How do you talk a hotel down in price?

Hotel rooms don't have to be expensive; there are ways to get the best deals without feeling guilty about your trip.

To save money on your next vacation, read on for their tips on when to book a hotel room and where to find hidden discounts.

Don't give up on a hotel room just because the listed price is too high. You may be able to get a better deal. In some cases, you may be able to call the hotel and get a better rate for your stay by negotiating with them over the phone. You need to know when and where to go and what kind of hotels to look for in order to get the best deal.

Are you looking for a place to stay for an extended period of time? The L'barza Services Apartments provide guests with contemporary serviced apartments.

Time Your Travels

To have leverage with your hotel of choice, the hotel has to feel like it needs you more than you need it. So, if you're trying to negotiate hotel prices at a time of year when loads of tourists are clamouring for accommodation, you probably won't have much luck, because the hotel will have no problem finding someone willing to pay the listed price. On the other hand, if you're travelling at a time of year when hotels are struggling to fill beds, you should have the upper hand in negotiations.

Schedule your trip for the low season to score the best deals on hotel rooms. Do some homework on your destination to learn when people tend to travel there most often. In most places, tourist season peaks around Easter, Christmas, New Year's Day and in the summer months. If you book outside these times, you'll have an easier time negotiating.

Choosing a Hotel

Start by asking around. If your friends or family members have been able to negotiate prices with a particular hotel in the past successfully, chances are you should be able to do the same. Try to get the name of the front desk agent or manager who spoke with your friend, and ask to talk to that person when you give the hotel a ring.

More often than not, chain hotels won't want to budge on their room rates regardless of the season. Opt instead for privately owned properties, such as small boutique hotels, whose managers will be more open to price negotiations.

Making the Call

As soon as you know your travel dates, call the hotel to enquire about availability. Inquire about speaking with a manager and mention that a friend recommended the hotel or hotelier and that your friend praised their establishment.

Identify your travel dates and enquire as to whether the hotel has room for you. If this is the case, get a price quote for a room. In order to get a lower rate, ask politely if the room you want is available at a lower rate because you're booking directly through the hotel. Make a deal with the manager if he or she is willing to lower the room rate. Then enquire about lower-priced rooms that may become available in the future. The best way to find out if a hotel's published rates are the best deal is to enquire about them.

Try to get some amenities, like breakfast, spa services, or alcohol, as part of the quoted rate if you can't get a discount. Maintain a respectful and professional demeanour at all times.

Your health and well-being are important to us, whether you are staying with us for a single night or a longer period of time. L'barza Services Apartments is here to answer any questions you may have.

Make sure you get the best deal.

Begin the discussion by stating something along these lines: "The rate that I discovered online for your hotel is $200 per night. Is that the best price you can offer?" You might obtain a better deal straight soon, but there's no guarantee.

Asking "Is that the best you can do?" as a follow-up question is a good idea. or "Are you capable of doing more than that?"

Continue by claiming, "I can't spend more than $150," if you are still unable to get the pricing that you want. The next step is to observe the reaction you receive. Because hotels typically pay this amount to third-party intermediaries like internet booking sites and travel brokers for finding customers, it is a decent rule of thumb to aim to negotiate 25% off your beginning rate.

Make Mention Of The Other Competitors

You might also try bringing up other hotels that are competitors of the hotel in question and that operate in the same industry. As an illustration, you may say, "The room rate at the Hotel Down the Avenue is only $175 per night, and visitors are invited to use the hotel's complimentary fitness centre whenever they choose during their stay. What do you think about giving me $150 for the night if you are able to afford it?"

Adjust the Dates as Needed

Ask the manager of the hotel if you have any wiggle room in your schedule "Is it a period when guests typically stay at the hotel, and if so, how busy is it? If I were to change the dates of my reservation, would it result in a lesser price?" Since hotel rates are very variable, even shifting when you travel can have a significant impact on the total amount you spend.

One such strategy you can use is to book a room for two nights initially, and then inform the front desk that you are willing to extend your stay to three nights if they can offer you a better deal.

Unique Deals and Discounts

Inquire as to if there are any special deals available. It's possible that the hotel will refer to it as a special rate or a saver rate.

There are often discounts available at hotels for those who are members of certain organisations, such as AAA, AARP, elderly citizens, government employees, members of the military, veterans, hotel employees, hotel stockholders, business travellers, and loyalty programme members. There's a possibility that first-time customers in boutique hotels will receive special discounted rates.

