QUICK TIP--HOTEL RATES

Howard and I decided to get away for a weekend in the Fall. We generally book hotels as far in advance as possible, hoping that we are locking in a rate that could go up if we were to book the stay closer to our trip date. Sometimes this works and sometimes it doesn’t. We’ve seen rates go up and we’ve seen rates go down. Supply and demand. If a hotel isn’t fully booked, rates may drop in order to attract business. If the hotel is getting full, rates can go up because the hotel knows that if someone really needs to book a stay, they’ll pay the price. 

We had booked a November stay in July. We just found that this is going to be a family event, and we needed another room. When Howard booked the additional room, the price was $166. When we had booked in July, the room charge was $205. Why shouldn’t we be able to pay the same price for both rooms?  We should be able to do that, since we didn’t pre-pay the charge. I called the hotel’s Guest Services Manager and asked if she would match the current $166 price on the $205 room. She graciously agreed to make the adjustment. (I always look for “gracious” in the hospitality industry—not that it isn’t a good thing in other settings, as well.) We’re pleased that we’re saving money. The Guest Services Manager has a couple of satisfied guests who will return to the hotel in the future. Everyone’s happy, which is always a good outcome.

WHEN YOU BOOK A HOTEL, CHECK THE PRICE PERIODICALLY BEFORE YOUR TRIP. YOU MAY FIND THAT YOUR ROOM RATE WENT DOWN. IF YOU FIND THAT THIS IS THE CASE, ASK FOR THE ADJUSTMENT. MOST OF THE TIME, YOU’LL FIND THAT THE HOTEL IS WILLING TO MAKE THE ACCOMMODATION.