Do Hotels Accept Prepaid Credit Cards? (Who Dos and Who Don’ts?)

Well, whether a hotel accepts a prepaid credit card or not totally depends on its policies. Some hotels will accept prepaid cards for booking while others don’t. You might use a credit card for the initial reservation, and later use a prepaid card to pay for actual expenses upon check-out.  Many hotels accept prepaid cards mostly at check-in or check-out than at the booking time.

Key Takeaways

• Hotels like Extended Stay America, Hotels.com, Marriot Hotel, etc. accept prepaid credit cards
• Hilton Hotel, Priceline Hotel, Great Wolf Lodge, etc. hotels don’t accept prepaid credit cards
• Most hotels accept a prepaid credit card at check-in or check-out
• Usually, hotels don’t accept prepaid credit cards while you are making a reservation

What Are Some Of The Hotels That Accept Prepaid Cards?

1. Holiday Inn: They do accept payment via debit and prepaid card.

 2. Extended Stay America: Their website shows that they do accept debit and prepaid card support.

3. Choice Hotel:  This popular hotel accepts debits and prepaid cards.

4. Hotels.com: The hotel does accept debit and prepaid card support as of March 2021.

5. Marriot Hotel: The hotel accepts debit and prepaid cards.

What Are Some Of The Hotels That Do Not Accept Prepaid Cards?

1. Hilton Hotel: They don’t accept debit and prepaid card payments.

2. Priceline Hotel: Debit and prepaid card isn’t accepted.

3. Hotel Tonight: They do accept PayPal payments, not prepaid card payments.

4. Great Wolf Lodge: This famous family and resort store doesn’t accept debit and prepaid card payments.

5. Broadway plaza hotel: The hotel doesn’t accept prepaid credit cards.

6. Suit on the south beach: They don’t accept prepaid cards.

7. La Quinta: They don’t accept prepaid cards.

Usages Of Prepaid Credit Cards In Hotels

Some hotels will accept prepaid cards for booking while others don’t, depending on their policies. In comparison, others hotels need deposits to cover the cost of your hotel room plus other extra charges. Generally, the deposit is made as a pre-authorization on your credit card.

There are other hotels where you might use a credit card for the initial reservation, and later use a prepaid card to pay for actual expenses upon check-out.  Many hotels accept prepaid at check-in or check-out, mostly at the booking time. 

Before booking the hotel you want to stay in, check their hotel policy on reservations and deposits and plan yourself accordingly. Hotels differ due to their policies; some accept prepaid, while others need your credit card details. Double-check this with your accommodation provider or the hotel to avoid any inconveniences.

If you’re planning to travel abroad and would like to be using your prepaid card to pay your hotel bills, check their details first. Yes, they might accept prepaid card, but some of these cards may be valid only in the USA. If you want a card you can use in other countries, you can inquire if your bank has such options.

Nowadays, prominent and well-known international financial services providers such as MasterCard and Visa offer many prepaid card services. These cards can come in the form of a gift card, current account card, travel card, and so on, giving you a wide range of options to choose from.

How To Do An Instant Reload If You Can’t Pay Your Hotel Bill Right Now?

There are different options you can use to reload your card, such as;

Green Dot’s Money Pak

This is one of the most widely accepted ways of loading cash on prepaid cards. Some of these cards include CARD.com, Walmart’s Money Card, and Green Dot. Visit the MoneyPak site and enter the first nine digits of the card account to determine if you can use it to reload cash on your card.

This method falls into the reload pack category; you purchase and load cash to MoneyPak first. After buying the MoneyPak at their purchase location, create secure logins at their website. Scratch your MoneyPak identifying numbers on the back of your card and enter them together with the prepaid card number.

The cash will be available on your card instantly. But, it takes twenty minutes from the purchase of the Money Pak for the money to be ready for transfer.  Purchase the Green Dot MoneyPak at various retail locations or convenience stores like Family Dollar, Walmart, CVS, Walgreen, etc. The fee is $5.95, and a single MoneyPak can load $20 to $500 in cash.

MoneyGram

If your card has MoneyGram Logo on the back, then you can reload using their services. They use ‘cash at the register’ where money is added right to your card, and you can spend it immediately. 

To reload your card, visit MoneyGram agents such as CVS and Walmart; fill in your basic information on reloading the form, and they will transfer the money to your card. You will have to present your valid ID and pay a fee of at least $3.95 to use their services.