Rooms at a Discount

Hotels frequently have discounted rooms that are not made available to the hotels' usual clientele. This is comparable to the clearance racks that are found in apparel stores. There is typically some sort of flaw that leads the manager to make the decision to keep the room unoccupied. For instance, there may be a stain on the carpet, or there may be one less lamp than there should be.

It will depend on the hotel whether or not you will be able to get a discount on this accommodation. Just enquire, "Do you have any out-of-order rooms? I am open to the idea of staying there if the cost is reasonable."

Negotiating with the Hotel Franchisor

Hilton, for example, is a popular hotel chain. There are numerous websites where you can reserve a room, including the Hilton's main website.

Calling the (800) number will put you directly in contact with their reservation centre. Booking a hotel room over the phone is free, unlike booking a flight.

Perhaps the person you're speaking with can get you a better deal on the room you want to book if you try to bargain with them. Using sweet talk and a few suggestions about booking a cheaper room at a nearby competing hotel might get them to shift you to a lower rate category.

Negotiating with an online travel agency (OTA) differs significantly from doing so with an online franchisor in that any rate reductions achieved through the OTA come at the expense of their profit margin. With a franchisor, any rate reduction is passed on to the hotel, so the franchisor doesn't lose any money.

The OTA, on the other hand, is unconcerned with the hotel you choose as long as you make your reservation through them. In order to get the OTA to lower their prices, you can tell them that you're charging $102 for this hotel, but your competitor's OTA is offering only $98.

The franchisor, on the other hand, loses all revenue if you switch from one of their member properties to an unaffiliated property. Because of this, they should be more aware of the importance of making deals in order to secure new clients.

The franchisor may be the most eager to make a deal with you because they are most concerned with selling rooms at a reasonable price to the public. When it comes down to it, the hotel only has to pay 50 cents to give you a $10 discount because they only have to pay 5 percent commision on $90. Rather than losing $5 in revenue, they'd prefer to see it go to a member property, and they'd be content if the booking went to that property. It's possible that the property will switch to a different franchise/brand if they don't give their members a lot of reservations.

That's unlike the situation with both hotels and travel agents, where every dollar of discount they give you potentially costs them as much as the amount that you get.

To be fair, there's an exception to this rule, and it's all about "verbal judo" on the part of the hotel in order to change their perception.

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Negotiating with the Hotel Directly

First of all, to state a perhaps obvious fact. You can't negotiate a hotel rate (or much else) in writing. You need to talk, interactively, on the phone. So don't email or write or fax. Pick up the phone.

In theory, you'd think that the best place to get the cheapest rate on a hotel room would be going directly to the hotel itself.

Sometimes this is true - the classic concept of the 'blackboard special' rate - a special low rate advertised on a blackboard/sandwich board outside the entrance to the hotel is a time-honoured example of a hotel discounting its rate deeply, particularly for bookings for the same night.

But these days, particularly when phoning the hotel sometime prior to the actual date you plan to arrive, it seems far from uncommon to be quoted a higher rate than what you can find on other websites.

This is - on the face of it - crazy, and the reason is in part, indeed due to craziness and in part due to calculated greed.

Now, remember back to the calculation we did before. For every $100 of a hotel nightly rate, it is a reasonable approximation to estimate that the company selling you the hotel room is probably getting $10 - $15 (sometimes considerably more, occasionally a bit less) and probably there may be another middle man or other costs to the actual hotel or perhaps another $5.

In other words, hotels are typically selling their room nights through various types of distribution systems with about a 20% discount - again, with plenty of exceptions in terms of margins, both up and down.

Now here's the thing: Keeping to the example of a $100/nt room rate for which the hotel gets only $80 for, don't you think the hotel would prefer to get a full $90 from you directly, rather than to receive only $80 from its distribution network? That would give them an extra $10, and it would save you $10 at the same time. You'd both win.

I've very regularly been confronted with more extreme examples. The hotel might say its rooms cost $100/nt, but online - even on their own corporate/franchisor website, I can see the same room for $90/nt (which the hotel would get about $72 for). You would think the hotel would be delighted to accept $85 for the room - that is much more than it would get if the room were purchased online through another outlet, and it is also, of course, $85 more than it would get if no room were purchased at all.

So here's where the verbal judo comes in.

Using Verbal Judo to Get the Best Rate

If you say 'I am calling to ask for a discount' your call will be an unwelcome one. But if you say 'I bet this is the first call you've received today from someone offering to pay you more than you normally get for a room' wouldn't that be a surprise to the hotel staff?

Say to them - 'look, I saw your rooms being sold on (whatever travel site) for $90 a night, and I'm guessing, if they are selling the rooms for $90 a night to me, they are only paying you about $70 for the room, right?'

