Yesterday, fellow BoardingArea blogger, Kendra (Points and Pixie Dust), wrote a post raving about her experiences using a new hotel site called TravelPony. Since I don’t have an immediate need to book a hotel room at the moment, I didn’t really put much thought into giving the site a thorough look.
That all changed when I received an intriguing email this afternoon from my good friend Mark (@MileCollector), letting me know of a really awesome way to save up to $85 (and more) on a hotel booking. Now that really grabbed my attention.
First Off – What is TravelPony?
I’d be lying if I told you I really dove in and explored the site down the nitty-gritty, but the reality is, I only spent 5 minutes glancing over it all and making some “dummy bookings”. TravelPony appears to be a hotel-booking site that offers discounts that seem greater than what other competitors are offering (they claim that you can save up to 60% more than the ‘Big Travel Sites’).
Sign Up and Receive $35
New members automatically get to start off with a $25 booking credit, but new members who sign up through a friend’s referral link get an extra $10. Here is my sign-up link. Feel free to share yours in the comments if you please.
Save $50 on a Booking of $200 or More (Promo code expired 2/28/14)
Promo code KATE50 seems to trigger an additional $50 discount on bookings of $200 or more (combinable with the $35 new-member credit). TravelPony reached out to me via email after I first published this with clarification about this promo code, saying that it is valid until the end of the month (2/28/14) – sweet! Update: If the KATE50 code is not triggering the discount for you, try using their new code – PROWINNER.
Update: There’s two new TravelPony discount codes that are valid until the end of March – GET25 saves you $25 on a booking and PONYPOINTS10 saves you 10%
Dummy Booking
For fun, I played around with rates for Valentine’s Day Weekend (fellas, it’s only 9 days away…), and I priced out a 2-night stay in Chicago from February 14-16.
I found a great $89 rate at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare (not exactly the most romantic destination, but for the purpose of my experiments, we’ll stick with it).
Look at this: After the new-member bonus is applied and the $50 coupon code is deducted, for $117, you can get a 2-night, fully-refundable stay at a Hyatt Regency. Can I get a “wow”?.
That’s a solid 40% cheaper than Hyatt’s rate of $282 for the two nights.
My Best Answers to Questions I Can Already Predict Being Asked
Will I receive elite benefits/recognition or stay credits from bookings made on TravelPony?
I think it depends on the property itself. Most hotel loyalty programs, based on my personal experience, do recognize your elite status. Receiving stay credits from 3rd party sites is a hit or miss (sometimes a small room charge will do the trick). YMMV. I’ve had great luck receiving stay credits/elite benefits from HotelTonight bookings (related post).
Will rates found on TravelPony work for “Best Rate Guarantee” claims?
My experiment continues. I’m guessing YES (based on the pre-coupon rate and if same room type is available), but I will report back and update this answer in a bit. You can learn more about my experiences with best rate guarantees here. You will also find a list of BRG tips and policies in that post.
Update: commenter Sky says that his BRG with IHG was denied when he used TravelPony in his claim because TP is a “members-only” site. No word yet from other hotel brands. Feel free to share your experiences as well.
Are the rooms booked through TravelPony refundable?
Looks like the word “refundable” is pretty clear to me.
So who’s jumping on the TravelPony? Are you going to go on a booking frenzy? Post your successful bookings in the comments below!
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Angelina, How long are the credits good for? I’d hate to sign up only to find the credit expired before I booked a hotel. Thanks!
I tried claiming a BRG with IHG and they denied on the fact that travel pony is a membership based OTA.
@Elaine: This is what I am seeing on the TravelPony site: TravelPony reserves the right to invalidate travel credits that are not redeemed after a period of time. Travel credits that were not issued with a specific expiration date will be valid for at least 6 months. Users will be notified via email before travel credits are invalidated. This policy may change.
@Sky: Thanks for that update … I guess that is a valid reason for them to deny the claim. I will try with Hyatt and see how it goes.
Ugh. I joined and then I see no Milan hotels!
Just a heads up – Travel Pony no longer supports the TopCashBack site! So you will not earn an extra 10% – although it is still showing up as an option on TopCashBack.
@Kendra: Thanks for the heads up… I wonder if TopCashBack will honor it with screen shots if it is still showing up on their site?
Thanks, Angelina :)
I just booked the Holiday Inn Seattle Airport for the FTU dates. I have a Marriott reservation, but this is only a five minute walk away, it has been newly remodeled and comes in about $100 less. Not sure which one I will keep. Thanks for the heads up!
Hey guys here’s an update directly from TravelPony: We’ve recently ended our affiliate relationship with TopCashBack because of some of the fraudulent traffic they’ve been sending us. Please remove this as it may steer your readers in the wrong direction.
The KATE50 code will expire at the end of the month so be sure to update it then or remove it. You can reach out to me directly to see if we’re running another coupon campaign.
Just booked two nights at a Disney World Resort for $125 total after sign up bonus and coupon code. If this all works as planned – might just be one of the top deals I’ve scored in the past year!
It seems KATE50 worked for a booking for less then $200, right?
Awesome info!
What do they mean by the code will expire at the end of the month? Do I have to use it by the end of the month or have actual stay before that? Hope further clarification will be available..
Paired with discounts, Travel Pony can be a great site!
@al613
For a $127 booking, KATE50 returned this error
“Code requires minimum order of $200.00”
so you need $200+ order
So If I create an account using your referral, then refer myself on an new email address, I will get $60 in my first account and $35 in my second. Berlin is looking pretty cheap…
@Eliza: Nice score!
@al613: I got an error when I tried to use the KATE50 code for a stay under $200.
@Andy F:From my understanding you have to use the code by the end of the month, but stays can be booked further out in advance.
@Chanel: I agree!!
@Jerry: +1
@mrtibbs1999: That is a strategy…
My invitation link
http://www.travelpony.com/?rc=xdeg
I see other BA bloggers picking up this now (plus advertising their links), kudos to you for #1 on it, and hopefully I get to book soon so you can earn
“Your friend earns $35 in Travel Credit when they create a free account.
You earn $25 in Travel Credit when your friend stays at a hotel.”
Awesome! I’ve been wanting to stay at The W in Dallas. $85 credit made it possible.
http://www.travelpony.com/?rc=ksxh
I just signed up to see that they only have hotels in a limited number of cities and absolutely no hotels in Asia. Sorry Angelina, but you won’t be getting an extra $25 from me as they have no locations in my upcoming plans.
Credit has disappeared from my account after showing $35. Anyone know why?
I tried booking hotel in Philly in Aug but site rejected saying you can only book within 6 months. Does me no good at all :-( I can’t advantage of Kate50 or the $35 credit
i tried the KATE50 code for a $1505 stay and it states no longer valid, I thought it was good until the end of the month?
just signed up, prowinner unfortunately also doesn’t work anymore.
http://www.travelpony.com/?rc=ettz
Hey Angelina,
I just registered via your link and booked a paris hotel for 3 nights with about $150 savings. The coupons you listed didn’t work but I found out that 25OFF works and gives you $25 discount. So, $25 credit to you for the referral :-)
If anyone would like to give ME a $25 bonus then register using http://www.travelpony.com/?rc=wwsr