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Tip: for last-minute hotel stays, look online before you book

August 22, 2007

Here’s a tip for anyone without hotel reservations: Never accept the first price you’re offered at the front desk. One reader refused to, and he saved $100 a night at the Sheraton Seattle Hotel & Towers. Yes, that’s $100 a night.

How’d he do that?

“Initially, I was quoted a rate of $239 a night,” he says. “After showing my Starwood Preferred Guest platinum card, I was told the ‘best rate’ was now $199 for the night.”

Much better, he thought. But could he beat that? The property had free Wi-Fi in the lobby, so he fired up his PC and decided checked the Starwood site for prices.

“I found a room at the hotel for $139,” he recalls.

Several minutes later he checked in, “amazing the clerk with the new rate,” he says. “I hadn’t made a reservation at a hotel front desk in a while, and now I know why I won’t ever do it again.”

The experience made him wonder about all the other people who needed a last-minute room and paid through the nose. Make me wonder, too.

Christopher Elliott is the author of Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles, and Shady Deals. Critics have called it “eye-opening” and “inspiring” — it’ll “grab your attention and won’t let go.” Order your copy now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble or iTunes.

3 comments

  • Joe Farrell

    Hi Chris – another strategy – ask for the lower rate.

    I was traveling to Cleveland on business in July and had my family with me. I wanted to stay in a nice hotel, and checked the rates at the Ritz Carlton. They ranged from $279 – $599 depending on the nature of the room. I sent reservations at the hotel an email and made them an offer – $279 including tax, their lowest published rate, but for a club room.

    They accepted it. We stayed in a club room with 5 free food and beverage presentations a day. The free breakfast, free alcohol during cocktail hour, free lunch for my family during the noontime presentation, free coffee in the am, for about $50 a night net more than staying at a Radisson or Ramada.

    We received all the amenities a 5 star hotel is known for, saved on food away from home, had robes and good service, a key location, and very comfortable bed and super premium bed linens.

    It NEVER hurts to ask.

  • T H

    This can work the other way around also. I used to work at a hotel (a Best Western). If someone called us for a rate, we charged the rack rate of $129/night. However, if someone walked in and was looking for a room for that night, we had some leeway with the pricing depending on how full the hotel was. If we had lots of rooms available, I could charge anywhere from $59 to $129.
    What some people learned was to:
    1) Make a reservation so that a room is guaranteed for the night.
    2) On the check-in day, walk up to the counter and ask how much a room is for the night without mentioning that they had a reservation.
    3) If the price was the same or higher, they would check in with their reservation. If the price was lower, they would say that they wanted that price with their reservation. We never refused to give them the lower price once we quoted it to them.

    Also, if you do walk-in and ask for a price, be polite. If someone was being rude or demanding when they asked, I would always quote them the highest price I could.

  • Carver Farrow

    Hi Chris

    The same thing happened to me yesterday. I am staying at a hotel where I have platinum status. I asked how much to extend my room by one night. The front desk manager quoted me $299.00. I said, that can’t be right. She explained that the front desk only had access to rack rates, but if I wanted to come back later she would call reservations and get a better rate. My final rate. $59.00

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