Did you know... Part 2

For Nate, and anyone else who is looking for hotel discounts:

If you are a government employee (or veteran, or retired employee, or currently in the military), ask what the government rate is. Even if you aren't traveling on the government's dime, most places will give you the rate. But, don't ask what the government rate is until AFTER you've found out the regular rate. In some places, the government per diem is actually higher than what the hotel would normally charge, so you might actually end up with a higher rate. This applies to both federal and state employees. But be aware that federal and state rates may be different. And be prepared to show government ID.

Go online. Most chains have the same price online as they do for walk-ins. But try sites like travelocity and priceline. If they have a cheaper rate quoted, call the hotel directly and see if they'll honor it. It is ALWAYS beneficial for the hotel to honor that rate rather than have you book it through the third-party site. (These sites charge you one rate, but actually pay the hotel even less than that. So, for example, if you pay travelocity $65, they might only pay me $55. I'm better off honoring travelocity's $65 quote, even if that rate is lower than my regular $80 rate. Make sense?) It is also beneficial for you to book directly through the hotel rather than through the third-party site. I can't tell you how many times guests' credit cards are charged by the third-party site and also by the hotel. It shouldn't happen, and it's the hotel's fault if it does, but still, just avoid the hassle. However, be prepared to show proof of the quoted rate. People who come into my hotel and say "But I saw an ad for $49" never get a $49 rate. Know why? Because I KNOW that no such ad exists.

Take into consideration the extras the hotel offers. If you're traveling with your family, and get a killer deal at a hotel with no breakfast, then you still have to pay for breakfast for your family. You can do this pretty inexpensively, of course, by stopping at a grocery store instead of a restaurant, but still, take it into consideration. Also consider whether the hotel charges for internet access, if that's important to you.

Look for coupons. The best ones I've seen are actually in travel guides found at truck stops and rest stops. There are two different booklets I'm aware of in our area, one is called RoomSavers and the other is called Travel Coupon Guide. These have coupons for lots of hotels along the major freeway corridors across several states. But be aware that the rates on the coupons are "walk-in only" and are "based on availability." That means that the hotel might not take an advance reservation for that rate, and if the hotel is very full, they might not honor that rate at all.

And just a side note. It's really irritating when someone comes in and asks what our rates are, then when the rates I quote him (or her) are higher than the coupon, they pull it out with this triumphant little flourish and say, "But that's not what your coupon says." No kidding. It's a coupon. You don't get that rate unless you have the coupon. Don't act like you've just caught me in a lie. It's like going into the grocery store with a 50 cent-off coupon and doing the same thing. LAME!!!!

And for my friends in other states (Oregon, mostly). Yes, we are aware that in Oregon you don't pay sales tax on hotel rooms (or anything else). But even though you are citizens of that great state, when you are in my great state, you still have to pay tax. The price I quote you does not include the tax. The only place you will find the tax included in the price quoted is at the gas station. So please don't ask me to reduce your rate because you didn't know you'd have to pay tax, and you think the price I quote should be the final price. That would be nice, but it doesn't work that way. Is this really the only place you've purchased anything at all since you left Oregon? Did you try that tactic at the restaurant you ate lunch at in Idaho? Did it work? Yeah, I didn't think so.

(Can you tell what I recently experienced at work?)

Yes, back to discounts. You can also ask if there is a manager's special. Usually the manager's special will be a discount on your room rate. Sometimes it might be meal credit at the hotel restaurant. But there is usually a special of some kind. And if not, well, at least you asked.

You are much more likely to get a discount, or a free upgrade to a nicer room, if you are nice to the desk clerk. Remember, they know which rooms are recently renovated, and which rooms have leaky toilets that will likely leave you with wet feet in the middle of the night (okay, so any decent place would have a room like that out of commission, but you get the point).