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Pros and Cons of the Hopper App: Is It Safe?

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Finding the best deals on flights and hotels has become faster and more convenient with flight and travel booking apps like Hopper.

What makes Hopper stand out is that it does more than just notify you of the cheapest deals available.

It lets you save up to 40% on flights and accommodation by giving you 95% accurate predictions on the prices of airfares, hotels, and car rentals and notifying you of the best time to book your trips. 

With everything the Hopper app offers to make your trips stress-free, it makes sense to examine its features, identify its pros and cons, check out Hopper app reviews, and determine if it is safe to use.

Key Takeaways

  • Hopper is a flight and travel booking app with features like accurate price predictions, price freeze, flexible travel services, standalone trip protection, and Carrot Cash.
  • Hopper users can save an average of 40% when they book their flights using the app.
  • Use promo code joyf1mjs to enjoy $25 off your next hotel booking, while your referrals get a discount of $10 to $25 off when using your referral code.
  • Hopper is a legit company founded by businessman Frederic Lalondea and backed by CapitalOne and Goldman Sachs.

What is Hopper?

Hopper is an accredited travel agency that partners with airlines, hotels, homes, and car rental service providers to help users find the best travel deals.

Available on iOS and Android, the Hopper app uses algorithms and AI programming to predict with 95% accuracy when flight and hotel prices will go up and down, helping you book the lowest rate.

The Hopper app has had 75 million downloads since its establishment, which indicates its popularity. Many users look to it to find the cheapest travel dates, receive custom predictions, manage travel plans, receive personalized suggestions, and more.

Hopper Main Features

Price Prediction:

Hopper will show you the cheapest days to travel using data that analyzes trillions of historical prices to predict the cost of your future trips. The app will inform you if there are great deals to look out for or if there is a price drop.

Price Freeze:

The price freeze option enables you to freeze prices for up to 21 days, giving you ample time to finalize your plans before booking. If the cost goes down, you pay the lower price. If it goes up, Hopper will pay the difference (up to $100).

Flexible Travel Services:

These include Flight Delay Guarantee, Flight Disruption Guarantee, Leave/Cancel For Any Reason services and others. Hopper offers these travel services to help solve travel-related problems like delayed flights and unsatisfactory hotel services.

Standalone Trip Protection:

The Standalone Trip Protection feature allows non-Hopper bookers to purchase Flight Disruption Guarantee that they can use to reschedule a delayed flight, with Hopper covering any fees.

Carrot Cash:

Carrot Cash is Hopper’s temporary incentive created for loyalty, award, or promotional purposes. Users can earn it when booking hotels, flights, homes, and car rentals.

You can redeem Carrot Cash on travel bookings prepaid on the Hopper app. One unit of Carrot Cash is equivalent to US$1 that you can only use on purchases on the Hopper app.

The Carrot Cash referral program enables existing Hopper users to enjoy added perks by inviting their family and friends to download the Hopper app and earn rewards redeemable for future trips.

Hopper Benefits

Several Hopper benefits help users gain substantial savings and get the most out of their trips.  

Price changes notifications:

Price notifications are a chief advantage of using the Hopper app. If there is a trip you want to take, you can “watch it” by setting a schedule. Search for the destination, select preferred dates, click “Watch This Trip,” and enable the notifications on your phone.   

Ability to freeze low travel rates:

The price freeze option is also one of the primary Hopper benefits. For a fee, you can freeze the price on a preferred travel deal for 21 days. Even if the price increases, you only need to pay the rate you freeze, or if it decreases, you pay the lower price.

Average of 40% savings on flights:

Hopper offers up to 40% savings when you book your flight using the app. Its ability to monitor prices in real-time, predict airfare rates, send insider tips, and determine with 95% accuracy which dates are the cheapest to travel.

Easy to use:

Searching the Hopper app or website for flights and hotels is straightforward. Enter the travel dates and relevant information, and a comparison of the best prices will appear for you to browse.

Hopper Complaints and Downsides

Below are Hopper complaints and disadvantages that some app users have experienced.