Pause at this point and give them a chance to agree with you. If the person says 'I don't know' or anything less than a sensible/positive response which shows they understand how things work and are willing, being honest, and open with you, you've found out something very valuable - you're speaking to the wrong person. Ask to be transferred to the reservation manager or duty manager.

When you've found someone who understands this very basic bit of hotel marketing, continue 'Why don't we do a win-win deal, so that you get more than $70 while I pay less than $90? Can we split the difference and you sell the room to me for $80? That means I save a bit, and you get $10 more than normal, while also creating a direct relationship with an appreciative customer who will probably keep coming back in the future?'

If the person says something like 'We're not allowed to undercut our retailers' you could say 'I understand that. Maybe there's some other way we could make a win-win deal. Could you sell me at the standard/run-of-house room rate, but give me an upgraded room?'

Alternatively, you could ask for breakfasts to be included or anything else at all that has some value to you.

The key bit of verbal judo here is that you're not asking them to give you a discount. Instead, you are inviting them to accept your kind offer to pay them more money than normal.

Talking to the Right Person at the Hotel

The rhetorical question you should ask about the nett return a hotel receives from an online booking site touched on this already.

In a broader sense, you must pay attention to the audience you're speaking to. Has a long line formed at the front desk because of the high volume of people checking out at 9 am (as an example), or is it just one person? They'll just say 'No' to you so they can get back to dealing with the impatient people waiting in front of them if you happen to run into them at a busy time.

Alternatively, it could be a sleazy low-level reservationist who only has the authority to deny your requests rather than grant them.

Do you have any idea? Does the hotel have a reservation option, as well as other options for the front desk, and so on, when you call? Is it possible that you've reached someone, but you have no idea who it is?

The first thing you should do if you get through to someone is ask if they can help you or if they need you to be transferred to a reservations department. "I've got some questions about your hotel and your rooms and your rates," you can say if they say they can help. Would it be better if I called you back, or if we could talk now?'

To get someone to offer to talk for an extended period of time, you can use a technique known as verbal judo.

If you are transferred to reservations, try to engage the person in conversation for a few sentences to determine whether or not they are a sensible, helpful, and proactive individual. It is possible to ask a question about amenities that may or may not be included (e.g. 'Do you have Wi-Fi or cable Internet?').

For example, you might say something like, "I'm thinking about staying on these dates; do you still have good availability or not?". I think that's an excellent question to ask, as it will help determine whether or not they have any specials for that time period. 'Oh, does that mean you're now only selling at full rack rate, or do you still have other rates available?' could be a similar question if they have limited availability. You've now used verbal judo in both cases to shift the conversation to discounts.

However, if the person's voice doesn't appeal to you, simply say, 'That's great, thank you for your help.' and move on. I'd like to make a strange request, one that would necessitate paying you more money than usual for a room. Let me know if there's anyone you can recommend who can help me out.'

However, you do not want the person who transfers your call to say to whoever you talk to next, "I've got this mean, nasty person demanding to speak to a manager who will give them a low rate, even though I've already refused to do so.". In this situation, the manager is more likely to support their employee than to overrule them. But the way you phrased your introduction, you sound like a nice guy, and the person transferring can't say anything bad about you.

Should You Feel Embarrassed at Asking to Speak to a Manager?

So there you are, wanting to book a short two-night stay at a hotel; let's say their offer to you is $135/night and you're hoping to save a few dollars on the rate.

Maybe you might worry that this is too trivial a matter for a duty manager or reservations manager to bother about. Indeed, if all you might get is $5 - 10 off the rate (i.e., for a two-night stay, $10 - $20 in total) maybe it isn't even worth your while either?

Not so! The time it will take to have this discussion represents maybe five minutes maximum, and probably only three minutes. Think about this from both the hotel manager's perspective and your perspective.

For the hotel manager, he or she has spent three or four minutes and has managed to generate $250 or more of new business for the hotel (plus all the extra money from meals, drinks, internet, and so on that they'll get from you too).

That means his hourly rate equates to something like earning $3750/hour if all he did all day was to handle calls such as yours. That's a brilliant earnings rate that should delight the manager and his boss, too.

And as for you, your four or five minutes of time has saved you $10 or maybe $20 - and probably a bit more when you consider that you're not now paying 10% or more taxes on the hotel room rate savings too. Worst case scenario - five minutes saves you $11 - that's the same as $132/hour. Best case scenario - four minutes saves you $22 - that's a $330 hourly rate. Isn't that worth your time, too?

