Agoda

Agoda.com is one of the various travel websites owned by Booking Holdings Inc. (They own booking.com, priceline.com, kayak.com, cheapflights.com and rentalcars.com, among others). A variety of accommodation options from all over the world can be found on Agoda’s website and mobile app. Moreover, the services are available in 39 languages.

Before booking a property or while searching for the listing, establish the dates, prices and destination. The search filters can be used to narrow down your search based on your criteria. To avoid any confusion later, make sure you read the cancellation and refund policies along with the terms and conditions provided by the host.

Pros

• An effective way to book hotels all over the world.
  
• Lower prices.
  
• Available in 39 languages.
  
• Has features like Promo Codes, AgodaCash and AgodaVIP to help you save more money.
  

Cons

• Terrible Customer Service
  
• The bookings get cancelled randomly.
  
• In some cases, refunds aren’t issued.
  
• The photos of the hotels could be far from reality.
  
  
  
  

Reliable

This platform is completely reliable as the bookings are legit. Once you make a booking, you will receive a confirmation email and even a reminder as the date of check-in draws closer.

Unless the host forgets to notify Agoda, there is no chance of overbooking the venue. But this occurs rarely as the hosts regularly sync the inventory across all platforms.

Payments are only delivered to the host, given the booking went smoothly.

Details

Every listing has a detailed description of the amenities it offers, the landmarks located nearby, the meals included and so on. This helps the guest to make a well-informed decision.

On the other hand, you will need to double-check this information as in some cases, the users have highlighted how the location of the property was far off from where it was supposed to be or the amenities listed weren’t all offered.

Safe Payments

The guests pay for their booking through the merchant model and agency, making it completely safe. While in the former, Agoda charges the customer instead of passing the details to the host, in the latter model, the details are passed onto the host, who charges the guests.

Poor customer service

Almost all the customers who reach out to the company’s customer service complain of inaction. Firstly, they don’t pick up the phone and even if they do, the issues are far from being resolved.

Fake photos

Before choosing the hotel, read the reviews below it and google the property to ensure that the photos posted on the platform aren’t fake. Many users have put forth the matter, that the hotels turned out to be different and disappointing when compared to the given images.

Random cancellation

Many customers have complained that just a couple of days before their holiday, they received an e-mail from the company, claiming that there has been overbooking or some other problem with the booking and as a result, it has been cancelled. The refund, however, isn’t guaranteed as some receive it while others don’t.

In fact, there have been instances when the customers reached the hotel and the host says that Agoda hasn’t notified them about the booking.