Customers got charged even after paying the fees for the price freeze option. Several reviewers complained that despite paying the deposit for the price freeze to ensure a low rate, they ended up getting charged more when they paid the balance.

Customers who complained were offered Carrot Cash instead of a refund. Some Hopper app reviews for hotels showed that when customers asked for a refund due to a fully-booked hotel, Hopper offered only Carrot Cash instead of real money.

The app does not always offer the lowest fares available. Some customers left reviews suggesting that users compare Hopper fares at other online sources or check with airlines directly.

Customer service was poor, non-responsive, or hard-to-reach. A recurring complaint by reviewers is that Hopper customer service does not respond to their emails nor answer their calls to report issues such as errors in booking flights and hotel rooms and having unconfirmed flights.

The app does not offer price matching. While Hopper tells its app users that it gives them the cheapest deals available, it does not offer to match-price if you find a better deal elsewhere. The company says that the prices are “always 100% set” by the airline, hotel, or car rental company.

Even though there are negative reviews online, many travellers also provided reviews stating how they benefited from Hopper app features, such as the accurate price predictions that helped them find and book the cheapest deals.

Hopper’s flexible travel services, like the Flight Delay Guarantee and Flight Disruption Guarantee, also helped many users to get to their destinations on time or book a new flight or hotel. With Hopper’s tools, you get the information to help you choose the best time to book your trip.

Hopper Promo Code

With the help of the Hopper app, you can find cheap travel dates. But you can enjoy more savings using Hopper promo codes and its referral program.

Sign up with Hopper for a $25 discount on your subsequent trip. Upon signing up, enter promo code joyf1mjs to enjoy $25 off your next hotel or flight booking.

Invite family and friends to join and download Hopper on their phones using your referral code and get a $25 discount per referral for hotel bookings.

Plus, your referrals get a discount of $10 to $25 when they use your unique referral code. And, as new users, they have the chance to get Carrot Cash worth $25.

Is Hopper Legit?

Hopper is a legit company founded by businessman Frederic Lalonde. So, is the Hopper app legit? Yes. It has been downloaded millions of times, used by travellers worldwide, and backed by the world’s largest institutional investors and banks like CapitalOne and Goldmann Sachs.

While there are negative reviews online, there are also many travellers who provided reviews stating how they benefited from Hopper app features, such as the accurate price predictions that helped them find and book the cheapest deals.

Hopper’s flexible travel services, like the Flight Delay Guarantee and Flight Disruption Guarantee, also helped many users to get to their destinations on time or book a new flight or hotel. With Hopper’s tools, you get the information you need to make the choice of the best time to book.

FAQs

Is Hopper a trustworthy app?

Hopper is a trustworthy app that accurately predicts flight and hotel fares and provides its users with information on excellent travel deals. It is also an accredited travel agency that has maintained its certification and ensures its clients’ accounts and personal information are secure. 

Does the Hopper app have hidden fees?

The Hopper app is free to download with no hidden fees or charges. It does, however, have an optional $5 tip that you can opt out of during the booking process by toggling off the purchase.

Who owns the Hopper App?

CEO Frederic LaLonde is the one who owns the Hopper app. He founded it in 2007 together with another former Expedia engineer Joost Ouwerkerk. The app, which started as a travel planning tool, developed into an application with functions like flight price prediction and real-time price monitoring.

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Author

Gravatar for Enoch Omololu, MSc (Econ)
Enoch Omololu, MSc (Econ)

Enoch Omololu, personal finance expert, author, and founder of Savvy New Canadians, has written about money matters for over 10 years. Enoch has an MSc (Econ) degree in Finance and Investment Management from the University of Aberdeen Business School and has completed the Canadian Securities Course. His expertise has been highlighted in major publications like Forbes, Globe and Mail, Business Insider, CBC News, Toronto Star, Financial Post, CTV News, TD Direct Investing, Canadian Securities Exchange, and many others. Enoch is passionate about helping others win with their finances and recently created a practical investing course for beginners. You can read his full author bio.

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