali hotel reservation at 3.80 on early Dec. So for your amount, I think its normal.

This post has been edited by Putraskyline: Jan 1 2009, 11:03 PM

OK..Not going to use AMEX to charge in future...BTW, probably this tread can be used to compare the best CC exchange rate ho..what do u think? TS, wanna change title? Dun think bombarding Agoda is right now ho? As u agreed they are very reasonable compare to others which I can't deny on certain destinations...


BTW, I did get a very good exchange rate during my 2007 trip to Bali by charging via Ambank...suprising low & almost similar and if I'm not mistaken cheaper than the Money changer rate!! ...Too bad I dun used Ambank oledi


::

Actually my credit is MBF, well own by AmBank though... Ok i will change my title , but what should i change to? Any suggestion?

BTW they offer me a refund and recharge again. Not sure if the recharge will base on the room rate now or the new one which is 20% cheaper. If recharge at the old room rate than the different may be only RM30 to RM40 i think (Lazy to count), not worth the trouble of possible double charge. But if recharge at the new room rate, then the different can be RM200 to RM300 (again lazy to count).

Probably Using credit card for online reservation & 2nd column..diff CC diff rate??..or something

BTW, hv you try http://www.sawadee.com/

They offer cheaper rate than others especially booking Thailand hotels.. & their customer service is damn prompt in responding any email queries...within hours! ..It might be a good idea to recharge bcos USD dropped for the past weeks..

agoda is one of the cheapest sites
but for thailand there are cheapers ones like sawadee or thaiatm

You can get refund and recharge again. How many days it takes for them to refund you? Usually CC will take 30 days to refund and same goes to hotel reservation site TC.

---

Added on January 2, 2009, 12:38 pmYeah Amex have possibility at the highest exchange but I like 10x turbo points Another things is I get 1 free night and pay only 5 night at Bali. So If I calculate all the way, I still on win side.

This post has been edited by Putraskyline: Jan 2 2009, 12:38 PM

I just worry they will be problem with the refund, that cause a double charge. Even though it may be solve at last, but the trouble i will go through is not worth for that RM30. Of course as i said, they recharge me with the new room rate. Email them this question, now wait for their reply. I last checked sawadee.com, its still slightly higher than agoda.com.

I found something very strange here. I booked my room at Sugar Palm Kata, and there is a new sister hotel in Karon about the same star rating. But the price is so much different between the 2 in agoda.com, compare to other side.


Sugar Palm Kata

http://www.agoda.com/asia/thailand/phuket/....html]agoda.com

http://www.sawadee.com/hotel/676319-booking.html]sawadee.com


agoda.com is 1,631 baht and sawadee.com is 2600 baht. So agoda is cheaper by 1031 baht.



Sugar palm Karon

http://www.agoda.com/asia/thailand/phuket/...ron_resort.html

http://www.sawadee.com/hotel/676374-booking.html

agoda.com is 4,998 baht and sawadee.com is 2350 baht. So agoda.com is more expensive by 2648 baht.


And this is directly from the hotel itself:

http://www.sugarpalmphuket.com/rate.html



So i think there is something wrong with the rate at agoda.com, the last time i checked with agoda.com the one in Karon is actually slightly cheaper then the one in Kata. And all the rate rate above is per day. Weird...

So the situation is like this:

1) If i ask them to recharge, every USD1.00 will be RM0.20+- cheaper. So USD500 will be RM100+- cheaper, but during the duration of 2 to 3 weeks, my card will be double charge.

