“The Prices Aren’t Negotiable”

You’ll read this many times throughout this site. And for good reason. It is perhaps the greatest myth you must dispel if you’re seeking to get a cheap hotel booking rate. Hotels are a business, and just like other businesses they are operating in order to maximize profit. If they cannot get somebody to book a room at a high asking rate, they will most likely lower their price so that they will get something instead of nothing. Supply must simply meet demand. As such, many hotel rooms are negotiable in price. Often, though, this will entail speaking to an actual person and not just visiting a hotel’s website. In addition, this person should be somebody at the actual establishment who has the authority to negotiate rates, instead of speaking to somebody at a call center by calling the hotel’s 800 number.

“Prices Get More Expensive As the Booking Date Approaches”

This is sometimes true, as in the same case with flights. Many times, though, this isn’t the case. For the same reason that hotel rates are negotiable, rates can also decline as the booking date approaches. Hotels would – in most instances – rather book a room at a lower rate than not book it at all. This is accomplished by lowering the rate as the deadline nears. One instance, though, in which this doesn’t apply is when you approach the hotel in person on the same exact day that you need the room and try to book from there. They will sense that you are desperate to secure a room. In many instances they may try to exploit this desperation by demanding a high asking price, because they sense that you will be more likely to pay.

“The Internet Has the Cheapest Possible Rate”

Many times this is true. But not all the time. The reason it is often true is because there are many systems in place that can publicize rates and competitors must match these rates if they want to remain competitive. What this also means is that sometimes a competitive rate may be a really expensive ones. In these instances you should learn the techniques to go “outside the market” and find a more favorable rate. This general involves several strategies. One is, as mentioned above, is to call the hotel directly and try to negotiate a better rate. You can also use benefits such as airline miles and loyalty programs to get rates that are much, much cheaper. The third strategy involves speaking to travel agents. This is noted in another section on this site.  The Internet may have put a lot of travel agents out of business, but they are still around and they are still useful. They have many contacts in the hotel industry that they can use to negotiate cheap rates on your behalf. Some even have quotes that, if they are met, they have the privilege of booking additional rooms at lower rates. They can even possibly call up some smaller hotels that don’t even participate in direct online hotel bookings. When employing this strategy, it may be best to speak with travel agents that specialize in the city or region you plan on visiting.

“No Vacancy Means Fully Booked”

This generally means that there are no more bookings at that specific point in time at which you inquire. Hotels like to save some rooms in order to manipulate the market at which point that may charge a higher rate later. This may even mean a lower rate later on if their initial asking price is too high above demand. Hotels also block out rooms for several reasons, but these rooms may become available to you later on if they would go unoccupied otherwise. Rooms are blocked out for special events such as conferences and weddings. They also block out rooms for loyalty program members and VIPs who may arrive later on. For example, if the president were to show up unexpectedly at a chic hotel in Chicago and he needed a room, the hotel will certain have one available. If the hotel were indeed “fully booked,” then this would be very difficult. Hence, “no vacancy” doesn’t necessarily mean that all hotel rooms are occupied or reserved.

“Mid-Week Prices Are the Cheapest”

For larger cites such as New York, San Francisco and Washington, it is generally the opposite. Mid-week prices can be among the most expensive. This is because these cities host many business meetings and conferences during the work week and hence many rooms tend to be occupied during these times. Hardly any such meetings and conferences take place during the weekend. There are, of course, tourists in these cities both during weekends and weekdays. The amount of tourists, though, tends to dwarf the amount of attendees at large meetings. With less demand during weekends, weekend prices can be cheaper than those during the middle of the week, instead of the other way around.