If you have a special request, leave it for later in the phone call. Otherwise, you may be given a more expensive room. You want to know their base rate so you can decide for yourself if whatever addon you want is worth the extra charge.

Once you get a rate you like, ask, "Oh, by the way, will this be an ocean-view room?" If the hotel manager says it's not and that you'll have to pay more for an ocean-view room, you can judge for yourself whether to pay the higher price.

This is also a good time to ask, "Could you throw in the breakfast?" You can also ask for a room upgrade or free parking.

Before you end the call, get your reservation confirmation code and the name of the person on the other end of the phone. These details will help you if there's any confusion or problem with your reservation later.

Conclusion

Hotel rooms don't have to be expensive; there are ways to get the best deals without feeling guilty about your trip. Read on for their tips on when and what kind of hotels to look for in order to get a good deal, and where to find hidden discounts. Identify your travel dates and enquire as to whether the hotel has room for you. Maintain a respectful and professional demeanour at all times. L'barza Services Apartments is here to answer any questions you may have about staying in a hotel.

Inquire as to if there are any special deals or discounts available at the hotel. Shifting when you travel can have a significant impact on the total amount you spend. There's a possibility that first-time customers in boutique hotels will receive special discounted rates. Booking a hotel room over the phone is free, unlike booking a flight. Using sweet talk and a few suggestions about booking a cheaper room at a nearby competing hotel might get them to shift you to a lower rate category.

The franchisor loses all revenue if you switch from one of their member properties to an unaffiliated property. If you're looking for stress-free corporate accommodation, look no further than L'barza Apartments. For every $100 of a hotel nightly rate, the company selling you the room is probably getting $10 - $15 (sometimes considerably more, occasionally a bit less). Using Verbal Judo to get the best rate for your hotel room. Ask to be transferred to the reservation manager or duty manager.

If the person says 'We're not allowed to undercut our retailers' you could ask for a 'win-win deal'. Talking to the right person at the hotel front desk is key to getting a good deal. Use verbal judo to get them to accept your kind offer to pay them more money than normal. Alternatively, ask for breakfasts to be included or anything else at all that has some value to you. Asking to speak to a hotel manager can generate $250 or more of new business for the hotel.

The time it will take represents maybe five minutes maximum, and probably only three minutes. Think about this from both the hotel manager's perspective and your perspective. If you have a special request, leave it for later in the phone call. You may be given a more expensive room. Before you end the call, get your reservation confirmation code and the name of the person on the other end of the phone. These details will help you if there's any confusion with your reservation.

