Finding Hotel Deals

One major silver lining for this year's holiday travel season may be that there are many good hotel deals out there if you know how to find them. You never want to pay the "rack" rate (full price). Here are our tips for finding the best deals:

• Call the hotel directly. Do not call the general "800" reservation number, which may not be aware of local hotel promotions. The reservations department at the hotel itself can negotiate a rate based on factors that the national booking service may not be aware of!



• Check with the hotel discount booking services. We've seen prices up to 65% off the rack rate because some of these companies strike their own deals with hotels by buying blocks of rooms early in the year. Two services worth investigating are www.priceline.com and www.bargainbox.com.



• Use your credit card to your advantage. Always check with your credit card companies for special deals that they may have negotiated for their cardholders … hotel, car, airfare, cruise, theme parks, etc.



• Scour the web. In addition the discount services, there are many travel websites that list discounts, such as www.bestfares.com and www.hotwire.com.



• "First-timers" discount. If you'll be staying at a hotel for the first time, be sure to ask about "introductory" discounts. Many hotels offer these to build loyalty, especially if you travel frequently to a particular city.



• Group discounts. You may not be traveling with a group (depending on how big your family is!), but you may still be eligible for a nice discount if you belong to certain organizations, such as airline frequent flier clubs, corporate deals, a union, a fraternal group, AARP, AAA, etc. When you check out, be sure to ask if they award airline frequent flier points for staying there.



• Be a local yokel. Check the newspapers of both the city from which you are leaving and your destination city. Sometimes there are promotions to fill hotels with "locals," and you might be able cash in on these special programs. Also check with the Tourism Office of your destination city for discount cards that offer special deals on hotels, meals, city attractions, etc.



• Dolan Straight Talk Tip: Just say "no!" Do not accept the key to your mini-bar when you check into your hotel, unless you're prepared to pay outrageous prices. The snacks and drinks in the mini-bar are marked up several hundred percent. The moment you open the refrigerator, a happy $$$ alarm is probably going off somewhere in the hotel manager's office. In all seriousness, many mini-bars automatically charge your room if an item in it is simply moved.

The holidays are supposed to be filled with joy, and we hope these cost-saving and stress-busting tips help make your holiday season a little more enjoyable. Whatever you do this season, we wish you Happy Travels … and HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

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