2) If i cancel my booking, i need to pay USD15 as penalty, so 2 rooms is USD30, thats about RM100+-. But the new room rate will save me about RM300+-. So at the end i pay RM200+- less. But during this period of time i will be double charge also. So is RM200 worth all the trouble? It depends on each individual, for me i think i will just live with that. All i want is their clarification. Thants all. Hope this is a good guide line for those who want to book hotel online.

agoda.com is still one of the cheapest, but their respond can take 1 to 2 days. But so far they had been quite helpful in terms of my enquiries and requests, at least they always give me solutions. And my first vouchers from them bug me a bit as they only stated 3 adults in one of the room, but didn't state any extra bed and breakfast. I checked with the hotel and they said any extra bed will be charge, but problem is agoda.com already charge me for that. So i email them about this issue and they sent me a new vouncher, still no extra bed,, but this time they stated "The room is for 3 adults including breakfast". So i guest extra bed means no breakfast included. Blah...

This post has been edited by tong1774: Jan 2 2009, 02:16 PM

I have a doubt. Why don't you get the rates from hotel itself rather than those travel websites? From what I observe when I book Bali hotel, rates from those websites are expensive by 20%. I mean hotel online reservation.

agoda.com is even cheaper than the hotel itself by 30%. Don't ask me why. But the hotel charge me for RM300 per night, but agoda.com give me RM200. I guest they have some kind of deal...

here is the rate from the hotel website:

http://www.sugarpalmphuket.com/rate.html

The rate on their website has gone up, but yet agoda.com rate has gone down. LOL

This post has been edited by tong1774: Jan 2 2009, 01:14 PM

Owh yeah....The site really have low price. On the website you post, there is no mention that guarantee low price when booking on the hotel itself

I wonder how can they get such a low price, even cheaper than the hotel itself. Hmm...

TS, if u hav frens in travel agency, they can explain better !

Generally, there are 2 hotel booking types.

1 type they work closely with agents, and slash to very very competitive price to agents coze of volumes. So apparently price in hotel web pages are sort of published rates, and booking thru agents often much lower.

Another type, they have strong marketing team + only allow web booking or direct booking. Agents are getting the same price as normal web booking customer, you are being charged additional booking fee by agents, hence most of time you pay more.

---

Added on January 2, 2009, 2:17 pmyes, agoda is 1 of the big player in hotel web booking. Another is Asiaweb direct

---

Added on January 2, 2009, 2:20 pmDo keep some contacts of local agent office. Call to compare price.

And, sometimes it save u hassle in Cards & rates. Coze u swipe RM here. No conversion, no misc fee. U pay what agent quote u, n get the hotel voucher for your stay.

This post has been edited by marchkingdom: Jan 2 2009, 02:20 PM

I have a friend working as an agent, and she told me that even they cannot get such a low rate. Thats why she advise me to book with agoda.com. And the thing that piss me off is that, i consult a few travel agents regarding booking hotel in phuket during CNY period, all of them tell me that the rate are not updated yet, and i will have to wait. I just want to settle it ASAP so i book it myself.

ya..thats right..most of the travel agent havent update the price...
but actually u can reserve the hotel first.just pay when u check in..i reserve for Deevana hotel cz i plan to go phuket at 16 jan...

If i book with the hotel directly i can do that. But booking with agent like agoda.com and sawadee.com require a full payment before hand. Well we cannot get best of both world don't we? LOL

but still booking with web agents gives more accuracy in estimating the final bill. From your experience, I can see paying the hotel direct is somewhat "no no" ...

But dealing directly with the hotel is the safest way to avoid any further problem, as dealing with third party may involve some mis-communication. Especailly in country in Thailand where majority cannot speak english. I have a few experiences in Thailand that problem cannot be solve due to communication.

I have tried using Citibank c.c. to book for rooms direct with hotels in Australia. The exch rate charge is similar to money changer and even lower.

So i guess it depends on c.c. company.

Is agoda.com ok to use? I plan to book hotel in bangkok thru them - rate is most cheaper compare to other webs and their cancellation policy is reasonable. If cancel 2-3 days before check-in date, no charge. Is that correct?

Thanks!

If cancel before the deadline (Depends on hotel), they will charge you USD15, if after the deadline they will charge you minimum one night stay. They are ok, just that their respond can be some what slow. And some of its rate are weird, check my previous post then you know what i mean.

