Are these reliable? Anyone done one before? Any other site that has good trips on the cheap?

My son did one in San Anton. Hotel was under construction. There is a reason why they are on Groupon so you might want to figure out why before you book.

Wife and I did one off of Bookit.com. Everything worked out fine. Resort was great, flight was fine. No complaints. Went to Costa Rica. We did a bunch of homework before booking to make sure it wasn't a construction sale or something.

The wife and I booked a nice boutique hotel in Costa Rica using Groupon. I think our price was 50-60% off the normal price and we loved it.

Sign up for Travelzoo. I've seen good offers on there before.

Wife and I did a living social groupon for 8 nights in Cozumel at an all inclusive resort for ~$600 total. Was awesome.

Groupons and other such sites are a way for hotels/resorts to fill need periods. For my resort, we launch them in summer when its 115 degrees outside. They are a great way to get a good deal if you are willing to go off peak. Most hotels should disclose that they are under renovation. If they dont, i would ask Groupon for some sort of compensation.

Wife and I have done Stanley hotel in Estes park on Groupon several times. They are by no means struggling or some second rate hotel, they just use it to fill lower demand times.

That doesn't mean that there aren't hotels on there that are struggling or second rate. Just do your homework.

I've used Groupon quite a bit now for several years, and I have had like 4-5 businesses that closed down by the time I went to use it. So there are definitely struggling businesses on there. I'd hate to buy flights for a Groupon vacation, and the places closes. Maybe buy one where the flights are included, because Groupon is very responsive to businesses closing and issuing refunds. I never have a problem, and get refunds through their single chat on their website.

V8Aggie said:

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Wife and I did a living social groupon for 8 nights in Cozumel at an all inclusive resort for ~$600 total. Was awesome.

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Living social is a competitor to Groupon.. they are two different companies.

I just came back from one of those Groupon vacations and I had a really good experience with it.

That being said, I did extensive research on the travel agency that provided this deal, the hotel and on the Groupon itself. Know exactly what you're getting and read all fine print when it comes to cancellations and transfers, etc. Sometimes you'll pay for a Groupon and get added some daily fee at the hotel.

When I bought the Groupon, I was provided a code that I had to relay to the travel agency to legitimize the deal and then they booked airfare at that time and also provided more info on the vacation.

I was blindsided upon arriving at the hotel when I was asked for a code from the travel agency and I didn't know what it was. It ended up being that they just wanted proof of purchase and I ended up emailing them my receipt from the travel agency.

So yeah it takes quite a bit of work, but you'll end up having a much better time if you know everything that you're getting out of that Groupon.