Discount Hotel Rooms!
If it’s one thing everyone wants, it’s to travel inexpensively and in style! When going on a far away vacation, there are typically just a few areas that make up your expenses. These include the flight, hotel accommodations, food, and entertainment (nightlife, museums, tickets for rides, etc). To get the best deals on flights, visit the discount airline tickets article. This article helps you find discounted hotel rooms online.
Hotel Occupancy Rates
Chances are your attempt to find hotels at an inexpensive price will be somewhat successful. There are a lot of hotel rooms out there, all fighting for your business.
Ever since 9/11 the hotel occupancy rate has gone downhill. It used to be that the best deals came from “consolidated” hotel room allotment (rooms sold at discount rates) that were sold to vacation package companies such as Funjet, United Vacations, Apple Vacations. This is no longer the case. Hotels are now selling more rooms to online discounters and at better rates!
What is a Rack Rate? (and Why You Should Avoid it!)
Hotel prices appear to change constantly and it’s really annoying when you find people in your hotel who paid a lower price than you. A good starting point in your hotel search and negotiations is find out the rack rate for the nights you want to stay there. The rack rate is the highest published price that a hotel offers. The price is found in their brochures and if you walk off the street (or drive off the highway), that’s usually the price the hotel reservation desk will quote.
When looking for discount hotel rooms, the rack rate is your worst enemy! Always remember that the rack rate is the full price. When you find discount hotel coupons in magazines or cheaper hotel rates online, these are based on the rack rate.
When you see an ad that says “50% off hotel rooms” it means 50% off the most expensive published price. Many hotels will not offer specials, discounts, or negotiate from any price lower than the rack rate. When you see discount specials, they typically offer a similar percentage across the board. So if you enter a hotel with a 25% off coupon thinking the price may drop from $100/night to $75/night, don’t be surprised to find that they are already offering the room for $75 and will only apply your coupon to the rack rate of $100, not the discount rate of $75.
Book Hotel Rooms Online: It’s Cheaper
Walking off the street during tourist season typically means your won’t find last minute hotel rooms or they will be more expensive. Since hotels allot a certain number of rooms to their online sales system, they may have rooms but are not allowed to sell them to you.
By booking online, you can make a reservation at a hotel the day before in a city such as Amsterdam (which is notorious for not having room availability) and actually find great rates and availability! In some cases you can find a discount hotel room for a mere $60 per night and it’s a 3 or 4 star!
Keep in mind that when you are booking a hotel rooms online, you just have to put your credit card number in but it won’t be charged. The reservation system holds the room so upon arrival and check-in, you can pay using any method you want.
Hotel rooms enter the online reservation system long before you search for them. For example, 7 rooms are sold one year in advance to Apple Vacations at the Hilton for $100 and they sell them for $120 per night, with a rack rate is $160. If you book online the hotels give their own inventory out and sell it for $100 and it’s loaded into a global reservation system so you don’t have to shop around.
It’s unfortunate to hear of people who can’t find a room anywhere in the city they plan to visit. Just go to a internet cafe, log in and use the online allotment of hotels for sale. It’s that easy.
Book Hotel Rooms with These Tips in Mind
If you are in the market to book a hotel room, keep these tips in mind. First, consider the time of year. Summer is high season, as are the winter holidays. Weekends are mini-peak periods because many people like to get away on weekend trips.
It helps to book in advance if you’re driving. Hotels on the side of highways fill up quickly, especially during the summer months when families are on the road.
You can get discounts if you buy your airline tickets and rent your car in one big package deal. Hotels and travel agents offer packages but some of the best deals will come from online hotel room vendors.
When you book a room during an event, expect to pay a higher rate. For example, Super Bowl hotel rooms will cost more the day of the game and a few days before and after it. Finally, many hotels charge an additional fee if you bring a pet.
Types of Discounted Hotel Rooms
If you’re planning a vacation or business trip, you should be aware of the different types of hotel rooms. Business people frequently get discounted rates or accumulate points for staying at certain hotels repeatedly. Also, companies planning conferences choose hotels with meeting rooms and banquet rooms. Don’t assume that because these larger hotels are offering group discount hotel room rates and packages that you are getting the best deal. In many cases, when you book hotel rooms online, you’ll get an even better deal.
On the other hand, travel vacations can involve a lot more than just the hotel. Most travelers just want a safe hotel room to keep their belongings while they tour the city and a place to sleep at night.
Then there are those looking for more extravagant getaways. Expect to pay premium prices for hotel rooms with jacuzzis and hot tubs, themed hotel rooms (yes, many people actually look for hotel room themes and fantasy hotel rooms!), private pool rooms, party rooms, and so on. This is especially true in a city like Las Vegas. Las Vegas hotel rooms have actually gone up in recent years as the demand outstrips supply. Let’s face it, Las Vegas is a hotspot and the nightlife alone is drawing people by the millions.
Cheap Hotels Info
If you want more information on hotels and getting great discounts, contact an experienced travel agent or an online booking agent website (like Travelocity, Expedia, Priceline, Last Minute Travel, and so on). These sites help people find bargain hotel rooms in San Francisco, Orlando, New York City, Salzburg, Florence, Bermuda, Atlantic City, Reno, Paris, Miami, Los Angeles, New Orleans, Chicago, Niagara, Ireland, San Diego, Myrtle Beach, Czech and many other cities, and beyond!
RSS