Some people just book the regular rate, some people just book the internet rates, some people get packages. I believe the easiest way to get a deal at a hotel is at the last minute on the internet. The way the hotel works is at a certain point they sell only high rates, when they have figured out that they will not be able to sell out with the high rates, they open up the floodgates for the cheap rates such as Priceline, Hotels.com, Hotwire.com or one of the many other hundreds of travel discount websites. Don’t get me wrong these websites are great for last minute business as it gives the hotel a strong push to sell out often.

So, naturally the question that arises is “how do I get the best rates.” What is the best deal of the day? The answer is with due diligence on the internet. If price is your only concern when booking then the internet is the way to go. I recommend finding hotels that are not particularly busy on the night and book through the internet booking engines. If a hotel is busy they are going to mark up the rates and not offer the great deals. If a hotel is slow, they let the booking engines sell rooms for pretty much no profit. In the industry there is a saying that we just need to get “heads in beds”. This is the philosophy that no matter how cheap the rate is, it is better to have people in the hotel at worthless rates, then have nothing at all.

The downside to looking only for the cheapest rooms is missing out on the rewards clubs and upgrades. The truth of the matter is, that if you are only booking rooms on the internet for price, then you probably have never stayed in a nice room. It is of not advantage of the hotel to upgrade price-hunters and people with no loyalty. What a hotel chain is looking for is loyalty, someone they can have back and isn’t just there for the cheap room. So, if you book your room for a great rate 2 hours before you show up, do not expect a room on a high floor, with a great view, with even the bed configuration that you want. You get what you pay for.

Finding deals in the travel industry has never been easier. There are a million travel websites, including some cool new one deal at a time sites that offer the craziest deals on cruises, flights, rooms, etc… It is a travelers market right now. If you want to go somewhere make sure you check numerous sources on the internet, because just because they say low rate guaranteed, does not mean that that is the lowest rate. Good luck finding those deals.