Netspend Reload Network 

With Netspend reload services, you can top up your prepaid card at various check cashiers, gas stations, and over 130,000. It’s one of the biggest brands that manage cards, and therefore its cash reload network does not come as a surprise. You can use the services to top up Netspend brand prepaid cards and others with fees that range from $2.00-$3.95. 

Vanilla Reload

Vanilla offers to reload at the register, so you go with the prepaid card plus cash at the participating retailers. Its swipe load is simple, although there are not many participating locations as Green Dot’s reload service. But, vanilla reload is available via the largest retail chains such as Walmart, Rite Aid, and Speedway.

The prepaid cards that can be loaded using these options are fewer than others. Still, they reload the largest brands like Serve card, American Express, PayPal Prepaid MasterCard, and Netspend, plus their parent company card, i.e., MyVanilla. The fee is $3.95 per transaction with a maximum load of $500 and a minimum of $20.

Reloadit

This service falls into the reload-pack category. You buy reload pack and transfer the money to your prepaid card. You can purchase Reloadit packs at some major supermarkets like Safeway and Kroger. It costs $3.95 to load cash from $20- $500, though it depends on location. They cover a few cards but include popular ones like Western Union prepaid card, PayPal Prepaid MasterCard, and American Express Serve.

Create a Reloadit Safe, an online account with your email address, password, and four-digit “safe code” to transfer funds from the Reloadit pack to your card. Enter your card details in the vault and put a unique Reloadit ID number whenever you purchase the pack.

Walmart Rapid Reload

They offer their own reload services for their cards, plus others like Netspend and PayPal. It’s bigger and cheaper. Take your cash and card to register at any Walmart location to load your card at the register category. Since the company incorporates Visa ReadyLink, you can use any card bearing the logo. You can load $20- $1000 per Rapid Transaction anywhere. The fee is $3.74 and $3 for Walmart MoneyCard.

Visa ReadyLink

The service works with several Visa prepaid cards such as Netspend prepaid cards, Ace Elite, and MileagePlus GO travel rewards Visa to load cash quickly.  To know if you can load your card with Visa ReadyLink, check the logo on the back of the card.

It’s a registered service, so you should go to a merchant location with cash and swipe your card. The fee varies depending on the retail location though it should be $4.95 or less. The funds take 30 minutes to be available for use. The minimum reloads in a single transaction is $20, while the maximum is $500, but you can load up to $1000 using Walmart’s Rapid Reload.

WU® Reload+

Western Union offers this reload service and can be used by over 100 prepaid cards like Netspend Prepaid Visa, Card.com prepaid, plus Western Union prepaid card. At the Western Union agent location, you can swipe to reload at the register. The fee ranges from $2.95 to $4.95, depending on the Western Union agent at various supermarkets.

Green Dot Reload @ the Register

Apart from MoneyPak, Green Dot offers Reload @ the Register service to load money on your prepaid card. It’s a reload at register service; money is loaded directly to the card by swiping.  It loads cards like Mango Master, CARD.com prepaid cards, and others. The fee is $4.95, while Walmart charges $3.74. Single-load transactions can range from $20 to $500.

Bank Issued Prepaid Card

Many banks and credit unions offer their prepaid cards. For example, TD Bank provides a TD Connect cards while Chase offers a Chase Liquid cards. You can load these cards for free at their branches.

Do You Have To Put Your Name On A Prepaid Credit Card?

If you are purchasing a prepaid card for anonymous use, it’s paramount to avoid reloadable cards. Reloadable cards commonly involve the actual credit, which needs social security number to be activated.

While non-reloadable cards only need a name plus address. Such information is never verified either. It’s used in Address Verification System checks only; that’s the merchant’s system used to confirm that a person who makes an online purchase using a card is the card owner. So long as your details match the one indicated while registering the card, the AVS check will pass.

Card issuers urge their clients to indicate their real names and current address when registering for prepaid cards to minimize potential fraud.

Final Thought

As more people embrace prepaid cards, their adoption will surely rise and their application in the hotel and tourism industry. 

As they say, change is inevitable, and many hotels are currently trying their best to keep up with technologically advanced payment trends to make their client’s payment experience as seamless as possible.

Meaning we will see many changes in the tourism industry in the future concerning the use of prepaid cards and booking accommodation.

At the moment, the use of prepaid cards in hotels lies with their policies. Be wise about your travel, and spending habits, check the hotel’s details, and confirm with them in advance.

References:

1. https://thealcazar.com/can-i-use-a-prepaid-credit-card-for-hotel-deposit
2. https://world-satellite-internet.com/qa/can-you-pay-for-a-hotel-with-a-prepaid-visa-card.html

Last Updated on October 25, 2022 by Magalie D.