Its typical to get such charges, in 2007, I spend 6 days in KL and charge my shopping buy to CC. Guess when I return from my trip and see my bill, based on calculation, I was charged some 7% due to exchange rate by the bank. The price of the purchase items were indicated in RM on my CC bill.

I don't think there are any hard and fast rules on whether to book from agoda.com or the hotel website. What you need to do is shop around and decide yourself. In my experience previously if the price difference is minimal then I would go with the hotel websites since they usually give better cancellation terms (no fees) and are possibly more trustworthy. It also depends on how much lead time you have etc. since some of these websites don't have instant booking.

In the end though it's the customer who gains from this competition so enjoy!

Ya, i agree with tishaban. Better to do some research before decide how you wan to book your hotel.

online sometimes can get up to 40% discount lor

Today just check agoda.com again, same hotel now cost RM500+ a night!!!! http://www.agoda.com/asia/thailand/phuket/...alm_resort.html

Well since this is the last room that they have so i can understand, but just few days before this the room rate drop to RM165+, so their room rate actually going up and down like a roller coster. LOL...

If you let the hotel do the conversion for you from USD to RM, they will use an exchange rate in favour of them, to cover for future currency fluctuations.

It's best to let the hotel charge you in USD, and let the credit card company convert it for you. You will get much better rates. Most credit cards now are accepted worldwide.

Hey forumers, would like to know if anyone here uses this website. After showing the total amount to pay, will there be any other charges if i were to use my credit card to pay? First time making an online hotel booking. Want to book a hotel in phuket.
Hope to get some info here b4 i proceed

I've used this website several times. You only have to pay for the total amount, which includes govt tax & service charge. Normally they will charge in USD then your bank statement will show the amount in RM after conversion. If i remember correctly, the website also will give you an option whether to charge in USD or RM.

recommend me some website..

so far Agoda has served me well ..the good thing about it is the deal ...but do compare with few other more la ..
I have book few times with Agoda , trip to HK,Macao,Bkk,Indo and others.
Good,fast,reliable,excellent customer service and fast reply ..highly recomended ..but again do compare before you decide ..

Other webbies that I used :
www.asiarooms.com
www.marimari.com
www.directrooms.com

i am sure mr google,mr bing and others will give you even ,more ..just type your hotel name in their search column ...then you have thousands of deal ...enjoy browsing

wego.com

so guys, it is totally safe to purchase room from agoda.com?

Yes, its safe.

So do other discount booking websites such asiarooms, sawadee, hotelclub, cuti.com & etc I have used all of them before including agoda.

The best for me stil sawadee...super effcient but limited/best to hotels in Thailand

Agreed, i have tried the reservation for HCM's hotel before, it is safe.

yeap, agoda is good to use. rate is cheaper compart to directrooms

agoda is safe. Has been using it since 2008. No problems encountered before.

Yes. Agoda is safe. Until now, Agoda served me well. Just print the confirmation slip and bring over with your credit card. And also Agoda giving a good deal.

agoda is good...i used it to booked hotels in bkk....

usually i use

www.atsiam.com

cheapest rate from my point of view

booked through agoda.com many times, but the service charge sometimes don't make it the cheapest around... still need to do homework and try other sites.

now my latest favourite is wotif.com (some rates quite expensive, but some cheaper)... use both hand-in-hand to see which cheaper then buy. so far their "secret deals" are the cheapest rates that i can ever find...

Yes sometime certain site having better rate than another. Don't 1005 go for Agoda..try others as well

If booking and stay within 30 days, try latestay.com

I've been using Agoda for ages now. It has always been the cheapest site. The only reason I sometimes make reservations at other places; is if they have a special deal that Agoda can't match. I also like the fact that you usually pay upon arrival or even after checkout. The only reason they need a credit card is to validate (though I don't know if this goes for everybody; as I know there are differences in which country you are originally from).

