How to Book Last Minute Hotel Deals

How I find hotel deals for last minute trips

Do you love a spontaneous weekend away, I sure do.  Sometimes you just have to get out of town for the weekend.  Whether you are going to get away from the crowds or get lost in them, here is how I book last minutes trips.

Decide on a place or a few places that sound fun and do a quick check in that area.  Get on booking.com and do a quick search to see that there are available rooms, if there is a box that comes up that says something like 78% of places to stay are unavailable, you might want to pick somewhere else or just know that prices will be a little higher.  There might be some sort of event going on that weekend, or its just high travel season.  We usually find the best rates in the swing seasons.  I’ve booked a room that usually goes for over $600 for $250, and ones that are $350-$400 for $150/night.

Here’s how to fin that hotel deal

Try to find a location that you want to go to that that isn’t super booked.  Check booking.com if no warning sign comes up you probably have a good chance.

If it looks like there are lots of rooms and some are within your price range, plan on heading out.

If you’re going with someone else, get in the car and start driving.  One of you can book while the other drives.  If you’re going solo, book your place and then start driving.

Look at hotels tonight and one or two other sites and see what deals they are offering in the area.  If something looks good read the details and then call the hotel.  Hotels have to pay those sites a fee if rooms are booked through them, so if you call the hotel directly you can sometimes get a better deal.  Call and ask what deals they have for the night, mention the price online and ask if it is better if you book direct.  Depending on the size of the hotel and who answers the phone you might get a better deal or they might give you the same price but offer you an upgraded room.

Don’t be disocuraged if the first place doesn’t work, keep trying a few more and you’ll find a deal.

They say their prices are higher and you have to book online to get that deal.  You can always go online and book, call another hotel or ask if you can speak to the manager.  Sometimes the person answering the phone doesn’t have the authority to offer any deals.  Often really big hotel chains will beat the lowest advertised price by 5% and at small hotels the person who answers the phone might be the manager or owner.  You can also ask if they have any specials that they are offering right now.  Once I called a hotel and just asked about specials and they said, oh yes, we have a fall saving of 20%, the price dropped by $50 right away.

If the first one didn’t work, try another one.  Remember you can always call the first one back again.

I usually try to book ones that are normally out of my budget and see if I can get a deal.  If not, no biggie, I checked before I left and know there are hotels available that I can afford.

This doesn’t work as well for trip that you plan around an event.  For example if going to Jazz Fest in New Orleans, I would probably book a place to as soon as possible, know that it’s going to be booked and rate will just get higher.

Good luck and happy travels!