Last-minute hotel booking apps In2Nite and HotelQuickly have been making headlines for all the right reasons lately. Both startups have been runaway successes, and are fast expanding throughout Asia. Which is the better app? Here, we put the two rivals head-to-head.
Amount of funding received
In2Nite recently managed to raise US$2.8million worth of funding from IDG Ventures and other undisclosed investors. On the other hand, HotelQuickly has only raised around US$1.16 million from investors including Koh Boon Hwee (the ex-chairman of Singtel and Singapore Airlines).
Interface
We have no complaints about the interfaces of both apps—they’re clean, simple, informative and easy to use. And they’re both blue-themed.
Number of countries on board
HotelQuickly comes out tops in this category—the app features hotels from 12 countries, like Australia, Singapore and Thailand. In2Nite only covers hotels from six countries thus far.
Booking window
The hotels on In2Nite are bookable from 8am to 2am daily, while those on HotelQuickly are bookable from 8am to 4am daily.
Hotel prices
The hotels on HotelQuickly seem to be marginally cheaper—a room at Pan Pacific Singapore on June 10 costs USD268 ($335) on In2Nite, while the same at HotelQuickly costs $315. Likewise, a room at Link Hotel on In2Nite costs USD117 ($146), while it costs just $121 on HotelQuickly. Hotels in other countries don’t seem to overlap between the two apps, though. Oh yes—prices on In2Nite are displayed in USD by default, so we like the fact that HotelQuickly requests for your location before displaying prices in your local currency.
Platform compatibility
Both apps are free to download and are compatible with iOS, Android and Blackberry.
Our verdict
HotelQuickly. It offers greater variety and lower prices across the board, and is more personalized—we like that the folks behind the app offer their own take on each hotel. And small touches, like displaying prices in local currency, make us feel like more effort was put into designing the app, somehow.
