Tried the hostel loyalty card thing in Barcelona and it backfired hard

I booked through a hostel chain's own site to get a free night after 5 stays. Stayed 3 nights at their Barcelona spot for $45 each. Turns out the free night only works at their most expensive locations and I had to pay a $15 fee anyway. Found out after 3 tries to use it in different cities. Anyone else get burned by those hostel reward programs?

2 comments

2 Comments

sarah_mason5d ago

free night only works at their most expensive locations" - yep that's exactly what happened to me with a different chain in Portugal. Stayed 4 nights in Lisbon thinking I was saving up, then tried to use it in Porto and they said it was only valid at their "premium" properties... which were like double the price. Plus they hit me with a $12 "booking fee" anyway. I ended up just using it at the same Lisbon spot on a return trip but it still felt like a rip off. Those programs are such a joke honestly, they make it sound so good up front.

hayden_nelson855d agoTop Commenter

Haha yeah @sarah_mason you hit the nail on the head. Those loyalty programs are such a scam sometimes. I actually looked into it more after a similar thing happened to me and found out the fine print usually says "standard rooms at participating properties" which basically means nothing. The booking fee thing gets me too - they always sneak that in after you think you're getting something free. Honestly it's just a way to make you feel like you're getting a deal when really you're just paying more somewhere else.