HOUSTON – When you're planning a vacation, you want decadence without having to declare bankruptcy... a hotel with frills without spending a fortune. It's exactly what a new name-your-own-price website promises.
Stayful lets you bid on boutique hotel rooms within 30 days of your stay; and the website guarantees it'll save you at least 10 percent off the best online rate.
We tested it by looking at boutique hotels in San Francisco. On Stayful, we selected Villa Florence in Union Square.
Travelocity offered rooms at the hotel for $310 a night. On Priceline, they were $270.
Stayful's recommended bid was $230; but consumer expert Amy Davis gambled and typed in $215. Stayful countered and offered the room at $242 a night. That was still a $28 savings over the lowest price online.
Another search for a room in New Orleans' French Quarter got us $88 a night at The Hotel Modern. The same hotel on the same nights is $99 on Priceline.
Maybe you're looking for a staycation. Stayful just added 6 Houston boutique hotels to the site: The Houstonian, The Lancaster, Hotel Granduca, The Magnolia Hotel, Hotel Derek and Hotel Zaza.
Stayful was founded by former employees of bargain sites like Expedia, Hotels.com and Hotwire.