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October 22, 2007

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My wife and I are going to be staying at a hotel this weekend. We have a reservation, but I think I'll try this (as long as I can remember).

Allways ask for discounts , AAA,Military .any thing you can think of

After trying this, just wait to see how helpful hotel staff are...

Every reservation I've made requires me to cancel it by a certain time--5 or 6 p.m., or maybe even the day before, or face a one-night room and tax penalty.

So this strategy is only effective if you can walk in while you still have the option to cancel your reservation without penalty.

Has anyone ever tried, "Name Your Price" on priceline.com.
I needed to find a hotel in downtown Chicago two weeks ago and the absolute cheapest I could find in a halfway decent hotel was $230 (taxes included) @ the Best Western River North. Then I heard about this priceline.com strategy. You name the price you want to pay for the room. There is a catch however (isn't there always)
1. You choose a hotel rating (ie. 1 star, 2 star, 3 star, 4 star)
2. You choose a certain area you want to stay in (looks like a couple mile square radius)
3. You give your credit card # prior to knowing what hotel they pick. If they can book the room for your price you are immediately charged and cannot cancel the reservation.

Now I know that last one sounds bad, but here's how it worked for me. I put my the price I wanted to pay as $100 with a 3 star rating. Priceline charges $23 in fees and taxes. But it booked me a room in the 4 Star Sheraton along the Chicago River. By far the nicest hotel I've ever stayed in. The process was smooth and ended up not only saving me $100 but I stayed in a much much nicer hotel then the Best Western. Oh and I should also mention I booked this room a day before my stay and from what I've heard, you have better success booking this in the morning than in the evening.

Eric - thanks for the info. I have been leery to try Priceline since you don't know what you're getting until after, but I might have to try that next time. I went to Chicago last year and paid about $100 a night for a hotel by Midway. It worked out since it was close to the train, but staying downtown would have been nicer.

Pretty cool I was quoted. Something to hang my cap on. :o)

Mel, I see your point, but that isn't what I was going for. I am not suggesting you make a reservation and jump around from hotel to hotel the night you are supposed to be staying over. Instead, it's just a quick and painless way of seeing if Marriot [fill in the blank] is willing to work with you. You were happy enough at $119/night to reserve the room to begin with, now all it takes is a quick question about the cost of the room as if you were off the street and if they tell you $109, then they must certainly will give you the lower price as it has worked for me.


As a hotel desk cleck my self this is probelly a good idea. We do not normally charge no shows, unless the entire hotel is booked, and espically if you come in late at night just try asking for a discount. I would rather sell you a room for a discount then have you walk out the door.

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