Is Priceline Legit & Reliable? My Honest Review [2023]

Is Priceline legit? It’s natural to have questions and concerns about the legitimacy of any online travel booking service, especially when it comes to your hard-earned money and valuable vacation time.

At first glance, Priceline seems like a great deal. The company boasts discounts of up to 60% off on hotels, flights, and car rentals. But is it too good to be true? Is Priceline reliable for booking your travel?

In this blog post, I’ll delve into the details of the company’s history and business model, as well as my personal experience booking through Priceline, in order to give you a clear picture of what you can expect from Priceline. By the end of this post, you’ll have a solid understanding of whether or not Priceline is a legit and trustworthy choice for your next trip.

Luxury under Budget aims at helping you get the best deals by maximizing the value of your time and money. My recommendations are based on first-hand experiences and a full analysis of costs vs. benefits. This post may contain affiliate links, which means that I may get a small commission when you make a purchase, at no extra cost to you. This helps support my blog and enables me to provide more free and helpful content. Now, let’s go get you that luxury travel while staying under the budget!

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Travel Tips to ask for a Free Hotel Room Upgrade

Is Priceline Legit?

Priceline is a legitimate online travel booking company that has been in business since 1997. The company has a strong reputation and is a popular choice for travelers looking to book their travel arrangements online, including flights, hotels, rental cars, and vacation packages.

5 Reasons Why Priceline is A Reliable Way to Book Travel

Priceline is a popular travel website that offers a variety of services for travelers, including the ability to book flights, hotels, rental cars, and vacation packages. Here are five reasons why Priceline is a reliable travel website that you can trust for your travel booking needs.

1. Priceline has been in business since 1997

Priceline was established as an online travel agency (OTA) in 1997 and has since evolved into one of the leading online travel booking platforms globally.

2. Association with well-known travel brands

Priceline is part of Booking Holdings, a publicly traded corporation listed on the Nasdaq with a range of respected travel brands like Booking.com and Agoda in its portfolio. Being connected to such a reputable company adds to the credibility and reliability of the platform.

3. Priceline is trusted by millions of travelers every year

With a user-friendly interface and a wide range of options, it’s no wonder that millions of people turn to Priceline for their travel needs and leave many reviews on the platform.

4. Priceline has a wide global network of travel partners

Priceline has a global network of over 300 airlines and car rental companies, as well as two million hotels and resorts around the world.

5. Priceline has encryption technology for security

Priceline uses encryption technology to protect your data when you make a booking on the website. This means that your credit card details and other sensitive information will be kept safe, allowing you to book with confidence and peace of mind.

How to get a hotel room upgrade for free

How Does Priceline Work?

Priceline acts as a middleman between travelers and travel companies by offering a platform for booking flights, hotels, rental cars, and other travel services. When a user books a trip through Priceline, the company works with its network of travel partners to secure the necessary arrangements and passes the details on to the user.

How to Book Travel With Priceline

To get started, you can visit the Priceline website and select the type of travel service you are interested in (e.g. flights, hotels, rental cars, or vacation packages – bundle & save).
Next, enter your travel destination and dates, as well as any other relevant details (e.g. number of travelers, preferred airline, or hotel).
Priceline will then display a list of available options based on the search criteria. You can filter and sort these options to find the best deal for your needs.
Once you have found the option that you want, proceed to the booking process. This involves entering personal and payment information to complete the booking.
After the booking is complete, you will receive a confirmation email with details about the travel arrangements. You can also view and manage their bookings online through their Priceline account.

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How to Use Best Price Guarantee Policy

Priceline’s Best Price Guarantee policy is a commitment by the company to offer the lowest prices on hotel rooms and rental cars. This policy allows VIP members to book with confidence, knowing that if they find a lower price on a qualifying reservation within 24 hours of booking, they will be eligible for a refund of the price difference.

If the reservation is an Express Deal, VIP members can claim a Best Price Guarantee refund up to midnight the night before the travel date, and the refund will be 200% of the price difference. If eligible, the refund will be processed back to the customer’s original form of payment.

To take advantage of the Best Price Guarantee, you’ll need to contact Priceline’s customer service team within 24 hours of making your booking and provide them with the following information:

Hotel name
Hotel address
Check-in/out dates
Number of rooms and occupancy
Room type
Cancelation policy
Billing information including a summary of charges with taxes

How to Book Priceline Express Deals

Express Deals is a feature on the Priceline website that allows users to find discounted rates on hotels for up to 60% off.

