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July 15, 2010

Off & Away – Discounted Prices On Luxury Rooms

Wishing you could stay in a luxury hotel on your next vacation, but weary of paying $900 a night for a room with a garden view? Off & Away is a site that you’ll want to check out. The online auction house lets users bid on luxury hotel getaways in posh locales all over the world. More than just a basic discount travel website, Off & Away helps users score bargain basement prices on five-star hotel rooms that are up to 90% off the regular rates. The flash-sale auctions held on the site feature prices that start at $0 with no reserve and go up in $0.10 or $0.25 increments for 24 to 48 hours.

To start competing in Off & Away auctions, you’ll have to buy a pack of bids. Bids cost $1 each, and come in packets of 10, 25, 50 or 100. The next step is finding a hotel in a location you’d like to visit. When you’ve found an auction that looks interesting, make sure to view the number of nights and room availability to make sure it fits within your travel schedule. If everything looks good, then you’re ready to bid. Off & Away charges for each bid to ensure you’re serious about the auction, and lets you buy more bids to use in the auction at any time. Once the time left in an auction falls below two minutes, the clock will increase an additional 30 seconds each time a new bid comes in. If you’re the winner when the clock reaches zero, you have 24 hours to select your dates and book your room before the offer becomes invalid.

Just because you don’t win an auction, doesn’t mean you have to forfeit the bids you already purchased. Off & Away will apply your used bids towards the price of a room at one of its 50,000 partner hotels, just as long as you make the booking within seven days of the original auction. For travelers who have champagne tastes on a beer budget, Off & Away offers amazing hotel deals that you won’t be able to get anywhere else.

Practical Uses:

  • Book a five-star hotel for half the price
  • Give your parents a trip for their anniversary
  • Surprise your spouse with a romantic trip
  • Stay in a hotel you’d never be able to afford otherwise

Insider Tips:

  • Total auction price covers the cost of the entire hotel stay, not just one night
  • Bids cost $1 each
  • Put the bids you’ve purchased towards the price of another partner hotel
  • Each bid adds 30 seconds to the clock once there is less than two minutes left in the auction

What we liked:

  • Luxury rooms can be found on Off & Away for dirt-cheap
  • Hotels benefit by offering posh suites on the site that would otherwise go unused
  • Failed bids can be used at another one of Off & Away’s 50,000 partner hotels
  • Auction winners have 24 hours to book their stay after the auction’s end

What we didn’t like:

  • Used bids are worthless if they aren’t put toward the price of another hotel within seven days of the auction
  • Successful bidders must prepare to spend a long time in front of their computer in order to win the auctions since 30 seconds can continually be added to the time

Alternatives:

Company Info:

  • Launched: May 2010
  • Privately Held
  • Headquarters: Seattle, Washington
  • Founded by: Michael Walton and Doug Aley
  • Web site: http://www.offandaway.com

Costs:

  • Bids are $1 each

Comments

  1. This a good hotel to stay..

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  2. More than just a basic discount travel website

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  3. If everything looks good, then you’re ready to bid.

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  4. It’s difficult to find experienced people about this subject, however, you seem like you know what you’re talking
    about! Thanks

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