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Three Apps For Getting The Best Last-Minute Hotel Deals

This article is more than 7 years old.

Last-minute hotel deals were once hard to come by, but no longer. Thanks to major advancements in both booking and inventory technologies, hotels can be much smarter about how they manage their rooms on a nightly basis. The result? Many of those efficiencies get passed onto guests. Not only are guests now able to wait until the eleventh hour to book their abode, but these three apps will actually reward you for doing so. Why would you ever plan ahead again?

My flights concierge service for corporate executives, Yore Oyster, has seen the direct benefits of this movement toward last minute booking as well, since we’re doing for flights what these companies are doing for hotels: offering last minute business class flights at 30-60% less than buying direct from the airlines. It just makes good business sense. As consumers desire greater flexibility in their purchases, you can expect last minute services like these to pop up in industries all across the board.

HotelTonight (iPhone / Android)

HotelTonight’s modus operandi is very simple: they only offer hotels that they would like to stay in themselves. With 15,000 properties in over 35 countries across the Americas, Europe and Australia, they’re clearly striking a price-quality balance that consumers enjoy. Also, given that they were one of the first last minute hotel services on the block, they’ve had the time to iron out the kinks and offer pretty impressive service, which is put into overdrive through Aces, their in-app hotel concierge that acts like your own personal Siri. Aces’ chat function allows you to ask for things like advice on a great spot for dinner, extra amenities for your room and activities in the area. The Aces network extends to other HotelTonight users as well, creating a collaborative community with a mind-boggling response time of just 23 seconds.

HotelQuickly (iPhone / Android)

HotelQuickly is all about size and speed. With over 20,000 hotels in its inventory spanning the Asia-Pacific region, the app really shines for travelers seeking a more flexible schedule. While HotelQuickly allows you to book up to a year in advance for rooms, the best hotel deals are generally be found the day of your stay, when the app prepares deals from all of its destinations and offers a lowest price guarantee. You can book a room until 4am for check-in that night, making it perfect if your flight arrives late or you’re in a bind.

Photo: SIXTY SoHo

One Night (iPhone / Android)

The night begins at 3pm.” At least that’s what One Night claims, their tagline directly supporting their model of only offering same-day bookings. The app’s beautifully image-driven interface and assortment of enticing luxury hotels bears a similar air to HotelTonight, though their offering of hotels is considerably more curated. What’s the reason for the stricter curation? One Night is operated by Standard International, the parent behind the trendy Standard Hotels, and their selection shows it. On top of all of the Standard properties, One Night has hand-selected other properties based on their approach to design and lifestyle experiences, resulting in user experience that’s deliberately limited yet highly appealing. If you like what you get at one One Night hotel - perhaps SIXTY SoHo, pictured above - you’ll probably like what you get from all of them. Though their properties are currently only available in Austin, LA, Miami and New York, One Night assures they’ll be adding more cities throughout the year.

Technology in the travel space changes rapidly, so expect these apps to pivot and adapt in the coming months and years. We’ve already seen HotelTonight, which launched by strictly offering same-night bookings (a la One Night) in 2011, expand to a seven-day booking window, a move that many hoteliers did not enjoy. Though One Night has explicitly said they have no plans to do the same, only time will tell whether they choose the same path of expansion.

One thing is for certain. As Airbnb’s continual growth adds mounting pressure to hotels around the world, creative solutions like these last minute booking apps will only continue to flourish.