The advantage of using Express Deals is that you can find discounted rates on hotels compared to the standard rates offered on the website. However, the trade-off is that you have less flexibility in terms of the specific hotel you will be staying at, as the name is not revealed until after the booking is made.

Express Deals is a good option for travelers who are willing to be flexible on their hotel choice in exchange for potentially lower rates. Express Deals are non-refundable, so it’s important to carefully consider whether this option is right for your travel plans.

Priceline Express Deals is available not only for hotel bookings but also for car rental and flights in certain areas. You can find more information on how to rent a car through the platform with my Priceline Car Rental Guide!

My Personal Experience Booking with Priceline

Priceline is a legit online travel agency (OTA). However, like any other company, Priceline is not without its criticisms and complaints. As a Priceline Platinum VIP member who has booked so many trips through this platform, I will share with you both my positive and negative experiences with Priceline customer services.

Priceline’s Best Price Guarantee Policy

A couple of hours after booking a hotel in Mammoth Lakes, California on Priceline for $240, I rechecked the website and found that the price has lowered by $20. I contacted customer service immediately through chat to let them know that I had found a lower price on their own website.

All my efforts to show the representative the lower price were pointless, he insisted that the price I had booked on Priceline was correct and refused to honor the lower price. It was a very frustrating experience, as I felt that I had been misled and was not being treated fairly.

Initially, I was so disappointed with my experience with the Priceline Best Price Guarantee Policy that I considered never using the website again. However, despite my negative experience, I found that the company’s Express Deals were often too good to pass up, so I continued to book my travel through Priceline.

Eventually, I became a Platinum member and have continued to use the website for my travel needs.

Priceline Express Deals

I have found Priceline Express Deals to be an incredibly useful tool for booking travel. The major benefit of this feature is the ability to find heavily discounted rates on hotels.

For example, I was able to book a room at Bally’s Hotel on the Las Vegas strip for just $48, with all taxes and resort fees included. This was a great deal considering the prime location of the hotel and the fact that the rate was significantly lower than the standard rates of $200 and above offered on other websites.

Similarly, I used Express Deals to book an all-inclusive resort in Cancun, Mexico for just $100 per night, which was also significantly lower than the standard rate of $300.

Even though Priceline Express Deals are non-refundable and it doesn’t let you know the hotel’s name before you make the payment for the reservation, the price discount is incredible. I’ve used this tool so much that I have actually developed several tricks to reveal the hotel’s name before booking. If you’re interested in booking Priceline Express Deals, don’t forget to grab my guide to minimize the risks by figuring out the hotel before paying!

Priceline Pricebreaker Deals

Priceline Pricebreaker Deals is a feature that allows users to find discounted rates on hotels while still having some control over the specific hotel they will be staying at.

Launched in 2020, Pricebreaker offers users a selection of three similar hotels listed under one price that is relatively cheaper than the official rates of each hotel. Upon booking a Pricebreaker deal, users will be booked into one of the specific hotels listed, although the exact hotel is chosen by Priceline.

Priceline promises that all hotels booked through Pricebreaker have a customer rating of at least 7 out of 10 and are offered discounts of up to 50% off published rates. If you like the idea of getting a discounted rate on a hotel while still having some control over the specific property, Priceline Pricebreaker is worth considering.

Conclusion: Is Priceline legit and reliable for booking travel?

Overall, it is clear that Priceline is a legitimate company that offers reliable travel services to its customers. The company has gained the trust of millions of travelers over the years due to its user-friendly interface and wide range of options. Additionally, Priceline’s wide global network of travel partners and various payment options make it a convenient and flexible choice for travelers.

While there are some potential drawbacks to using features such as Express Deals and Best Price Guarantee, overall, Priceline is a trusted and reliable resource for booking travel arrangements.

I did have some negative experiences with Priceline’s Best Price Guarantee, but because I have consistently scored amazing deals on Priceline through Express Deals, from discounted hotel rooms to cheap flights and car rentals, it’s my go-to website for planning any trip.

If you want to save on your next vacation, give Priceline a try – it’s worth it!