I have used Agoda to do all my bookings during my trips to/through Malaysia too; it always worked like a charm. People sometimes ask me what happens if something goes wrong; as Agoda is only the middleman. I always explain that in the end hotels and Agoda don't need a bad reputation; so even in the single case it went wrong; they all sorted it out in a second.

I've booked through Agoda for my HK trip & got a confirmation email & booking ID.
So I just need to print it out when I go there & show it when check in?
Need some advice as its my first time using this site & would like to know the procedures.

yes, u just show the booking ID at the counter upon your room check in.

it is easy!

I also booked my accommodation in Tokyo via Agoda

Got the confirmation of reservation already, so far so good.

i only used agoda for all my travels so far to HK, BKK, Taipei. Never let me down.

You need to bring credit card also? Im planning to go singapore with my friends and use my dads credit card. What if i only bring the confirmation slip?

need to indicate about that and do according to their instruction for this case during your reservation process

If your room is pre-paid then you can just bring the confimation slip. But usually when you stay in a hotel, you'll need to pay a sum as 'deposit' [the amount may equivalent to a room night charge] therefore the hotel may ask for a credit card or cash for the deposit.
Hope it helps. Thanks.

This post has been edited by quinzzy: Feb 25 2010, 01:24 PM

Just to share some experience. This is my 1st time booking thru agoda for a hotel in HK. I paid for everything in Jan 10 while the trip is end apr 2010. I got the confirmation slip as well.
The day I reached the hotel is already 8pm. Guess what, the staff there nearly gave me heart attack saying there's no such booking even after I showed him the confirmation slip. Naturally I freaked out & quite pissed. The staff then said as long as I have the slip, they will have rooms for me. What if there's no rooms left?? The question is how can they make such an error? I already sent in a complain letter demanding an answer.

Btw its standard practice to pay deposit even if you bring the credit card that's used for booking according to the hotelier. They don't even bother to ask for that credit card.

i used agoda b4, not having any issue. but on a safe side, i usually emailed the hotel b4 my departure to confirm that they actually reserved a room for me.

Yups, I usually call them even, in fact.

Haven't booked via Agoda before ( cos of incompatible rates ) but have done through the following sites.

AsiaTravel.com
PYOTravel.com
AirAsiaGo

Everything went smoothly - reservations, payment, etc

i book for the first time using agoda and they told me i can cancel my reservation anytime up until one day before the actual reserved date. but they have already charged my credit card? so how to cancel?

They probably credit bck your credit card just like what AA did?

yup....they will credit back the amount to your CC.......but it will take some time........you have to talk to the opeator using online chat......this will speed things p....if not will take time......

im planning to go SG soon~ n want book hotel from agoda..... if i ored give my CC number n so on.. thy wil charged it ored rite?.. when we reach there.. show the confirmation letter.. thy stil want our CC to confirm izit?.. thy wont swap my card rite? cos ored paid ma...

Well, Although you already paid in advance, but MOST (not All) hotel still require some kind of deposit incase during check-out you took out some of their chargeable items or even you spoil their utilities. Therefore, Most of the hotels still will ask for Deposit..either in cash or CC during check-in

wow~ thn after check out~ thy wil return bk~? if gv CC ma ored charged?

better use cash which they will return when u check out. If CC, they'll charged & credit back when u check out which will take some time. Logically, me think u'll gain/lose some $$$ due to the fluctuating exchange rates.

I booked with Agoda many times and I don't face any problem. Let see how long I'll make booking with them.

Also, I notice my RHB CC conversion from foreign currency to RM higher than my Maybank CC. I mostly use Maybank CC for overseas transaction than RHB CC because of this.

Tried agoda before, and to be safe side, I usually call up the hotel to confirm the reservation..
Also tried booking.com as well..