Content Summary

1. To save money on your next vacation, read on for their tips on when to book a hotel room and where to find hidden discounts.
2. Don't give up on a hotel room just because the listed price is too high.
3. You need to know when and where to go and what kind of hotels to look for in order to get the best deal.
4. Schedule your trip for the low season to score the best deals on hotel rooms.
5. Choosing a HotelStart by asking around.
6. If your friends or family members have been able to negotiate prices with a particular hotel in the past successfully, chances are you should be able to do the same.
7. As soon as you know your travel dates, call the hotel to enquire about availability.
8. Identify your travel dates and enquire as to whether the hotel has room for you.
9. If this is the case, get a price quote for a room.
10. Make a deal with the manager if he or she is willing to lower the room rate.
11. Then enquire about lower-priced rooms that may become available in the future.
12. The best way to find out if a hotel's published rates are the best deal is to enquire about them.
13. Make sure you get the best deal.
14. Is that the best price you can offer?"
15. You might also try bringing up other hotels that are competitors of the hotel in question and that operate in the same industry.
16. What do you think about giving me $150 for the night if you are able to afford it?"Adjust the Dates as NeededAsk the manager of the hotel if you have any wiggle room in your schedule "Is it a period when guests typically stay at the hotel, and if so, how busy is it?
17. One such strategy you can use is to book a room for two nights initially, and then inform the front desk that you are willing to extend your stay to three nights if they can offer you a better deal.
18. Unique Deals and DiscountsInquire as to if there are any special deals available.
19. It's possible that the hotel will refer to it as a special rate or a saver rate.
20. Rooms at a DiscountHotels frequently have discounted rooms that are not made available to the hotels' usual clientele.
21. It will depend on the hotel whether or not you will be able to get a discount on this accommodation.
22. Just enquire, "Do you have any out-of-order rooms?
23. There are numerous websites where you can reserve a room, including the Hilton's main website.
24. Booking a hotel room over the phone is free, unlike booking a flight.
25. Negotiating with an online travel agency (OTA) differs significantly from doing so with an online franchisor in that any rate reductions achieved through the OTA come at the expense of their profit margin.
26. With a franchisor, any rate reduction is passed on to the hotel, so the franchisor doesn't lose any money.
27. The franchisor may be the most eager to make a deal with you because they are most concerned with selling rooms at a reasonable price to the public.
28. That's unlike the situation with both hotels and travel agents, where every dollar of discount they give you potentially costs them as much as the amount that you get.
29. Negotiating with the Hotel DirectlyFirst of all, to state a perhaps obvious fact.
30. You can't negotiate a hotel rate (or much else) in writing.
31. In theory, you'd think that the best place to get the cheapest rate on a hotel room would be going directly to the hotel itself.
32. This is - on the face of it - crazy, and the reason is in part, indeed due to craziness and in part due to calculated greed.
33. Now here's the thing: Keeping to the example of a $100/nt room rate for which the hotel gets only $80 for, don't you think the hotel would prefer to get a full $90 from you directly, rather than to receive only $80 from its distribution network?
34. You would think the hotel would be delighted to accept $85 for the room - that is much more than it would get if the room were purchased online through another outlet, and it is also, of course, $85 more than it would get if no room were purchased at all.
35. But if you say 'I bet this is the first call you've received today from someone offering to pay you more than you normally get for a room' wouldn't that be a surprise to the hotel staff?Say to them - 'look, I saw your rooms being sold on (whatever travel site) for $90 a night, and I'm guessing, if they are selling the rooms for $90 a night to me, they are only paying you about $70 for the room, right?'Pause at this point and give them a chance to agree with you.
36. If the person says 'I don't know' or anything less than a sensible/positive response which shows they understand how things work and are willing, being honest, and open with you, you've found out something very valuable - you're speaking to the wrong person.
37. Ask to be transferred to the reservation manager or duty manager.
38. When you've found someone who understands this very basic bit of hotel marketing, continue 'Why don't we do a win-win deal, so that you get more than $70 while I pay less than $90?
39. Can we split the difference and you sell the room to me for $80?
40. Alternatively, you could ask for breakfasts to be included or anything else at all that has some value to you.
41. The key bit of verbal judo here is that you're not asking them to give you a discount.
42. Instead, you are inviting them to accept your kind offer to pay them more money than normal.
43. Talking to the Right Person at the HotelThe rhetorical question you should ask about the nett return a hotel receives from an online booking site touched on this already.
44. In a broader sense, you must pay attention to the audience you're speaking to.
45. Do you have any idea?
46. Does the hotel have a reservation option, as well as other options for the front desk, and so on, when you call?
47. Is it possible that you've reached someone, but you have no idea who it is?The first thing you should do if you get through to someone is ask if they can help you or if they need you to be transferred to a reservations department. "
48. Would it be better if I called you back, or if we could talk now?'To get someone to offer to talk for an extended period of time, you can use a technique known as verbal judo.
49. If you are transferred to reservations, try to engage the person in conversation for a few sentences to determine whether or not they are a sensible, helpful, and proactive individual.
50. However, if the person's voice doesn't appeal to you, simply say, 'That's great, thank you for your help.'
51. 'However, you do not want the person who transfers your call to say to whoever you talk to next, "I've got this mean, nasty person demanding to speak to a manager who will give them a low rate, even though I've already refused to do so.".
52. But the way you phrased your introduction, you sound like a nice guy, and the person transferring can't say anything bad about you.
53. Should You Feel Embarrassed at Asking to Speak to a Manager?So there you are, wanting to book a short two-night stay at a hotel; let's say their offer to you is $135/night and you're hoping to save a few dollars on the rate.
54. And as for you, your four or five minutes of time has saved you $10 or maybe $20 - and probably a bit more when you consider that you're not now paying 10% or more taxes on the hotel room rate savings too.
55. Best case scenario - four minutes saves you $22 - that's a $330 hourly rate.
56. Isn't that worth your time, too?If you have a special request, leave it for later in the phone call.
57. You want to know their base rate so you can decide for yourself if whatever addon you want is worth the extra charge.
58. Once you get a rate you like, ask, "Oh, by the way, will this be an ocean-view room?"
59. If the hotel manager says it's not and that you'll have to pay more for an ocean-view room, you can judge for yourself whether to pay the higher price.
60. You can also ask for a room upgrade or free parking.
61. Before you end the call, get your reservation confirmation code and the name of the person on the other end of the phone.
62. These details will help you if there's any confusion or problem with your reservation later.