Finding a cheap hotel room frees up money to spend on other things during your vacation. Finding cheap hotel rates is easy if you are willing to do some research and book your room online. Searching online also allows you to compare the rates of several hotels at the same time. If you are planning a vacation and saving on a hotel room is one of your top priorities, there are several ways to find cheap hotel rooms.
How to Compare Prices
One of the best ways to compare hotel rates is by researching on the Internet. Websites such as Farechase.com, Kayak.com, Yahoo.com and Side Step.com can be used to check numerous websites for the lowest hotel prices. Many of the sites even let you choose specific rooms and save your comparison data.
Contact the Hotels with Cheap Rates
Personally calling the hotel might help you to get rates cheaper than those advertised. Be sure to call the hotel at the specific location where you will be staying, as opposed to calling the national “800” number. Let them know when you are expecting to travel and ask them about discount rates during that period. Ask about the criteria for discounts. You can also ask about particular discount rates for children, rates for death or major illness in family, weekend rate, reunion rate or church rate or government rate. That is, some hotels have special rates for government employees or individuals in the military. Some hotels will also offer discounts if you mention the name of someone who referred you.
If you are still not pleased with the rates offered, you can find out if they are willing to match the lowest rate you have found. Some hotel chains will offer great discounts if you have found a rate that is lower than their lowest rate. These hotels include: Wyndham Hotels and Resorts – you will get your first night free for matching the best rate on the web; Days Inn, Super 8 Motel and Ramada will also offer to let you stay the first night free of charge if you find rates lower than theirs; Marriott and Radisson Hotels and Resorts will guarantee 25% off the lowest rate you found. Others hotels such as Intercontinental Hotels, Choice Hotels, Best Western and Starwood Hotels and Resorts offer 10% off any rate found lower than their lowest discount rate.
Secret Rates for Cheap Hotel Rooms
If you are willing to stay in any hotel, you can get low rates by bidding on a hotel room online. The only downside to this is that you will not be able to find out where you will be staying until the bidding process is over. The positive thing about bidding though, is that you will have access to extremely low discounts. You can bid for hotel rooms on websites like Priceline and Hotwire. You will be asked to name your own price or bid for a hotel in the location you desire. Ensure that you double-check the location, amenities and ratings of the hotel(s) you are interested in.