Agoda is a pretty big organization for bookings and they have quite alot of traffics.
Check out my hotel finder tool -> Flymyself - Hotel finder

sui ah
i like this site
since it multiples sites at once
then straight away can compare liao leh
so no problmes.

the hotel will want to swipe ur card to verify credit available.

Tried agoda before, no issue arise. and will probably use agoda again for my coming bangkok trip..^^

Agoda got hidden cost, usually need to add in booking fees and their rates is not cheap if we really compare.

hopefully the room i booked through agoda hv no issue when check-in.

This post has been edited by cyrusdidi: Jul 6 2011, 05:52 AM

So, when you book via agoda, the room rate is charged to your credit card upon reservation on the website?

Or do they just take the credit card number and charge when you checkout of the hotel?

Also: Can I book a room for 2 people but sleep 3 people in it? Don't want to pay for extra bed. Will the hotels forbid it?

This post has been edited by Aurora Boreali: Oct 9 2011, 12:12 PM

The will charge upon reservation.

actually, it's not reservation if u book from agoda.

it's actually more to like pay them and get the voucher

room for 2 sleep 3 people usually is okay de, if u are really scare maybe u can just have 2ppl showup when u checking in, then the other follow in at a later time

Incorrect, once u paid thru credit card, agoda will help u make a reservation with the hotel. you can send email to double confirm with the hotel. For pay 2 sleep 3 depend in which country, country like japan will consider as stealing crime and will lead you to jail.

Yes booked two times ! So far so good!

Thank you for this topic.
I've been searching through Yahoo either agoda can be trusted and it lead me back to my favourite forum.

This forum has everything! LOL!

Can't wait for my trip to Hat Yai from 1 to 5 November.

Comparing to booking.com, which site is better?

I personally prefer booking.com as you can see the price more obviously at first glance.

do they or the hotel charge us on the day we confirmed our room reservation?

The final rate quoted by Agoda usually is cheaper though.


Agoda will bill you once you've submitted your credit card details.

err..i am referring to booking.com, is the pymt term same like agoda? Thanks

This post has been edited by the-november: Oct 28 2011, 11:37 AM

Try it for yourself lar.
There's no better knowledge than finding the answer by yourself.

After final checkout before making payment, you will see everything.
The payment is not finalized until you enter your credit card number and approve the payment, so what are you afraid of?

I've tested booking.com and apparently, the hotel I want in Songkhla (Hat Yai) is not available.
And the price in booking.com is a tad higher compared to agoda.com.

or you can try this

http://thaihoteldiscounts.com/

He is a white married to a local, meet him once in BKK
or you can try some of the Travel Agency, you will surprise they can give you a good deal during non-peak.

Just to name a few.

Chan Travel
24/2 Sanehanusorn Road, Tel 074-223 729, 074-231 950

Davis Tour & Travel Service
9 Sheutit Road, Tel 074-236 593

Hatyai 707 Tours
132/2 Niphat Uthit 3e Road, Tel 074-243 138

P/S: All this 3 agency are base in Hadyai since someone mention Songkhla (Hat Yai).

This post has been edited by dreign: Oct 28 2011, 02:05 PM

Meh, that website has exactly the same rate with agoda.com.
And since agoda.com has more positive feedback from users in this forum, I'd choose agoda.com.

But thanks for the Travel & Tours listing, although I already have someone waiting for me in Songkhla to be my personal tour guide.

For Thailand, I always book via: http://www.sawadee.com/

The respond time very fast & reliable too.. Last time cheaper than Agoda but not all the time and depending on hotel too..really need to compare on diff online booking websites... just like shopping in Tesco, Giant & Carrefour..diff marts diff pricing & diff items diff pricing too

Tried sawadee, but the hotel I'm looking for is not available in their website.

Agoda is good. Been using their service for few times since last year.
Another site is latestays.com

maybank got promotion with agoda rite now 6% discount

Always prefer Agoda since it's cheaper compare to others (used more then 5 times already)