You will not be able to change your dates or anything, and you may be hit with hidden charges such as $40 for parking, $15 for wifi, and a $20 per day "resort fee". It all depends on what hotel you get .

We can usually predict which hotel it will be (if it's in Hollywood or one of the other popular neighborhoods) before you actually book/pay on Hotwire.com.

Harold is correct: Parking is extra (but it would be extra if you booked the same hotel directly from hotel's website). The same is true of wi-fi. There are no resort fees in hotels in Hollywood.

In most cases, the more expensive hotels (3-star, 4-star and 5-star) charge extra for wi-fi, parking and sometimes, breakfast). The inexpensive 2-stars do not charge for these things. All of this info is available, though, so, for example, if you were thinking of booking a 4-star in Hollywood that we identified for you as being the Roosevelt (before you booked it), you (or we) can look up the cost of parking and wi-fi in advance so you know what your stay will cost.

In all cases, no matter how you book, there is 'room tax' of approximately 15.3% of the daily 'room rate' which is included in the online cost (when the site you're using provides you with a total). In other words, you don't pay extra for it when you arrive at the hotel -- it's already included in the online cost.

Tell us what you're looking for: the dates of your visit, nightly budget, number of beds that you need (and their size), etc. and we can make recommendations.

If you go to a website such as www.betterbidding.com and enter in the amenities, folks might know the exact hotel you will get (of course, educated guess, no promises), and you would then be able to find out the extra charges.

But as mentioned, it is a gamble.

Opting to book a Hotel directly, you can usually find a good deal, using a Frequent Say card can get some fees waived at certain locations. You also know the exact location, and any additional fees that would be charged. Also searching the web can have you find discount codes for many locations.

I have to disagree with Harold calling certain charges "hidden". These are really extra charges that one shouldn't always expect to be included in the secret hotel rate. Even if you go to a hotel's website, if the establishment charges WiFi and parking, they will list it separately (or you will get a higher room rate to start).

The use of betterbidding.com can help you a lot when it comes to identifying Hotwire secret hotels or Priceline bids.

after many years booking my hotels, i was stumped with LA, purely because i never realised how much a standard hotel was

i actually booked jerrys, until people on here persuaded me to cancel

after doing my homework (google+ hotwire hotel revealed) i took the risk and booked 6 nights 3 star hotel downtown for LA fingers crossing it was what i was hoping it'd be according to google

and bingo i got what i expected, Miyako, i'll be going out in a few weeks

as for me, the only charge i'll be paying is parking...haven't looked into wifi, but we'll be out most days anyway

edited...

just checked i got wifi in the price, double bonus!!!